Salt-Grilled Salmon (鮭の塩焼き, Sake no Shioyaki)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Yakiami (Japanese grilling net), fish grill, broiler rack, or ridged grill pan
• •Wire rack set over a tray for salting
• •Slim fish spatula or metal turner

Instructions

1. 1

   Choose and dry

   Choose salmon with clear color, tight flesh, and a clean scent. The skin should look glossy, not dull, and the cut face should be moist without sitting in liquid. Pat the fillets dry and check for pin bones. Sourcing first: this dish has only salt to speak for it, so a tired piece of fish will tell on you before the grill is hot.

2. 2

   Salt and rest

   Sprinkle about 3/4 teaspoon of the salt evenly over both sides of the fillets, including the skin. Set them skin-side up on a wire rack over a tray and refrigerate uncovered for 30 minutes. The salt draws moisture to the surface, firms the flesh, and keeps the fish from sitting in its own brine.

   Thin fillets need only 20 minutes. Thick ones can take 40. Salt by thickness, not by impatience.
3. 3

   Wipe and resalt

   Wipe away the beads of moisture and the first salt with a paper towel. Don't rinse. Water puts back the wet surface you just drew out and slows the skin from crisping. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt lightly over the fish, a little extra on the skin, and leave it while the grill heats.

4. 4

   Heat the grill

   Heat a yakiami, a Japanese grilling net, a fish grill, a broiler, or a ridged grill pan until very hot. Oil the rack or pan with just a few drops. The hot surface sets the skin quickly and keeps the flesh from lingering over heat long enough to dry.

5. 5

   Grill the salmon

   Under a broiler or one-sided fish grill, start the fillets skin-side down, flesh facing the heat, for 3 to 4 minutes. Turn them skin-side up and grill 2 to 4 minutes more, until the skin is crisp and the thickest part flakes under chopsticks but still glistens. On a yakiami or grill pan heated from below, start skin-side down for about 4 minutes, then turn briefly to finish the flesh side.

   If you are cooking for anyone medically vulnerable, take the thickest part to 63°C/145°F. Otherwise, use the visual sign as well: opaque flesh, clean flakes, and no dry chalkiness.
6. 6

   Rest and serve

   Rest the salmon for 2 minutes so the heat settles through the flesh. Set each fillet on a plate with grated daikon and a citrus wedge. If using soy sauce, put a few drops on the daikon, not over the fish. The salt has already done its work. Serve with rice, miso soup, and pickles, leaving the plate room to breathe.

Chef Tips

• •Buy skin-on salmon. Skin protects the flesh from the heat and becomes the best bite when the grill is hot enough. Skinless salmon can be cooked, yes, but it gives up one of the pleasures of shioyaki.
• •If the fish smells strongly fishy, don't make this dish. Change the plan. Salt-grilling is honest cooking, and honest cooking is sometimes blunt about what you brought home.
• •Keep soy and mirin away from the fish here. If you want a sweet soy glaze, make teriyaki, a good dish in its own right. Shioyaki is salt-grilling, and the restraint is the point.
• •For bento, let the grilled salmon cool completely before packing. Warm fish trapped in a box goes soft, and the skin loses the crispness you worked for.

Advance Preparation

• •The 30-minute salting step can stretch to 2 hours in the refrigerator. Beyond that the fish becomes firmer and saltier, closer to shiozake, salted salmon, which is useful for bento but stronger than this gentle weeknight plate.
• •Grate the daikon up to 2 hours ahead, cover it, and keep it chilled. Squeeze it lightly just before serving so it stays snowy rather than watery.
• •Cooked leftovers keep 2 days refrigerated. Rewarm gently under a broiler or eat at room temperature with rice; the skin will soften, but the fish will still be good.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 155g)