Chef Takumi
Battera (バッテラ, Osaka konbu-pressed mackerel)
Battera looks severe, all straight edges and polished fish, but the work is simple: cure good mackerel, season the rice while warm, then let the press make order.
Culinary Explorer
A cooking platform built around craft, culture, and the stories behind what we eat.
Aji no Tataki (鯵のたたき, Boso chopped horse mackerel)
Created by
Summer horse mackerel, chopped just enough to catch ginger and scallion, becomes a cool, clean main dish with rice. The secret is fresh fish and a knife that does not bruise it.
Main Dishes
Japanese
Weeknight
Comfort Food
25 min
Active Time
0 min cook•25 min total
Yield2 servings
Aji is a summer fish, and when it's glistening fresh it hardly asks to be cooked. That is the whole pleasure of aji no tataki: bright horse mackerel, ginger, scallion, a little shiso, all cut together until the fish holds the seasonings without becoming a paste. You may look at the word sashimi and think this is the advanced corner of the kitchen. It isn't. The hard part is buying well.
Sourcing first, always. Ask for horse mackerel you would eat raw the day it came in, with clear eyes, firm flesh, and a clean smell. If it smells strongly fishy, change the dish and grill it. Nothing hidden here. Tataki gives you no sauce to hide behind, only the fish and the cut.
The one detail that decides it is the chopping. Use a sharp knife and short, clean strokes, gathering the fish with the aromatics until the pieces are small but still distinct. Pound it into paste and you've made another dish's poor cousin. Leave a little texture, so each bite tastes of cold fish first, then ginger, scallion, and the faint green edge of shiso.
On the Boso Peninsula this belongs to the fisherman's table: quick, direct, eaten with rice and often a spoon of grated daikon to keep the mouth clean. It is weeknight food if the fish is right. Honmono does not need to announce itself loudly. It sits cool on the plate and lets the knife do the seasoning.
Aji no tataki is closely tied to fishing communities along Chiba's Boso Peninsula, where horse mackerel was chopped on board or near the harbor with ginger and green onion while it was still at its freshest. The word tataki here means chopped or lightly pounded, not the seared preparation associated with katsuo. In the same region, a related dish called namerō adds miso and is worked more thoroughly, showing how one fresh fish could become several boat-side dishes by changing only the seasoning and the hand.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
very fresh horse mackerel (aji)
Quantity
2 fish (about 150-180g each)
filleted, pin bones removed, skinned, kept chilled for raw eating
fresh ginger
Quantity
1 tablespoon
peeled and finely grated or minced
scallions
Quantity
2
very thinly sliced
shiso leaves
Quantity
4
3 finely sliced, 1 reserved for plating
grated daikon
Quantity
1 tablespoon, plus more for serving
lightly drained
soy sauce
Quantity
2 teaspoons, plus more for serving
rice vinegar (optional)
Quantity
1 teaspoon
for wiping the knife and board
Japanese short-grain rice
Quantity
2 bowls
freshly cooked, for serving
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| very fresh horse mackerel (aji)filleted, pin bones removed, skinned, kept chilled for raw eating | 2 fish (about 150-180g each) |
| fresh gingerpeeled and finely grated or minced | 1 tablespoon |
| scallionsvery thinly sliced | 2 |
| shiso leaves3 finely sliced, 1 reserved for plating | 4 |
| grated daikonlightly drained | 1 tablespoon, plus more for serving |
| soy sauce | 2 teaspoons, plus more for serving |
| rice vinegar (optional)for wiping the knife and board | 1 teaspoon |
| Japanese short-grain ricefreshly cooked, for serving | 2 bowls |
Equipment Needed
- •Sharp deba bōchō for filleting, or a sharp small chef's knife if the fish is already filleted
- •Yanagiba or sharp santoku for chopping
- •Clean cutting board set cold over ice packs
- •Fine grater for ginger and daikon
Instructions
- 1
Check the fish
Keep the horse mackerel cold until the moment you cut it. The flesh should be firm, glossy, and clean-smelling, with no sour or strong fishy odor. Tataki is raw, so this decision happens before the knife. If the fish is tired, cook it instead and call that an honest supper.
