February Seasonal Japanese Seafood ２月旬の魚

ankimo monkfish liver

February is one of the coldest months in Japan, so it is a wonderful time for hot pots (nabé). Monkfish (ankō) is one of Shinji's favorite types of nabé. We always save the liver and serve it separately. Ankimo is often called the foie gras of the sea. It's very easy to steam - see a simple recipe here. Wakasagi is nice lovely when lightly battered and deep-fried.

As the waters are very cold this year, and as fish get ready to spawn in spring, they are rich with fat. This translates well into dishes like sashimi and nabé.

hotaru ika

Some of the local seafood we look for this time of year include hotaru-ika and shira-ebi from Toyama Bay in the Sea of Japan. In Hokkaido there is of course cod (matara), ankō, and a very unusual fish called gokkō. Gokkō is a local fish in Hokkaido that is often used for nabé.

cod roe

cod milt with Urakasumi saké

As for matara (Pacific cod), there are so many delicious parts of it, from the meat to the shirako (milt) and matara no ko (roe). Milt is a delicacy, and for some, an acquired taste.

Kanburi at Himi Port in Toyama

Hokkaido wild buri sashimi

As for sashimi, we love kinmedai, hirame, kanburi and tairagai. If you get a fresh kawahagifor sashimi, save the liver, mash it in a mortar and pestle, and add it to some ponzu for a creamy dipping sauce. Shijimi miso soup is a wonderful way to start any day. Best of all may be all the succulent crabs that are in season like taraba-gani, benizuwai-gani and zuwai-gani.

A classic winter dish is buri daikon. (recipe here)

If you click on the Japanese name of the seafood you should be directed to a link with a photo.

Akagarei 赤鰈 flathead flounder (Hippoglossoides dubius)

Akōdai 赤魚鯛 rockfish (Sebastes matsubarae)

Amadai 赤甘鯛 tilefish (Branchiostegus japonicus)

Ankō 鮟鱇 monkfish (Lophiomus setigerus)

Ankimo - monkfish liver

Benizuwaigani 紅楚蟹  red snow crab (Chionoecetes japonicus)

Buri 鰤 Japanese yellowtail (Seriola quinqueradiata)

Fugu 真河豚 blowfish or pufferfish (Takifugu porphyreus)

Gokko 布袋魚 smooth lumpsucker (Aptocyclus ventricosus)

Hamaguri 浜栗  common Orient clam (Meretrix lusoria)

Hata hata鰰  sailfin sandfish (Arctoscopus japonicus)

Hirame 鮃 olive flounder (Paralichthys olivaceus)

Hokke 𩸽arabesque greenling (Pleurogrammus azonus)

Honmaguro 本鮪 bluefin tuna (Thunus thynnus)

* also called kuromaguro

Hotate帆立貝scallops (Patinopecten yessoensis)

Houbou 魴gurnard (Chelidonichthys spinosus)

Iidako 飯蛸ocellated octopus (Octopus ocellatus)

Kaki 牡蠣 oyster (Crassostrea gigas)

Kanburi 寒鰤 winter Japanese amberjack (see buri) (Seriola quinqueradiata)

* The port of Himi in Toyama is famous for its kanburi.

Kasago 笠子 scorpionfish (Sebastiscus marmoratus)

Kawahagi 皮剥 thread-sail filefish  (Stephanolepis cirrhifer)

Kinki 黄血魚 thornhead (Sebastolobus macrochir)

Kinmedai 金目 (sometimes called kinme) splendid alfonsino (Beryx splendens)

Madai 真鯛 seabream (Pagurus major)

Matara 真鱈 codfish (Gadus macrocephalus)

Matsuba gani 松葉蟹spiny crab (Hypothalassia armata)

Matsukawa 松皮鰈 barfin flounder (Verasper moseri)

Mekajiki  女旗魚  swordfish (Xiphias gladias)

Mirugai海松食geoduck (Tresus keenae)

Mizudako水蛸 North Pacific giant octopus (Octopus dofleini)

Mutsu gnomefish (Scombrops boops)

Namako生子sea cucumber (Stichopus japonica)

Nametagarei婆鰈slime flounder (MIicrostomus achne)

Nishin鰊  Pacific herring (Clupea pallasii)

Saba鯖Pacific mackerel (Scomber japonicus)

Sawara 鰆 Japanese Spanish mackerel (Scomberomorus niphonius)

