Saikyo yaki (fish cooked with saikyo miso)

Hundreds of years old, this versatile marinade recipe can be used for fish, poultry or beef. I love that one of the world’s greatest chefs has shared a recipe that he cooks all the time. Saikyo miso is sweet and pale and blends beautifully with the flavour of the fish. He suggests serving this with pickled ginger. Although garlic isn’t popular in Japan, Tetsuya Wakuda says "Add ginger if you like ginger, a little garlic if you like, after all, you are the one who is going to eat it!" You can buy a special ginger grater from most Asian food stores. Always grate ginger along the grain, not across.

• serves

  4

• prep

  10 minutes

• cook

  10 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 1 cup saikyo miso 
• 1 tbsp cooking sake 
• 2 tbsp mirin 
• 1 tbsp grated ginger 
• ½ garlic clove, crushed 
• 2 tbsp grapeseed oil
• 4 sea perch fillets, skin on

Marinating time overnight

You will need to begin this recipe 1 day ahead.

Instructions

Combine the miso, sake and mirin in a bowl, stirring well. Stir in the ginger and garlic and then the grapeseed oil. Spread a little of the marinade in the base of a small rectangular dish. Add a piece of fish, flesh-side down, and cover with more marinade. Top with the remaining fish spread with marinade. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Preheat an oven grill to high. Scrape off the excess marinade from the pieces of fish. Place on a tray skin-side up and cook under the grill until the skin is golden brown. Serve with pickled ginger.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.