Unaju Unagi Kabayaki Rice Box Lacquer Eel Grilled — Cook

Ingredients

4 whole freshwater eel (unagi, Anguilla japonica), filleted, skin on, spine removed; or 4 pre-grilled unagi fillets from a Japanese grocery
For the kabayaki tare
100 ml soy sauce
100 ml mirin
50 ml sake
30 g caster sugar, approximately 2 tbsp
To serve
800 g short-grain Japanese rice, cooked, kept hot
2 tsp sansho (Japanese mountain pepper), ground; served at table

Method

1
Prepare the kabayaki tare. Combine soy sauce, mirin, sake and sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves, then reduce by one-third. Remove from the heat and allow to rest; a maintained tare develops character over time and should not be used immediately if it can be avoided. The tare is ready when it coats a spoon lightly and carries a deep caramel-soy aroma.
2
Prepare the eel according to the Kanto method: fillet by splitting from the back along the spine. Skewer the fillets lengthwise on flat metal skewers to prevent curling over the fire. Place skin-side down over a binchotan charcoal fire at steady high heat. Grill until the flesh turns opaque and white, with the skin beginning to colour — this is the shirayaki stage.
3
(Kanto method.) Transfer the skewered fillets to a steamer. Steam for 10 to 15 minutes until the flesh is fully tender and yielding to the touch — it should offer almost no resistance when pressed gently. This step is the distinction of the Kanto tradition and produces the characteristic melting texture. Kansai preparation omits this step entirely for a firmer, crispier result.
4
Return the fillets to the binchotan grill. This is where the dish lives or dies. Brush the flesh side generously with tare, grill for 30 seconds until it begins to caramelize and the edges darken slightly, then brush again. Repeat this baste-and-grill cycle a minimum of three to four times, turning once to glaze the skin side as well. Each application builds the lacquered glaze that is the defining quality of kabayaki. Gas heat, a single basting, or insufficient charcoal heat will not produce this result. The eel is ready when the surface is deeply glossy, mahogany-brown, and fragrant with sweet-smoky caramelization — the interior must remain moist.
5
Divide the hot cooked rice among four lacquered wooden boxes (ju-bako) or, in their absence, deep lidded bowls. Lay the glazed eel fillets over the rice. Brush with one final application of tare. Serve immediately with ground sansho at the table.