Umazurahagi - foie gras from sea

 

 

Talking about this fish in the photo, umazurahagi, I need to start with the brief explanation of kawahagi. Kawahagi, called thread-sail filefish in English, is one of the top listed fishes for the Japanese table-top pleasure. If fugu is known as the king of the fish for the gastronomic consumption, Kawahagi is the queen.

Looking from the side, kawahagihas a diamond shape with its funny face that seems trying to kiss someone. Umazurahagi , called black scraper in English, is very similar fish from kawahagi, as it's hard to distinguish which is which from their appearances, both as live fish and in sashimi format. Umazurahagi is known that it somewhat comes after kawahagi in it's taste, however still, umazurahagi brings good enough of the gastronomic pleasure. And more it's economy choice than kawahagi.

What in the above photo is from sashimi pack of umazurahagi that I found at the supermarket a few days ago, rearranged on my tamba-ware pottery square plate. The thin-sliced meat looks almost transparent. Once having it in your mouth, touch of the meat in your mouth and the way it's rich flavor comes out as biting are so delicate.

And, what's more important about this fish than it's meat, is liver (the pink round staff on the left side in the photo). The reason we like this liver is very similar to how French people like foie gras. Only the difference is that we eat this liver raw when it's fresh. High containment of fat brings rich, creamy, and delicate touch while flavor is clean without unpleasant smell. This is something like what I imagine if foie gras can be eaten raw. And I make sure to note that this liver does not contain deadly poison as fugu does. One you see in the above photo is the whole liver, but it can be fine chopped and eaten with a slice of meat.

In any form, regardless of meat of liver, we usually eat this kind of fish with the light dip of Ponzu, the sauce made of soy sauce, mirin, kombu, and juice of the Japanese citrus fruit usually with yuzu, sudachi, or kabosu - full of umami combined with the tart refreshness of the citrus fruits.

High season for kawahagi is actually in winter when the liver grow the most, besides in summer, known as when the meat comes the most tasteful. However, regardless of the season, whenever I find this fish in sashimi at supermarkets, I can't hold myself from grabbing one.