Japanese Breakfast Salmon

Japanese Breakfast Salmon (塩鮭 – Shiozake)

Traditional Japanese breakfasts do tend to involve a lot of components, but none of them are complicated, and this Shiozake, or grilled salted salmon, is no exception. It was originally made by salting whole salmon to preserve it, but these days most people opt to cure salmon filets in brine. This is not only faster, but it also gives more control over how salty you want the salmon to be. 

Why This Recipe Works?

• Applying salt directly to the salmon can result in some areas becoming saltier than others. By preparing a liquid brine, it ensures the salmon is evenly seasoned throughout. 
• The brine also ensures the thin pieces of salmon stay moist and tender.  
• Adding mirin to the brine adds umami to the salmon thanks to its high concentration of naturally occurring glutamate. It also adds a barely perceptible sweetness that balances out the salt without tasting overtly sweet. 

Ingredients for Japanese Breakfast Salmon

• Salmon – Traditionally, salted salmon is made with a small species of salmon native to East Asia, but any kind of salmon can be used. You do want the salmon sliced fairly thinly so that it cooks through relatively quickly. The ideal thickness is about 3/4 of an inch (2cm), and you don’t want it to be any thicker than 1-inch (2.5cm). 
• Salt – There’s no need to use fancy salty here. Table salt or kosher salt will work fine, but I recommend measuring the salt by weight, as different types of salt can have vastly different volumes due to the shape and size of their crystals. This could result in your brine ending up either too salty or not salty enough. 
• Water – traditionally salted salmon was made by applying the salt directly to the salmon, but this can result in uneven salting, and the resulting fish tends to be much saltier. Dissolving the salt in water to make brine allows you to control the salinity of the salmon while ensuring it’s evenly seasoned. 
• Mirin – Mirin does three things. First, the fermentation process by which mirin is made creates a high concentration of amino acids. This adds the taste of umami to the salted salmon. Mirin also has the ability to conceal odors. Finally, the mirin adds a balancing sweetness to the brine that prevents the salt from tasting too harsh. 

How to Make Japanese Salted Salmon

To salt the salmon, you want to first make a brine by mixing the water, salt, and mirin together until the salt is fully dissolved. I usually do this in a storage container so I can drop the salmon in, cover it and store it in the fridge. 

You want to let the salmon brine for at least twelve hours to ensure it’s uniformly seasoned, but don’t let it go for longer than a day; otherwise, the proteins will start to denature and make the salmon mushy. 

When the salted salmon is cured, remove it from the brine and pat it dry using paper towels. Then you can grill it up to make breakfast salmon, or you can wrap it in plastic wrap and store it for a few days in the refrigerator or a few months in the freezer. 

How to Cook Japanese Breakfast Salmon

Most Japanese kitchens have a small broiler under the stove to grill fish. You can grill the fish in a toaster oven (or a full-size oven) set to broil. Just put the fish on an oiled rack and set the rack on a sheet pan. 

The other option is to pan-fry the salted salmon. To do this, you’ll want to preheat a frying pan over medium heat and add a small splash of oil. 

Lay the salmon skin-side down into the pan and let it fry until it’s golden brown on the skin-side, and the salmon has turned opaque about a third of the way up the side. If the salmon looks like it’s browning too quickly, reduce the heat. 

Flip the salmon over with a spatula and fry the second side until the salmon is cooked through. Depending on the shape of the salmon, you may need to use the spatula to press it down in parts to ensure the whole surface of the salmon is making good contact with the pan. 

The salmon is done when it flakes easily and is opaque to the center. If you’re using an instant-read thermometer, check that it read an internal temperature of 140 degrees F (60 C). 

How to Prepare Daikon Oroshi

Grated daikon or daikon oroshi(大根おろし) is a condiment that often accompanies grilled fish like this salted salmon. It’s made by grating daikon and then draining off excess water. It may sound simple, but there are a few essential things to know before you make it. 

1. Use the head-end of the daikon (the end towards the leaves). That’s because the top has a lower concentration of allyl isothiocyanate, which is the compound responsible for making radishes spicy. This will result in a milder result, and if you have good daikon, it may even be a little sweet. 
2. Grate the daikon just before you eat it. Daikon contains sulfur compounds that can make it stinky if it’s grated too far in advance. 
3. It’s best to peel it with a knife rather than a peeler. That’s because there’s a fibrous layer under the skin that can make your oroshi gritty if you grate it in. Using a knife, you can remove the skin in a thicker layer to ensure you get all of the fibrous bits. 
4. Drain the grated daikon, or it’s going to be watery. The best way to do this is to put the grated daikon into a tea strainer and press it lightly. You don’t want to overdo it and make it dry, but it also shouldn’t weep liquid onto your plate when you serve it. 

Serve the daikon oroshi with the Japanese breakfast salmon. You can also drizzle some soy sauce or lemon juice onto the daikon if you like. 

How to Make Japanese Breakfast?

Traditional Japanese meals follow the format of Ichiju Sansai (一汁三菜), which literally means “one soup three sides.” Japanese breakfasts are no different, and a full breakfast usually consists of plain rice, soup, protein, and a few side dishes. Here are some ideas to get you started:

• Rice – Japanese eat short-grain rice, which has a higher amylopectin content than long-grain rice, making the grains stickier. Although there are some seasoned rice dishes in Japanese cuisine, the rice is almost always plain for breakfast. That’s why dishes like this salted salmon tend to be salty as they are meant to season the rice as you eat them together. 
• Soup – Traditional Japanese meals are almost always accompanied by soup. Here are a few Japanese soup recipes that are perfect for a Japanese breakfast:
  • How to Make Miso Soup
  • Asari Miso Soup
  • Kenchinjiru (vegan Japanese soup)
• Side Protein – Because Japan was an agrarian society until fairly recently, having enough protein for breakfast helped get farmers through the day. The protein can take the form of cured fish like salted salmon, eggs, or legumes. Aside from the salted salmon in this recipe, here are some other Japanese breakfast protein recipes:
  • Tamagoyaki (rolled omelette)
  • Miso salmon
  • Miso cod
• Side Veggies – The most common way to serve vegetables as a side dish for breakfast is in the form of pickles. However, many seasoned vegetable dishes can fill this role. 
  • Japanese Pickles 3-ways
  • Sesame Spinach (Hourensou Goma Ae)
  • Sunomono
  • Kinpira Gobo

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