Name: Grilled Eel or Halibut with Sweet Cinnamon and Star Anise Glaze
Yield: Serves 4
Cuisine: Korea
Ingredients: ¼ cup Asian (dark) sesame oil; ½ cup sake; ½ cup soy sauce; ¼ cup light corn syrup, such as Karo or Steen’s; ½ teaspoon ground sansho pepper (see Note), or ½ teaspoon ground Szechuan peppercorns and a pinch of ground coriander (optional); 1½ to 2 pounds eel or halibut fillets; 1 teaspoon black peppercorns; 1 dried Asian hot red pepper, or ¼ teaspoon hot red pepper flakes; 1 slice (¼ inch thick) sweet onion, or 1 more scallion; 3 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds (see box); 2 scallions, trimmed, white parts lightly crushed with the side of a cleaver, green parts finely chopped for garnish; 2 slices (¼ inch) fresh ginger, lightly crushed with the side of a cleaver; 1 piece (2 inches) cinnamon stick; 2 star anise, or ½ teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder; 2 cloves garlic, peeled and lightly crushed with the side of a cleaver; ⅓ cup firmly packed light brown sugar

Preparation info

Serves
4

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

Planet Barbecue

By Steven Raichlen

Published 2010

About

Eel holds an honored place in the hearts of Asian barbecue fanatics (think Japanese anago and unagi). Koreans approach the grilling of eel with a zeal that borders on a fetish. This brings me to Ilmijung, a restaurant renowned for its barbecued eel and equally remarkable for its riverside setting and pastoral atmosphere (rare in hyper-urbanized Seoul). You can dine on a dock right on the river or in cozy rooms decorated like peasant cottages. But the star attraction here slith