Seafood × Koji
Spiced Aji Nanbanzuke with Ama-koji
Crisp fried horse mackerel soaked in a sweet-sour vinegar marinade sweetened with ama-koji instead of sugar, with onion, cherry tomatoes, radishes and mizuna. Fresh coriander, ground coriander and white pepper give it an Asian twist.
- Serves
- Serves 3–4
- Time
- About 40 minutes (plus chilling)
Ingredients
Fish
- Horse mackerel (aji), filleted3 fish (about 250 g)
- Salta little
- Peppera little
- Potato starch (katakuriko)2 tbsp or more
- Oil for deep-fryingas needed
Nanban marinade
- Rice vinegar100 ml
- Water50 ml
- Mirin50 ml
- Soy sauce2 tbsp
- Ginger, grated1 tsp
- Ama-koji4 tbsp
Vegetables
- Onion1/2
- Cherry tomatoes6
- Pearl onions (optional)4
- Radishes4 (40 g)
- Mizuna1/4 bunch (50 g)
Spices
- Fresh coriander (or 1/2 tsp dried)1–2 plants
- Ground coriander1/2 tsp
- White peppera little
Method
- Bring the vinegar, water, mirin, soy sauce and ginger to the boil in a small pan. Turn off the heat, stir in the ama-koji and pour into a shallow dish.
- Thinly slice the onion and radishes. Halve the cherry tomatoes. Peel the pearl onions. Cut the mizuna into 5 cm lengths and the coriander into 2 cm lengths.
- Remove the pin bones from the fish with tweezers and cut it into bite-sized pieces. Pat dry, season with salt and pepper and dust lightly with potato starch.
- Heat the oil to 170°C. Fry the pearl onions as they are and lift them out. Then fry the fish for 3–4 minutes, until crisp.
- Put the hot fish and pearl onions straight into the marinade.
- Add the onion, tomatoes and radishes, sprinkle with ground coriander and white pepper and toss. When cooled, chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
- Just before serving, add the mizuna and fresh coriander and toss briefly.
Tips
- Ama-koji is a thick, concentrated amazake made from rice koji. Used in place of sugar, it softens the vinegar and adds a gentle rice sweetness. Find it at Japanese grocery stores or online, or make your own.
- No ama-koji? Use 2 tbsp beet sugar (or ordinary sugar).
- Put the fish in the marinade while it is still hot from the fryer so it soaks up the flavour.
- Add the mizuna and coriander just before eating to keep them crisp and fragrant.
- Keeps 2–3 days in the fridge. Add the mizuna and coriander only to the portion you are serving.
Nanbanzuke is a Japanese dish of fried fish marinated in sweet vinegar, said to have been a spiced dish from the start. Chie goes generous with fresh coriander, ground coriander and freshly ground pepper — and now sweetens the marinade with ama-koji instead of sugar.
See how to make ama-koji in Amazake with a Yogurt Maker, or make koji seasonings by hand in UMAMI & KOJI LAB in Tokyo.
