1.
shichirin; small portable charcoal grill/brazier
A small, cylindrical charcoal cooking brazier traditionally made of diatomaceous earth (珪藻土). Used in homes and restaurants for grilling fish, meat, and vegetables one piece at a time.
七輪で秋刀魚を焼いた。
I grilled saury on a shichirin.
この店では七輪で肉を焼いて食べる。
At this restaurant you grill the meat yourself on a shichirin.
庭に七輪を出して、家族で魚や野菜を焼いて楽しんだ。
We brought the shichirin out into the garden and had fun grilling fish and vegetables as a family.
Said to come from the older practice of selling enough charcoal for one use at the price of 七厘 (seven rin, a tiny denomination). The diatomaceous-earth body insulates the heat well, allowing strong grilling with little fuel.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 七輪で焼く: to grill on a shichirin
- 七輪焼き: shichirin-grilled (dish style)
- 炭を七輪に入れる: to put charcoal in the shichirin
CULTURAL CONTEXT:
Long associated with home cooking of grilled fish (秋刀魚, 鯵) and now also popular in 焼鳥 and 焼肉 restaurants that serve a personal grill per table.