Japanese Monkfish and Anko Nabe: Winter Hotpot and the Kanto Delicacy

Ingredients

• For the ankimo
• 400 g fresh monkfish liver (ankimo), Ibaraki/Ōarai source preferred; season January–March; verify freshness before purchase
• 500 ml lightly salted cold water, for soaking to remove blood — 2 hours minimum
• 100 ml sake, for steaming
• 150 g daikon, finely grated for momiji oroshi
• 1 tsp dried chili flakes or togarashi, worked into grated daikon to make momiji oroshi
• 60 ml ponzu, to serve alongside
• For the anko nabe broth
• 1.2 litres dashi, prepared to standard strength
• 80 g white or mixed miso, dissolved into dashi; season lightly — collagen from the fish provides significant natural body and umami
• 80 ml sake, added to broth
• For the anko nabe
• 600 g monkfish flesh and gelatinous skin, cut into serving portions; skin retained

Method

1. 1
   Submerge the monkfish liver in lightly salted cold water and soak for 2 hours, changing the water once at the midpoint. The water drawn off should run pale and nearly clear; any iron-red colour signals that soaking must continue. Drain and pat dry.
2. 2
   Lay the liver flat on a sheet of plastic wrap. Pour the sake over it, then roll the liver tightly in the wrap to form a firm cylinder, twisting the ends to compress the shape. This is where the dish lives or dies: the wrapping must be tight enough to eliminate air pockets and consolidate the liver into a uniform log — any looseness will prevent clean slicing and produce a collapsed, grainy result once chilled.
3. 3
   Set the wrapped cylinder in a steamer over simmering — not boiling — water. Steam at moderate heat for 25–30 minutes. The liver is done when it yields a slight, even resistance to a gentle finger press through the wrap; a soft, yielding centre means it needs more time, while a hard, rigid feel signals oversteaming and a dry, grainy texture.
4. 4
   Remove the cylinder from the steamer and allow it to cool briefly, then refrigerate, still wrapped, for a minimum of 2 hours until completely cold and firm. The cylinder should feel set and unyielding throughout when pressed. Do not slice warm — the interior will be too soft to hold its form.
5. 5
   Prepare the momiji oroshi: work the chili flakes thoroughly into the finely grated daikon until the mixture is evenly coloured and carries a clean, sharp heat on tasting. Set aside with the ponzu.
6. 6
   Bring the dashi to a gentle simmer in the nabe pot or a wide shallow casserole. Dissolve the miso into the dashi in stages, tasting as you go — the broth should be savoury but not salt-forward, since the monkfish's collagen will enrich it further during cooking. Add the sake.
7. 7
   Add the monkfish flesh and skin to the simmering miso-dashi-sake broth. Simmer until the flesh is just cooked through and the skin has softened to a gelatinous, silken texture — the broth will visibly thicken and take on a glossy body from the collagen released by the skin. Do not over-season at this stage.
8. 8
   Unwrap the chilled ankimo cylinder and slice into rounds approximately 1 cm thick with a sharp, single-stroke knife motion. The cut face should be smooth and uniform, the colour even throughout. Serve the sliced ankimo alongside or lightly atop the nabe, accompanied by momiji oroshi and ponzu at the table.