Grilled mackerel, kabayaki style

By: Tim Anderson
From: JapanEasy
Serves: 4
Photographer: Laura Edwards

Kabayaki is the most common way to prepare eel in Japan, in which the eel is filleted or butterflied, threaded onto thin skewers, soused in a sweet soy sauce glaze and grilled to a delightful crispy-soft texture. Eel, of course, is not the easiest fish to source in the UK, but this method works just as nicely with all manner of other oily, strong-flavoured fish, like sardines or mackerel.

Divinely not difficult

Ingredients

Quantity	Ingredient
2	whole mackerel, gutted
bunch	spring onions, cut in half
150ml	see method for ingredients
	oil, for greasing
1/2	lemon, cut into wedges, to serve
	sansho pepper, to serve (optional
or	Shichimi togarashi, to serve (optional

Method

Score the mackerel on both sides with a sharp knife so that the glaze can penetrate the flesh. Lightly oil a baking tray and place the mackerel on it, with the spring onions on the side. Apply the sweet soy sauce to the surface of the fish liberally and place under a hot grill (broiler) on the highest rack. Re-glaze with the sauce every minute or so, and when the mackerel’s skin is well browned (and blackened in places), carefully turn them over and repeat the process on the other side (if the spring onions are burning, remove them).
When that side is nicely coloured, check to see if the fish is cooked by looking inside its cavity – if the flesh nearest the spine has turned white or grey, it’s done. Serve with a final coating of sweet soy sauce, lemon wedges and sansho pepper or shichimi, if you have it.

Tags:

Grilled mackerel, kabayaki style

Ingredients

Method

Recipes

Books

Authors

Collections

Store

The Feed