Unagi (Eel) bowl
Unagi (Eel) Bowl
Serves: 2
I used to be a very picky eater growing up. My mom never allowed me to leave any food on my plate, so I usually struggled to finish my meals. But for some reason, I like eating unagi even as a young child. I still vividly remember how I always enjoyed eating unagi bento (packed lunch box) in the bullet trains on the way to visit my grandparents. My mom always thought that there will be some leftovers for her to eat but she never got to eat any as I always finished everything. My mom was amazed how I was able to finish eating an adult size unagi bento. Now, when I visit Japan, I always eat unagi at my favorite unagi restaurant in Tokyo at least once during my trip. Back in home in LA, I can never buy a fresh eel so, instead, I buy a pre-cooked unagi filet from a Japanese market and cook it further on a frying pan to make sweet and savory unagi sauce that will nicely coat and flavor the eel. I enjoy eating unagi over freshly cooked rice with a side of shredded, dashi flavored eggs and some vegetables. Unagi meat is so soft, and it just melts in your mouth. An unagi bowl is without a doubt one of my favorite dishes, and I hope it becomes one of yours too.
Ingredients:
1 Pre-cooked eel filet
1 TBS sugar
1 TBS mirin
2 TBS sake
2 TBS soy sauce
1 TBS cooking oil
Sansho pepper for taste
Sides:
Freshly cooked rice (2 cups)
Vegetables such as boiled broccoli or sliced avocados or cucumbers
Shredded, dashi-flavored eggs:
Two eggs and 1 teaspoon of dashi concentrate. If no dashi concentrate is available, add water or milk to loosen the egg texture.
1 TBS of cooking oil
Directions:
1. Start cooking the Japanese rice in a rice cooker.
2. Take out the precooked unagi filet from a plastic pouch. Cut the unagi into one bite size pieces.
3. Add one tablespoon of cooking oil to a frying pan. Heat the pan at medium heat. Using a piece of paper towel, evenly coat the pan and remove the excess oil.
4. Start warming up the unagi pieces in the frying pan.
5. Add sugar followed by about 1/3 of cup of water and simmer for about 2 minutes and then add mirin, sake and soy sauce. Continue to simmer at low heat.
6. Occasionally spoon the sauce over the unagi pieces. Add more water as necessary to continue simmering for about 8 minutes. Remove from heat when the sauce is sufficiently reduced to thick, shiny glazed sauce. This thick sauce is called “tare” in Japanese.
7. Place freshly cooked rice in a bowl or on a plate, and gently add the cooked unagi pieces on top. Scoop the remaining tare sauce from the frying pan and lightly drizzle the tare on the unagi pieces. Serve with shredded dashi-flavored eggs and a side of vegetables. If desired, sprinkle some sansho pepper spice over unagi to give a slight kick and to nicely balance the richness of the unagi and the tare sauce. Enjoy!
Shredded, Dashi-Flavored Eggs:
1. Add two eggs and a dash of dashi concentrate (about 1 teaspoon) in a bowl and mix.
2. Add 1 TBS of cooking oil in a frying pan. Using a piece of paper towel, coat the pan evenly with cooking oil and remove the excess oil.
3. Using a ladle, add one scoop of egg mixture in the center of the pan just like making a crepe. The goal here is to make about three thin egg sheets.
4. Be careful, not to burn these egg sheets. They cook very quickly, so adjust the heat if necessary. Flip the egg sheets using a spatula or chopsticks. Once both sides are cooked, remove it from the heat and let it cool. Repeat until all the egg mixture is used. It is not a big deal if the egg sheets are creased or folded, as they will be cut into thin strips afterwards.
5. Stack the egg sheets evenly and cut them into fine julienne strips.
6. Sprinkle the shredded, dashi-flavored eggs over the rice before adding the unagi pieces to the bowl.
