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Craving an authentic taste of Japan? Dive into the exquisite world of Sakana no Nitsuke, a classic Japanese simmered fish dish that's surprisingly simple to make at home! This recipe features tender Kinmedai (red bream), but you can effortlessly swap it for your favorite white fish.

Learn the secrets to a perfectly simmered fish, from the initial preparation to the delicate art of adding soy sauce. Discover the importance of the "otoshita" or droplet, and how to achieve a beautiful glaze with a rich, savory sauce.

This guide will also show you how to blanch vibrant komatsuna (Japanese mustard spinach) to perfectly complement your fish, adding a splash of color and fresh flavor. Elevate your home cooking with this flavorful and elegant Japanese dish.

#SakanaNoNitsuke #JapaneseCooking #SimmeredFish #HomeCooking
Transcript
00:00Hey everyone, I'm Yuto and today on Statue, I'm going to show you how to make a flavorful Japanese
00:05simmed fish dish called Sakana no Nisuke. Let's get straight to it. I'm going to start with two
00:11fillets of fish and sprinkle them with salt to draw out the excess moisture. I'm using a kind
00:18of red-green called Kinmedai today, but you can use any kind of white fish like cod, flat fish,
00:25or even mackerel. You can also use whole fish instead of fillets if you prefer.
00:37Let it rest for 10 minutes. While you wait, cut 20 grams of fresh ginger into slices.
00:44We will add this to the sauce later.
00:49Next, take the fish and make a shallow cross on the skin sides, making sure not to go too deep.
00:57Then, we're going to wash the fish. So, place it in a heat-proof bowl and prepare a bowl of
01:03ice
01:04water next to it. Pour freshly boiled water over the top and then, after about 10 seconds, transfer
01:15the fish to the ice water to stop it from cooking.
01:28Now, place it on a chopping board and pat it dry with kitchen paper.
01:44Next, take a pan big enough to lay the fish flat and add 150 ml of water, 150 ml of
01:52sake, 45 ml of mirin,
01:56and 30 g of sugar. Turn the heat on medium and stir until the sugar has dissolved.
02:05Once it's dissolved, place the fish in the liquid with the skin side facing up.
02:18And then, add the ginger slices from earlier.
02:25Now, we'll wait for that to come to a boil.
02:29Once it starts boiling, lower the heat and place a droplet on top, set a timer and let it simmer
02:36for 3 minutes.
02:39A droplet is pretty important for this recipe since it will prevent the delicate fish from breaking.
02:46If you don't have one, you can use a piece of foil or baking paper instead. I have a video
02:52on how to make
02:53your own droplet, so check it out if you're interested.
02:57While you wait, measure out 50 ml of soy sauce. After the 3 minutes are up, remove the droplet
03:03and pour the soy sauce in 1 third at a time.
03:08Base the fish until the soy sauce has dispersed into the rest of the sauce, before adding the next third.
03:25Once it's all added, place the droplet back on and simmer for 10 minutes.
03:31While we wait for that, I'm going to blanch some komatsuna or Japanese mustard spinach to serve on the side.
03:37Start boiling a small pot of water and cut the spinach into 5cm pieces.
03:43Prepare a bowl of cold water in advance, then blanch for a minute.
03:48If you can't get this komatsuna, you could use regular spinach or bok choy instead.
03:54When a minute is up, scoop them out and place them in the cold water to stop the cooking process
03:59and preserve their bright colour. So, 10 minutes have passed, let's check on the fish.
04:08Remove the droplet and baste the liquid over the surface.
04:12As the final step, we will keep doing this until the liquid is reduced to 1 third of its original
04:19volume.
04:20When it looks like this, we are ready to serve.
04:27Carefully transfer the fish to a plate and garnish with ginger.
04:32Place the mustard spinach on the side and drizzle with the sauce.
04:36You definitely will not use all the sauce, so you can save it for something else such as
04:42a secret ingredient for stews or even curries.
04:45So, there you have it, delicious sakana no nitsuke made with red bream.
04:51Thanks so much for watching. If you want to learn more about this recipe,
04:54check out the written version on my blog. The link is in the description.
04:58Hope to see you next time, have a great day.
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