Sanma no Kabayaki

Sanma no Kabayaki is a classic Japanese preparation of Pacific saury (sanma) butterflied, grilled over charcoal, and brushed with a sweet-savoury tare of soy sauce, mirin, and sake. The kabayaki technique dates to the Edo period and is most closely associated with eel, but sanma — an inexpensive autumn fish prized for its rich fat — became the people's version of this regal dish.

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 4 whole Pacific saury (sanma) or substitute with mackerel, about 200g (7 oz) each
• Salt for drying
• 1 tbsp (15ml) vegetable oil

Kabayaki tare:

• 60ml (¼ cup) soy sauce
• 60ml (¼ cup) mirin
• 30ml (2 tbsp) sake
• 1 tbsp (15g) sugar

To serve:

• Steamed short-grain rice
• Sansho (Japanese pepper) powder
• Thinly sliced ginger, pickled

Instructions

1. Butterfly each fish by cutting along the belly and flattening open. Remove backbone. Sprinkle lightly with salt and leave for 20 minutes to firm the flesh.
2. Make the tare: combine soy sauce, mirin, sake, and sugar in a small saucepan. Simmer over medium heat for 5–8 minutes, stirring, until reduced by one-third and slightly syrupy. Set aside.
3. Pat fish dry with paper towels. Heat a cast-iron grill pan or charcoal grill to high heat. Brush with oil.
4. Grill fish skin-side down for 3–4 minutes until skin is charred and crisp. Flip and grill flesh-side for 2 minutes.
5. Brush generously with tare. Return skin-side down for 1 minute more so the tare caramelises and chars slightly at the edges. Repeat brushing and brief grilling two more times to build up a lacquered glaze.
6. Serve immediately over steamed rice, dusted with sansho powder, with pickled ginger on the side.

Cook's Notes: Sanma is an intensely fatty fish — this is what makes kabayaki preparation so effective, as the fat bastes the flesh from within. The charred bits from the tare are the best part; do not be alarmed by a little smoke. Leftover tare keeps indefinitely in the refrigerator.