Mentaiko Spaghetti

Name: Mentaiko Spaghetti
Cuisine: Japanese
Ingredients: 125 g (4½ oz) mentaiko (chilli spiced cod or pollock roe); 125 g (4½ oz) mentaiko (chilli spiced cod or pollock roe); 125 g (4½ oz) mentaiko (chilli spiced cod or pollock roe); 4 tbsp Japanese mayonnaise; 1 egg yolk; 3 tbsp soy sauce; 2 tbsp mirin; 400 g (14 oz) dried spaghetti; 2 tbsp sunflower oil; 30 g (1¼ oz/2 tbsp) butter; 20 g (¾ oz) black tobiko caviar (flying-fish roe) (available from Japanese grocery stores); 20 g (¾ oz) black tobiko caviar (flying-fish roe) (available from Japanese grocery stores); shichimi pepper or roughly crushed chilli (dried red pepper) flakes, to taste; shichimi pepper or roughly crushed chilli (dried red pepper) flakes, to taste; kizami nori (shredded nori) or 1 sheet of nori seaweed for sushi, torn up into small pieces; kizami nori (shredded nori) or 1 sheet of nori seaweed for sushi, torn up into small pieces; kizami nori (shredded nori) or 1 sheet of nori seaweed for sushi, torn up into small pieces

Spaghetti with Chilli Marinated Cod Roe and Black Tobiko Caviar

Preparation info

Serves
8
as a starter

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

The Japanese Larder

By Luiz Hara

Published 2018

About

Often referred to as the Japanese carbonara, Mentaiko Spaghetti is a brilliant way of using karashi mentaiko or spiced cod roe in everyday cooking. Surprisingly non-fishy, it is creamy and has great umami flavour from the roe, soy sauce and mirin. Mentaiko Spaghetti is a favourite at all my Japanese and Nikkei supper club events.

Ingredients

For the mentaiko sauce

125 g (4½ oz) mentaiko (chilli spiced cod or pollock roe)
4

Method

Start by preparing the pasta sauce, which can be made hours ahead. Squeeze the mentaiko roe into a very large bowl and add the mayonnaise, egg yolk, soy sauce and mirin. Mix well with a balloon whisk. If you are making the sauce ahead of time, cover the bowl and refrigerate. Take the sauce out of the fridge an hour before needed so it returns to room temperature, and mix