Salt-Grilled Sardines (鰯の塩焼き, Iwashi no Shioyaki)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Charcoal konro or Japanese fish grill, or an oven broiler with a wire rack
• •Fish spatula or long cooking chopsticks (saibashi)
• •Small grater for daikon oroshi

Instructions

1. 1

   Clean the sardines

   Use the sardines the day you buy them. Look for bright eyes, tight bellies, and blue-silver skin that shines rather than dulls. Scrape off any loose scales, rinse the belly cavity quickly under cold water, and pat the fish very dry inside and out. Water on the skin delays browning, and sardines are too tender to wait around for our indecision.

   If the fish smells sour or strongly fishy, don't make shioyaki. Change the dish. This method has no sauce to hide a tired ingredient, and that is its virtue.
2. 2

   Salt and rest

   Set the sardines on a rack over a tray. Sprinkle the salt over both sides and a little inside the belly cavity, using more than a timid pinch. Leave them for 10 to 15 minutes, until beads of moisture appear on the skin. That moisture is the salt doing its work: drawing out surface water, seasoning the fish, and firming the flesh just enough for the grill.

   After the rest, wipe the fish dry with paper towels. Don't rinse. Rinsing washes away the seasoning and puts water back where you just removed it.
3. 3

   Heat the grill

   Heat a charcoal konro, Japanese fish grill, or oven broiler until very hot. If using a broiler, set the rack about 4 inches below the element. Brush the grate or wire rack lightly with oil. The heat must be ready before the fish lands, because quick browning helps the delicate skin release instead of tearing.

4. 4

   Grill first side

   Place the sardines on the hot grate. Under a broiler, set the side you want facing up on the plate toward the heat first; over charcoal, put that side down first. Grill for 3 to 4 minutes, until the skin blisters in patches, the fins brown, and the smell changes from raw sea to roasted fish.

5. 5

   Turn and finish

   Turn each sardine once, gently, with a fish spatula or long cooking chopsticks. Cook the second side for 2 to 3 minutes more. Don't keep turning. The fish is done when the flesh is opaque at the thickest part and flakes away from the spine. The fine bones soften; the central spine of a larger sardine may still be lifted away at the table.

6. 6

   Serve plainly

   Set the sardines on a long plate with the heads to the left and the bellies toward the diner. Add a small mound of grated daikon and a cut sudachi or lemon. If using soy sauce, drip it onto the daikon, not across the fish. The radish and citrus clear the oil while leaving the salted fish to speak for itself. Leave the plate room.

Chef Tips

• •Ask the fishmonger what came in today, not what looks cheapest. Sardines spoil quickly, so freshness matters more here than almost anywhere. Clear eyes, tight bellies, and shiny skin are the signs you want.
• •Salt 10 to 15 minutes before grilling, not an hour ahead. A short rest firms and seasons the fish. A long one starts to cure it, and the flesh can turn tight and harsh.
• •A charcoal konro gives the best flavor, but an oven broiler with a wire rack is a sensible stand-in. Preheat it hard and oil the rack lightly. The fish should meet heat, not warm metal.
• •Choose small or medium sardines if you want the bones to soften well. With larger fish, eat the top fillet, lift away the spine, then eat the lower fillet. Simple work, and better than pretending bones don't exist.

Advance Preparation

• •The sardines can be scaled, gutted, rinsed, dried, and kept covered in the refrigerator up to 4 hours ahead. Keep them cold and salt them only shortly before cooking.
• •Grate the daikon up to 30 minutes ahead and drain it lightly. It should stay juicy, not watery.
• •Grilled sardines are best eaten at once. Leftovers can be flaked from the bones and folded into hot rice the next day, but the crisp skin belongs to the first serving.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 185g)