Salmon Teriyaki


1/2 lb of salmon fillets (Or another fish, I especially like ling cod.)
1/4 cup mirin
1/4 cup sake
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 inch piece of fresh garlic
I tablespoon sugar (optional)

Wipe the salmon fillet and place skin down on a cutting board. Remove pin bones (can be felt by running fingers along the center of the fillet) from the fillet with clean tweezers or pliers. Using a very sharp knife held at a 45-degree angle to the board slice, the fillets into 1/2-inch slices.

Peel and grate the ginger, capturing the juice. Squeeze the grated ginger in your finger tips to obtain the rest of the juice. Add the ginger juice, mirin, sake and soy sauce to a small baking dish. Place the salmon slices, in one layer in the baking dish to marinate. Turn the fish over occasionally to ensure even marination. Let the fish marinate for a minimum of 30 minutes. If you wish to marinate longer, cover and place in the refrigerator.

Heat a skillet over medium heat with a small amount of oil. Fry the marinated salmon slices in the skillet for 2 minutes on each side. Be carefully not to over cook the salmon. When all the salmon is cooked and placed on a warm plate, make a teriyaki sauce by adding the marinade (add optional sugar to the marinade at this point) to the pan. Raise the heat under the skillet and reduce the marinade to a thick sauce.

Serve salmon with rice, marinade on the side.

Serves two.

Try these Japanese Cucumber Salad with your salmon teriyaki:

Japanese Cucumber Salad (Namasu)
From Hawaii Cooks, by Maili Yardley 1970


Partly peel 1 large cucumber, leaving strips of green, and slice very thin. Sprinkle with 1 Tablespoon Hawaiian or Kosher salt and let stand for at least half an hour. Squeeze off excess liquid and salt. Add to mixture of 1 teaspoon of grated ginger, 2 tablespoons of sugar and 1/2 cup of rice vinegar.