Grilled Sanma

 

The humidity of summer is finally disappearing, replaced by a slight chill in the air at times and announcing the arrival of what the Japanese call shokuyoku no aki（食欲の秋）. This roughly translates to “the season for eating,” an apt description for the renewed appetite that the cooler temperatures bring.

Grilled with a light sprinkling of salt, the fatty, tender flesh of this fish is symbolic of autumn for many Japanese. It’s super simple and makes a tasty meal when eaten with a steaming bowl of rice.  I’ll admit this isn’t for everyone but I encourage you to at least try it once!

Ingredients

1 Sanma- also known as Pacific Saury (I prefer the pieces with the head and tail already cut off)

Few pinches of salt

A dash of rice wine (optional)

Grated daikon and soy sauce, sudachi or lemon (optional)

 

Method

1. If using, drizzle a bit of rice wine (1-2 teaspoons) on both sides of the fish. Season the fish by sprinkling a pinch of salt on each side of the fish. To season evenly, sprinkle from 20cm above – don’t rub it!
2. Leave for 5-10 minutes.  (You can skip this if you don’t have time but it adds to the flavour).
3. Grill for 4 minutes on med-high or until the skin is golden. Turn it over and grill for a further 1-2 minutes or until the skin is crispy and brown.
4. Serve as is, with a squeeze of sudachi or with some grated daikon (white radish) and soy sauce.

Notes

• Sudachi is a small, hard, green Japanese citrus fruit but you can substitute it with lemon. It can usually be found in the fruit and vegetable section, but also near the fish section during autumn.
• There are many fine bones which can be a bit tricky to pick out. I’m not brave enough to try this, but an ALT friend of mine says she eats the fine bones now after being chided by a student for being wasteful when she carefully picked them all out.
• The small fish grill found under Japanese gas stoves makes grilling fish super easy. Place foil under the rack if you’re lazy like me and want to save on washing up.

 

A slightly overdue self-introduction

My name is Helen and I am a third year Osaka (apparently honorary Hyogo) JET from Australia. I come from a Taiwanese background and so perhaps it was inevitable that I was brought up with a great love for food, be it eating or making it.

I enjoy experimenting with local ingredients, but I know it can be a bit daunting too. I hope the recipes I share here encourage you to incorporate more Japanese ingredients and techniques into your cooking and make the most of the fresh seasonal produce available here.

 

 

Helen Yuan