Katsuo Sashimi

Katsuo, called bonito, or as my fishmonger husband says, skipjack tuna, is a meaty fish. It's in the tuna family and is a good fish to try as sashimi if you are looking to go beyond tuna and salmon.

At the market it can be sold raw, as this is, or as tataki where it is seared or cooked over a straw fire until just the edges change color.

We put this over chopped iceberg lettuce and wakamé. It is garnished with garlic sliced thin on the Benriner, grated ginger, and minced shiso. We dress it with soy sauce, sesame oil, and rice wine vinegar.

August Seasonal Japanese Seafood ８月旬の魚

Katsuo tataki

Katsuo sashimi topped with myoga, shiso, and garlic

Katsuo as done by chef Zaiyu Hasegawa at Den

Look for seafood from this list when eating out in Japan or in the supermarkets or at your fishmonger. Most of the seafood listed here you can enjoy as sushi or sashimi. At home we like to have tachiuo as sashimi with a bit of sesame oil and sea salt. Ayu is best salted and grilled. And while we don't cook hamo at home we look forward to having it out at restaurants, especially with a bainiku (umeboshi) dressing. At home we often have katsuo topped with lots of yakumi like shiso, myōga, and garlic then dress it with a soy sauce and sesame oil dressing. Katsuo can be bought raw or seared on the outside as tataki).

Ayu 鮎  sweetfish (Plecoglossus altivelis altivelis)

Dojou 泥鰌 loach (Misgurnus Anguillicaudatus)

Hamo  鱧 pike eel or pike conger (Muraenesox cinereus)

Hiramasa 平政 yellowtail amberjack (Seriola lalandi)

Hoya  ほや sea squirt(Halocynthia roretzi)

Inada 鰍 young amberjack (or yellowtail) (Seriola quinqueradiata)

Stages of buri: wakashi, inada, warasa, buri

Indo maguro Southern Bluefin tuna　

Isaki 伊佐幾 chicken grunt (Parapristipoma trilineatum)

Kanpachi  間八 amberjack or yellowtail (Seriola dumerili)

Katsuo 鰹 skipjack tuna (or bonito) (Katsuwonus pelamis)

Kensaki ika 剣先烏賊 swordtip squid (Loligo edulis)

Kihada maguro 黄肌鮪 yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares)

Kisu 鱚 Japanese whiting (Sillago japonica)*or shirogisu

Kochi 鯒 bartail flathead (Platycephalus)

Koyari ika 小槍烏賊  baby spear squid (Loligo bleekeri)

Kuruma-ebi 車海老 Japanese tiger prawn (Penaeus (Melicertus) japonicus)

Ma-aji 真鯵 Japanese jack mackerel (Trachurus japonicus)

Ma-anago 真穴子 whitespotted conger (saltwater eel) (Conger myriaster)

Ma-iwashi 真鰯  Japanese sardine (Sardinops melanostictus)

Managatsuo 真名鰹 silver pomfret (Pampus punctatissimus)

Ma-tako 真蛸  common octopus (Octopus vulgaris)

Nijimasu 虹鱒 rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss)

Shiira  しいら　鱪 dorado or mahi-mahi (Coryphaena hippurus)

Shima aji  島鯵 striped jack or white trevally (Pseudocaranx dentex)

Shinko (Konoshiro) 鰶 dotted gizzard shad (Konosirus punctatus)

Surumei ika するめいか Japanese common squid (Todarodes pacificus)

Suzuki すずき　鱸 Japanese sea bass (Lateolabrax japonicus)

Tachiuo 太刀魚  cutlassfish (Trichiurus lepturus)

Takabe たかべ yellow-striped butterfish (Labracoglossa argentiventris)

Unagi 鰻 Japanese freshwater eel  (Anguilla japonica)

Seasonal Japanese Seafood - Katsuo Skipjack Tuna

Katsuo Tataki 鰹たたき

Katsuo Tataki pack from the supermarket

Katsuo (skipjack tuna or bonito) is in season twice a year. In the springtime katsuo swims from south to north along the Pacific Coast of Japan to its destination Aomori at the northern tip of Honshu, Japan's biggest island. In the spring katsuo is a lean fish. While swimming north katsuo eats a lot of smaller fish and starts to get fat. By autumn when katsuo swims along the same path to the south it is rich in fat, and that is what treasured by the Japanese this time of year.

