Pickled Fried Smelts

Name: Pickled Fried Smelts (Namban-Zuké)
Yield: Makes 1 dozen
Cuisine: Japan
Ingredients: 1 tōgarashi (red chili pepper); 1 ½ tablespoons sugar; 1 scallion; ¼ cup rice vinegar; ⅔ cup dashi (basic sea stock); 3 tablespoons mirin (syrupy rice wine); 3 tablespoons soy sauce; vegetable oil, for deep frying (a few drops of dark aromatic sesame oil added to corn or soy oil is best); ¼ cup cornstarch; 3 tablespoons saké (Japanese rice wine)

Namban-Zuké

Preparation info

Makes
1 dozen

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

An American Taste of Japan

By Elizabeth Andoh

Published 1985

About

This is a classic Japanese delicacy, but one that rarely shows up on the English side of the menu in Japanese restaurants in America. Here’s my opportunity to rectify the situation and give you a chance to sample one of those mysterious dishes usually reserved for special customers only. I hope you enjoy it as much as they do.

Ingredients

12 smelts, about 1½ ounces each
¼ cup cornstarch

Asia
Japan
Starter
Pescatarian
Spicy

Method

The Japanese usually keep the heads and tails of smelts intact, just gutting the belly cavity, but you may be happier removing the heads and tails, along with the guts. Rinse the cleaned fish thoroughly in salted water. (The water should taste briny, like the ocean.) Gently pat the fish dry, inside and out, then dust them in the cornstarch.

In a wok or deep-fat fryer, heat the oil to ap