Miso-Marinated Sablefish (銀鱈の西京焼き, Gindara no Saikyōyaki)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Nonreactive shallow container with a lid
• •Sarashi cotton or cheesecloth
• •Japanese fish grill, or a broiler-safe wire rack set over a sheet pan
• •Thin fish spatula

Instructions

1. 1

   Salt the fish

   Lay the sablefish on a tray and sprinkle both sides lightly with the salt. Refrigerate uncovered for 30 minutes, then wipe away the beads of moisture with paper towels. This is not to make the fish salty. The salt draws out surface water and any stale edge from the skin, so the miso bed stays clean and strong.

   If the fish smells old after salting, change the dish. No miso paste, however sweet and expensive, should be asked to hide tired fish.
2. 2

   Make misodoko

   Put the sake and mirin in a small pan and bring them to a brief boil, about 30 seconds. Let them cool completely, then stir them into the Saikyō miso with the sugar until the paste is smooth but still thick. Boiling softens the raw alcohol edge. Cooling matters because warm paste would start working on the fish unevenly before it reaches the refrigerator.

3. 3

   Pack the fillets

   Spread half the misodoko, the miso bed, in a shallow nonreactive container. Lay a sheet of clean sarashi cotton or cheesecloth over it, set the fillets on top skin-side down, cover with another sheet of cloth, and spread the remaining miso over the fish. Cover tightly and refrigerate for 48 to 72 hours, with 72 hours best for thick sablefish.

   The cloth is not ceremony. Salt, sweetness, and aroma pass through it, but the paste stays off the flesh, so you can grill cleanly without rinsing away the surface.
4. 4

   Wipe and rest

   Lift the fish from the miso and remove every bit of paste with your fingers or a damp paper towel. Do not rinse unless the surface is grainy, and if you must, pat it very dry afterward. Let the fillets stand at cool room temperature for 15 minutes while you heat the grill or broiler. Any miso left on the surface burns before the center is cooked.

5. 5

   Grill gently

   Heat a fish grill or broiler to medium-high and oil the rack. Set the fillets skin-side down, 15 to 20cm from the heat, and grill until the surface is glossy gold with small amber freckles at the edges, 7 to 10 minutes. If dark spots race ahead, lower the rack or move the fish to a 200°C / 400°F oven to finish. The sugar in the miso browns quickly, so color alone is not the finish line. The fish is done when the thickest part is opaque and flakes easily, or 60 to 63°C / 140 to 145°F on a thermometer.

6. 6

   Serve restrained

   Rest the fish for 2 minutes, then transfer it with a thin spatula to warm plates. Add one hajikami shōga and a kinome leaf or strip of yuzu peel if you have them. Do not spoon the old marinade over the fish. It has done its work, and the finished dish needs no sauce, only rice and a little room around it.

Chef Tips

• •Ask for skin-on sablefish with thick, even pieces and a clean sea smell. Good frozen-at-sea sablefish is often better than tired thawed fish in a display case. Sourcing first, always.
• •Use true Saikyō miso if you can. A general white miso with extra sugar is a sensible stand-in, not the same thing, and it is usually saltier. If you use it, marinate only 24 to 36 hours.
• •Wipe the fish more thoroughly than seems polite. The flavor is already inside the surface, and clean fish browns instead of scorching.
• •Keep the grill modest and stay near it. Saikyōyaki is not difficult, only impatient cooks make it so.

Advance Preparation

• •Start this dish three days before serving. The long refrigerator rest is the seasoning, not dead time.
• •After 72 hours, the fillets can be lifted from the miso, wiped clean, wrapped, and refrigerated for up to 24 hours before grilling.
• •Do not reuse the raw fish marinade as a sauce. Discard it, or boil it thoroughly only if you mean to use it for another cooked preparation.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 160g)