#namerou

This post is part of a collection of an Aji recipes that I made on the same day. When I prepared this post, the fish was in its best season and my fishmonger had a great aji sale that time!

This time I’m making fish burgers, coated in cornstarch and fried in a bit of oil. This is a classic izakaya dish that goes well with beer or sake. This recipe follows the same steps as the other namerou recipe I made last time with sanma.

This recipe appeared in the anime Amaama to Inazuma - they made this recipe so Tsumugi could enjoy the fresh aji too as she couldn't eat raw fish. When I prepare this dish, like Kotori I also remember to leave some raw fish as namerou itself because it is also delicious, haha.

I wrapped some portions in shiso, which ups the presentation and gives a nice feeling when you eat these mini fish burgers. The shiso strong scent is toned down when fried so anyone can eat it.

Recipe (4 portions)

1 fresh aji

1 tbsp of miso

10g of ginger

30g of scallions

Shiso leaves

Cornstarch

Steps

Debone, fillet and remove the skin of the fish.

Cut the fillets in small pieces.

Without using strength, hit the meat lightly using a sharp knife.

As the meat get spread up, bring it back together with the knife.

When it is halfway chopped, add the other ingredients and keep repeating the steps above until it become a smooth paste with chunks of fish.

Shape the small patties. If using shiso leaves, wrap them without pressing too much.

Coat the patties with cornstarch or flour.

Fry in hot oil on medium heat until both sides are pale brown. This should take around one minute each side.

Serve it.

Tips:

Use fresh, sashimi grade fish, as it will taste better and you will avoid some serious food poisoning. Do not use frozen fish, as it does not have decent consistency to make this dish.

The recipe is really easy, chop the fillets with a knife, add the seasonings and mix while still chopping using the knife. It is quite salty due to the miso - but goes nicely with rice and beer.

This time I made using Sanma (Pacific Saury), since I wanted to practice filleting it and the fish salesman offered me a nice deal (I ended up with loads of sanma...)

Recipe (makes one small portion)

1 fillet of fresh sanma

1 tbsp of miso

40g of ginger

30g of scallion 

2 leaves of shiso

Steps

Cut the fillets in small pieces (does not need to be super small)

Without using strength, hit the meat lightly using a sharp knife.

As the meat get spread up, bring it back together with the knife.

When it is halfway chopped, add the other ingredients and keep doing the steps above until it is a smooth paste with chunks of fish. Serve it when you’re done.

Tips:

Use fresh, sashimi grade fish, as it will taste better and you avoid having food poisoning. 

Do not use frozen fish, as it does not have decent consistency to make this dish.

The ingredients were calculated for fish with strong smell, such as Sanma and Aji. For other fishes (such as salmon) you can reduce the amount of miso and ginger.