STAR-BULLETIN Fresh wasabi is sold stripped of its stems, in 3-to-6-inch pieces for $5 and up. CLICK FOR LARGE

Fresh wasabi, grown locally, makes a tasty but pricey treat

If your only exposure to wasabi has been the bright green stuff squeezed from a tube or mixed from a powder, your first taste of the real thing will be a revelation.

For one thing, it won't shoot pure heat through your nasal cavities like a bullet to the brain.

Fresh wasabi root has bite, but it's way more subtle and clean-flavored than the fake stuff, which is mostly horseradish and artificial coloring. It's a rare find -- and precious, at $100 per pound -- but now a supply is available on Oahu, from Lance Yamashiro's farm in Volcano, on the Big Island.

Wrap it in a wet paper towel, then in plastic, and keep refrigerated. It needs to be finely grated. Serve a small amount on sashimi -- never drown it in soy sauce.

For a taste, visit R. Field Wine Co. in Foodland Beretania and Kailua, from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Saturday.

The wasabi is sold at R. Field, as well as the Saturday Farmers' Market at Kapiolani Community College and Made in Hawaii Foods in Pearl City.