Recipe/Directions for Japanese Smelt in Spicy Vinegar Marinade

Photo: Japanese Smelt in Spicy Vinegar Marinade

A freshwater fish native to Japan in "nanbanzuke" marinade.

Cooking time: 20 minutes

Calories: 338kcal

Sodium: 1.2g

Nutrition facts are for one serving.

Ingredients(Servings: 2)

Japanese smelt/wakasagi: 200 g (7.1 oz.)

negi/Japanese long onion: 10 cm (4 in.)

ginger: 1 knob

potato starch/katakuriko (or cornstarch): as needed

cooking oil: as needed

(A)

Kikkoman Soy Sauce: 3 Tbsp

sake (cooking sake): 2 Tbsp

sugar: 1 Tbsp

vinegar: 1/2 Tbsp

Directions

Cut the negi in half lengthwise, peel the ginger, then julienne both.
Heat (1) and (A) in a fry pan. Once boiling pour into a bowl and set aside.
Cover the smelt fish in the potato starch, then fry in medium temperature oil. Soak and completely cover each fried fish in the marinade from (2), then arrange on a plate and serve.

Checkpoints

Ultra-fine julienned Japanese long onion

In Japanese, this style of cutting up long onions is called "white-hair slicing", in the image of slicing up the onion into such fine strips that these are similar to white (gray) hair.
Chop up into 4 cm (1.6 in.) lengths, slice each vertically and remove the soft core. Stack the outer layers and starting at one edge, julienne across into ultra-fine strips. These ultra-fine strips are not cooked when used as garnish. If placed in water for about 10 minutes, drained and squeezed of any excess moisture, these strips will be fresh and crunchy yet mellow in flavor.

Julienned ginger