Shijimi 大和蜆 corbicula clams (Corbicula japonica)

Shiraebi 白海老glass shrimp (Pasiphaea japonica)

Shirako milt from fugu or tara

Shirauo白魚whitefish or ice goby (Salangichthys microdon)

Tairagai 平貝  penshell (Atrina (Servatrina) pectinata)

Tara 真鱈 codfish (Gadus macrocephalus)

Tarabagani 鱈場蟹 Alaskan king crab (Paralithodes camtschaticus)

Tsubugai つぶ貝 whelk  (Buccinum undatum)

Umazurahagi 馬面剥 filefish scraper (Thamnaconus modestus)

Wakasagi若細魚Japanese smelt  (Hypomesus nipponensis)

Yanagi dako 柳蛸 chestnut octopus (Octopus conispadiceus)

Yari ika 槍烏賊 spear squid (Loligo (Heterololigo) bleekeri)

Zuwaigani 頭矮蟹 snow crab (Chionoecetes opilio)

Madara Pacific Cod 101 真鱈

Nabé with cod (small filets on the bottom) 

A popular winter dish in Japan that is really easy to prepare, is hot pot (nabé 鍋). Just cook any vegetables, meat, or fish you like in a hot broth, usually a simple kombu dashi, for about 10 minutes. When you smell the nice aroma of the ingredients, it is ready to serve. In Japan we have small, portable gas grills that are used on the dining room table so that the nabé is always hot and diners can continue to add vegetables and other ingredients to the pot as needed. Serve with your favorite  dipping sauces like a citrusy soy sauce (ponzuポン酢) or a creamy sesame paste sauce (gomadare ゴマだれ), and dip the cooked ingredients in the dipping sauces and enjoy. Nabé will wrap you up with warmness and a lot of nutrition in cold winters. In Japan, there are many kinds of nabé dishes as there are many types of seafood and meat.

The representative fish for nabé, which is very well known worldwide, is cod (madara 真鱈 Gadus macrocephalus). 

Cod nabé ingredients

Madara (Pacific cod) is a winter delicacy for Japanese people. Cod flesh is delicate and flaky with a light flavor. The bones contribute to a good broth. Cod goes with any kind of sauce, and moreover, it is a very affordable fish. 

You can buy cod at any supermarket in Japan. I would like to give you some tips when choosing cod at your supermarket.

The first thing you should know is that madara spoils rather fast, and has a parasite (anisakis), so that you will not be able to buy cod as sashimi. All of the cod you buy at supermarkets has to be cooked before serving. It is usually sold as portion cuts. See the pictures below. 

However, there could be high-end restaurants that serve very fresh, air-shipped Japanese cod sashimi that is cured with kelp (kombu 昆布), a special technique called the kobujimé method. (Note – while kelp is called kombu in Japanese, the kelp-curing method is called kobujimé, without an “m”.)

解凍 kaitou = defrosted

甘塩たら切り身 amajio tara kirimi =  filets of lightly salted cod

甘塩 amajio =  lightly salted

たら tara =  Pacific cod

切り身  kirimi =  portion cuts

アメリカ産 Amerika san = product of America

ムニエル、フライでもどうぞ = suggested for meuniere or deep-fried

加工日 kakoubi = date the supermarket cut the filet and labeled it

消費期限 shouhikigen = expiration date (should be consumed no later than this date)

北海道 = Hokkaido 

生真たら Nama Matara =  fresh Pacific cod

Can you tell which filet was lightly salted and frozen prior and which is fresh?

The top photo is amajio or lightly salted. The bottom photo is fresh. You can tell by the color of the flesh, the fresh cod is transparent while the lightly salted cod is opaque. Also, the bloodline, which is the bit of red in the middle of the flesh, should be bright red in fresh fish while frozen and defrosted cod will lose this color.

Fresh Japanese cod (matara 真たら、madara 真鱈、nama tara 生たら) and  Salted Alaskan cod (amajiotara 甘塩たら)

Cod season in Japan is from November to March. You can buy very nice fresh cod during this period. Usually, the fish is caught and sent to markets whole or as fillets. There used to be ikijimé processed (killed immediately after harvested by breaking the spinal chord and removing the blood from the fish) line-caught cod from Miyagi and Ibaraki prefectures. However, the number has dramatically decreased due to the radiation problems after the Tsunami in March 2011. Now, most fresh cod comes from Hokkaido or Aomori in the northern part of Japan. When you find fresh cod, look for 生  (nama) and  真たら or 真鱈 (madara) or  生たら (namadara) on the package. (Note – the name tara for cod sometimes changes to dara when it is preceded by ma-or nama-.)