Tataki is a very common preparation for katsuo. The outside of a sashimi quality katsuo filet is seared. The katsuo is cut into thick slices and served with a citrusy ponzu sauce. The dish above was purchased at our local department store. If possible, look for fresh katsuo, not previously frozen, for a better texture. Look on the packaging for the kanji for "nama" or raw. If it was previously frozen it will say "reitou". Domestic seafood will be labeled as "kokusan", or will even list the specific prefecture it hails from.

Key kanji on katsuo packaging:

生 nama - raw

冷凍 reitou - frozen

旬 shun - seasonal

刺身用 sashimi you - can be eaten raw

国産 kokusan - domestic

高知 Kochi - a prefecture known for its katsuo

Katsuo Sashimi Herbal Salad 鰹刺身サラダ

Katsuo Sashimi Salad

We love to have sashimi salad throughout the year. This salad above is made with katsuo sashimi. As katsuo is a very meaty and full-flavored fish it can be topped with many different yakumi (condiments). 

Shinji's Katsuo Sashimi Herbal Salad

onions, thinly sliced and rinsed in cold water 

kaiware (daikon sprouts)

myoga, julienned

shiso, chiffonade

garlic, thinly sliced

ginger, julienned

green onions, finely chopped

katsuo sashimi

homemade ponzu

sudachi (Japanese lime)

soy sauce

mirin

Mix the homemade ponzu. Determine which citrus (sudachi, kabosu, lime, or daidai) to use. Overseas this may be hard to find so feel free to use yuzu juice (often sold in bottles at Japanese markets) or another tart citron. Our home recipe is one part each of citrus juice, soy sauce, and mirin. Taste this and then adjust as you like. To make this into a salad dressing then just add some extra-virgin olive oil.

On a large serving platter layer thinly sliced rinsed onions and top with kaiware. Over that layer the sliced katsuo sashimi. Sprinkle the sashimi with the yakumi of myoga, shiso, garlic, ginger, and green onions. Feel free to garnish with thinly sliced sudachi (but only for decoration, not to be consumed).

Just before eating pour the ponzu over the salad. 

This same salad can be made all-year long using tuna or salmon. In the fall another nice fish to use is sanma. And, in spring, the lean katsuo is also nice. Feel free to add other vegetables like bell peppers, carrots, or daikon.

Katsuo and Maguro Sashimi

Here is a photo of katsuo sashimi in the back and tuna sashimi in the front just to see the contrast in color. On the left of the plate is the chiai or bloodline of the katsuo that Shinji rough chopped and mixed with a bit of mayonnaise.

Seafood postings starting from this one will be penned by my husband, Shinji, a former buyer at Tsukiji Market, and myself. We hope to introduce seasonal Japanese seafood to the world.

Katsuo Sashimi Platter

Not confident making sashimi? Do you find it challenging to make thin slices of raw fish for sashimi platters? Katsuo (bonito skipjack) or maguro (tuna) are two fish that are good to start with in the kitchen. These style of meaty fish have dense flesh and easy to work with. Best of all, when making a sashimi plate for a casual meal at home, one needn't concern themselves with presentation.

While I trained as a chef, when it comes to Japanese seafood I let Shinji do all of the work. This dish is one he put together in a few minutes. In Japan sashimi quality fish comes in different shapes and sizes. Katsuo and maguro often come in long saku filets. Best of all, these are boneless and just need to be sliced. Katsuo may be seared on the outside and sold as tataki-katsuo. The inside is still raw and eaten like sashimi.

Simply slice the katsuo in the thick cuts and lay on a plate. Top with roughly chopped leeks. Season with soy sauce. Shinji added a bit of Japanese mayonnaise and mustard on the side. That's it. Quick, easy, and delicious.