Cherry & Dennis Helper Habitat
Japanese Tai Meshi Sea Bream Rice
日式鯛魚飯
Recipe overview
Sea bream cooked atop seasoned Japanese rice with kombu, then carefully deboned and folded through.
01
Ingredients
Main ingredients
- 1 about 600 g whole scaled gutted sea bream
- 300 g Japanese short-grain rice
- 5 g kombu kelp
- 20 g ginger
Rice cooking liquid
- 2 tbsp sake
- 1 tbsp Japanese soy sauce
- to 400 ml total water
- 1/2 tsp salt
02
Tools
- heavy lidded pot
- frying pan
- measuring jug
- spatula
- cutting board
- knife
03
Steps
Step 1
Rinse rice
Rinse Japanese short-grain rice until water is mostly clear; drain.
Step 2
Clean bream
Rinse the scaled and gutted whole sea bream, then pat dry.
Step 3
Salt fish
Sprinkle both sides of the sea bream with salt and leave five minutes.
Step 4
Brown fish
Sear both sides until lightly golden; it will finish cooking with rice.
Step 5
Measure liquid
Add sake and soy sauce to a jug, then water to 400 ml total.
Step 6
Layer rice
Spread drained rice in a heavy pot and lay kombu on top.
Step 7
Soak rice
Add measured liquid, cover and soak the rice for 20 minutes.
Step 8
Place bream
Lay the seared whole sea bream over the rice without stirring.
Step 9
Cook rice and fish
Bring covered pot to a boil, then cook low about 15 minutes until rice and fish are fully cooked.
Step 10
Steam off heat
Turn off heat and rest covered 20 minutes without opening.
Step 11
Debone fish
Remove kombu and fish; carefully pick out every bone and flake the flesh.
Step 12
Finish
Gently fold flaked fish and ginger into cooked rice and serve in bowls.
Common mistakes
- Mixing a whole fish into rice before deboning leaves dangerous bones.
Tips
Check for all bones carefully, especially before serving children.
The rice soak and covered rest are included in the total time.