Also, defrosted Alaskan cod fillets are available yearlong. It is usually lightly salted.  The processors import tons of whole fish by a reefer ocean container from Alaska. Once in Japan the cod is defrosted and then processed into fillets and then lightly salted. Look for ‘甘塩たら amajio tara’ on the package.

たらこ tarako = (cod roe)

真だらの子 madara no ko =  (Pacific cod roe)

北海道産 Hokkaido san = from Hokkaido

Pacific cod roe

Pacific cod roe cut in half

Pacific cod roe simmered with carrots, Japanese turnips (kabu), and spinach.

Pacific cod roe with shirataki (konnyaku strings) and dried red chili peppers.

Pacific cod roe (真たらこ matarako) and milt (真たら白子 matara shirako)

Surprisingly, it can be hard to believe for non-Japanese, that cod roe and milt are sold at a much higher price than the fillets. These are regarded as winter delicacies more than the flesh. They have very delicate flavors and unique textures. Both are not only put in nabé with the cod flesh, but also the roe is usually served as soup (simmered with kelp broth), or nitsuké (simmered with soy sauce, saké, and mirin), and the milt is lightly boiled in hot water then dipped in a citrus soy sauce (ponzu) garnished with chopped leeks and grated daikon radish. Also, you can deep-fry or sauté the milt.

青森産 = from Aomori

 白子 shirako = Pacific cod milt

真たら matara = Pacific cod

Pacific cod milt

milt simply blanched in hot water and saké

Pacific cod milt lightly blanched so the inside is still raw

topped with grated daikon, yuzu, ponzu, and shichimi

served with Urakasumi Kan-oroshi Tokubetsu Junmaishu from Miyagi

Both roe and milt are usually distributed through December to March from Hokkaido or Aomori prefectures, but the madara shirako has more demand than the supply. As a result, imported air-flown fresh Alaskan cod milt is distributed from late January to March. There is little demand for the product in Alaska, so most of air-flown milt is exported to Japan all the way over the Pacific Ocean. Alaskan milt is almost the half price of the local Hokkaido product. If you can identify and recognize the taste, then you really deserved to be called ‘a king of fishmongers’.


Perhaps you have had miso-marinated and grilled cod at a Japanese restaurant. This dish was made famous by chef Nobuyuki Matsuhisa, better known as Nobu. In Japanese, this dish is called gindara Saikyo-yaki. At many Japanese restaurants this is translated into English as "miso cod". Gindara is black cod, but actually, it is not Pacific cod, it is sablefish Anoplopoma fimbria. Sablefish is a very fatty fish while Pacific cod is not fatty at all.

Sablefish gindara filets after marinating in miso

Miso marinated and grilled sablefish gindara

Buri Daikon

Buri Daikon

This is a classic winter dish in Japan. Buri (yellowtail) is in season at the moment. The dish is actually best when made with ara, which are the small bits and pieces near the head and tail that are often packaged up and sold at a cheaper price than filets. In this dish we used filets as it was all that was at the market and we were craving this dish. The yellowtail pieces are delicate and fall apart. The daikon is also tender and juicy. A bit of ginger adds a gentle heat to the dish. We love this with a warm saké.

1 kg yellowtail

1.5 kg daikon

stock:

3 cups water

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/2 cup mirin (look for hon-mirin)

3 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon soy sauce (reserved to add later)

ginger, julienned for garnish

Peel the daikon and cut into bite-size pieces. If using ara, it needs to be blanched quickly in hot water and then shocked in ice water. If using filets, so need to do this step. The blanching in hot water helps to rid it of some of its fishiness, which we don't see too much in filets.

Put the yellowtail, daikon, and stock in a large pot and simmer. Remove any scum as it comes up. Simmer for about 30 minutes. It is done when you can push a toothpick through the daikon and it is tender.

Turn off the heat and let is cool down in the broth. It is during this time that the flavor seeps into the daikon and yellowtail.

Just before serving, turn the heat onto high. With a spoon, pour some of the stock over the daikon and yellowtail. Add 1 tablespoon of soy sauce. Turn off the heat and put in a serving bowl.

Garnish with some julienned ginger.

Buri and Hamachi Yellowtail 101

Classic Winter Dish of Buri Daikon

Buri is simmered with daikon in a sweet soy broth until both are tender.