Ask the fishmonger what came in today that they would eat raw. That question is better than any vague label, because it asks for judgment. - 2
Prepare the board
Set a clean cutting board over ice packs or chill the board beforehand. Wipe the knife and board with a little rice vinegar if you like, then dry them well. Cold, clean surfaces keep the fish firm and make the cut clean instead of smeared.
- 3
Slice the aji
Lay the fillets skin-side down and cut them crosswise into thin strips, then turn the strips and cut into small pieces. Use one clean draw or firm chop at a time, not a sawing motion. Sawing bruises the flesh and makes the surface dull, and this dish has nowhere to hide that.
- 4
Chop with aromatics
Gather the chopped aji with the ginger, scallion, and sliced shiso. Chop lightly for 20 to 30 seconds, folding the fish back together with the side of the knife as you work. Stop while the pieces still have texture and shine. You want the seasonings caught in the fish, not fish paste.
This is the first secret of tataki: chopped enough to bind, not so much that the fish loses its face. - 5
Season gently
Fold in the grated daikon and 2 teaspoons soy sauce just before serving. The daikon freshens the bite and softens the oiliness of the aji, while the soy seasons without taking over. Taste a little and add only a few drops more soy if the fish needs it.
- 6
Plate and serve
Set one whole shiso leaf on a cool plate and mound the tataki slightly off-center, building a little height. Leave space around it. Serve at once with warm rice, extra grated daikon, and a small dish of soy sauce. The contrast is the point: cool fish, warm rice, clean seasonings.
Chef Tips
- •Horse mackerel is best in summer, its shun, when the flesh is firm and sweet with just enough fat. Out of season, or when the fish counter looks sleepy, choose another dish.
- •If you cannot find aji safe for raw eating, don't substitute a random oily fish and pretend nothing changed. Grill good mackerel with salt instead. That will be more honmono than hiding poor fish under condiments.
- •A deba bōchō is the traditional knife for breaking down small fish, and a yanagiba or sharp santoku works for the final cutting. The important thing is sharpness. A dull knife mashes; a sharp one leaves the fish tasting clean.
- •Do the chopping at the last minute. Salt and soy draw moisture from raw fish quickly, and tataki should look wet and fresh, not slack.
Advance Preparation
- •The ginger, scallion, shiso, and daikon can be prepared up to 1 hour ahead and kept covered in the refrigerator.
- •Do not chop or season the fish ahead. Cut and season it just before serving, then eat it immediately.
- •If buying whole fish, ask the fishmonger to fillet, skin, and remove pin bones for raw preparation the same day you will serve it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 260g)
Calories
310 calories
Total Fat
5 g
Saturated Fat
1 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
4 g
Cholesterol
50 mg
Sodium
380 mg
Total Carbohydrates
44 g
Dietary Fiber
1 g
Sugars
1 g
Protein
21 g
Where cooking meets culture.
Culinary guides, cultural storytelling, and the editorial depth that makes cooking meaningful.
Discover Culinary ExplorerMore from Sushi & Sashimi
Browse the full collection
Chef Takumi
Buri Sashimi (寒鰤の刺身, winter yellowtail)
Sashimi isn't a dare; it is sourcing, cold handling, and a clean pull of the knife. With winter buri, the fat does the patient work.
Chef Takumi
Chirashizushi (ちらし寿司, scattered sushi)
The most welcoming sushi is not rolled at all: vinegared rice, a little sweet-salty simmering, and beautiful things scattered on top with care.
Chef Takumi
Ehōmaki (恵方巻, Setsubun lucky roll)
Ehōmaki looks ceremonial, but it is simply one good thick roll, seven fillings for luck, and the discipline not to cut it before it reaches the table.