Himi Port in Toyama famous for winter kanburi.

These kanburi are at the wholesale fish market which is open to the public.

Kanburi at the retail fish market an hour later. 

Prices range from $100 to over $300 USD.

You can purchase a fish and have it sent to anywhere in Japan.

Kanburi sashimi breakfast at the restaurant on the 2nd floor of the wholesale market.

This restaurant is open to the public.

Shioyaki salt-grilled kanburi.

The miso soup in both meals is made with fish heads and bones for a meaty broth.

Here is everything a Japanese fishmonger (Shinji) wants you to know about buri and hamachi:

Yellowtail (鰤 Buri) is a very popular fish in Japan for sushi and sashimi. There are many recipes to enjoy this precious protein gifted from the ocean.

The wild fish swim up from the south to the north along the main island of Japan. Yellowtail eat a lot of seafood to obtain as much fat as possible in their flesh for energy to bear the cold waters in the north. The best season is from December to February, when the flesh color turns gradationally pink to white. In March, it ends its peak season after spawning. 

Although the wild fish season ends in March, farmed fish is available all-year long. Farmed yellowtail has white flesh with a lot of fat and it is usually delicious. It is called hamachi (farmed yellowtail in Japanese, wild fish=buri, farmed fish=hamachi) and exported all over the world to fill the demand for sashimi, sushi, and grilled as teriyaki.

Wild fish in winter gets as fatty or fattier than farmed fish, and its gorgeous flavor is unbelievably amazing. If you have any chance to try wild fish sized more than 10 kg, from Hokkaido (Tenjyo-buri) in Nov to Dec, Ishikawa (Noto-buri) and Toyama (Himi-buri) in Dec to Feb, you must try it.

You can find frozen yellowtail fillets in the US or other countries, but there is no frozen yellowtail distributed in Japan, so when you buy steaks or sashimi loins in the local supermarkets, they should be fresh. Here are some tips to help you when shopping for yellowtail.

Yellowtail has different names depending on its size. The name also changes regionally.

Kanto Region Names for Yellowtail
Wakashi 10-20 cm
Inada 30-40 cm
Warasa 50-60 cm
Buri 80 cm or more

Kansai Region Names for Yellowtail
Tsubasa or Wakana 10-15 cm
Hamachi 20-40 cm
Mejiro or Inada 50-60 cm
Buri 80 cm or more

Wild or Farmed

The label does not need to show if it is wild, but labeling is required for farmed fish. So If  you see the sign ‘養殖’ (Youshoku, farmed) on the label, it is a farmed fish. Retailers sometimes label the fish as ‘天然’ (Tennen, wild) on the package for wild caught fish, usually with a sticker. If you can tell if the fish is wild or farmed without seeing the sign, it means that you have completed the first step to becoming a fish foodie in Japan.

Hokkaido wild buri sashimi

For Sashimi or Cooking

The label must show ‘刺身用’ (Sashimi-you, for sashimi-grade fish), ’生食用’ (Namashoku-you, if it can be consumed raw) or ‘加熱用’ (Kanetsu-you, for if it needs to be cooked). It is better to check the labeling before you buy the fish. Though it is easy for Japanese people to recognize the usage by checking the portion appearance, but just in case, you should check the label. The ‘刺身用’ label does not mean how fresh the fish is, it just means that the fish was cut under careful hygiene standards for sashimi, using sanitized cutting boards and sashimi knives (yanagiba knife), and the freshness is suitable to consume as raw. So Kanetsu-you ‘加熱用’ labeled fish can be as fresh as Sashimi-you ‘刺身用’ labeled fish. When they cut steaks, they usually use fillet knife (deba knife) which is not usually sanitized very often.

Portions

-Steaks (kirimi 切身)

It is easy to know which part of the fish that the steak cuts come from. You can check the skin color, if black, it is back loin (less fat) and if white, it is belly loin (fattier).

buri back (left) and belly (right)

this is how it would look on the fish

buri steaks back (left) and belly (right)

-Sashimi loin

Firstly, fillets are roughly divided into 2 loins, back or belly. But when the loins are too big to sell, they are cut into upper (head side) portion and lower (tail side) portion. Personally I love the fatty portions, and chose in this order: 1. upper belly 2. upper back 3. lower belly 4. lower back. Usually it is sold without the skin, so that you should learn to know which part is which by the appearance.