Popularized by Nobu Matsuhisa in his eponymous restaurant, Black Cod with Miso has become an instant classic associated with Japanese food. The irony is that black cod (or more accurately Sablefish), is not native to the waters around Japan and is imported from the US and Canada.
Contrary to popular belief, Sablefish is actually not a type of cod at all, yet its similar appearance has gotten it nicknamed black cod, silver cod, blue cod, and coal cod depending on where you live. It's rich flaky white meat is loaded with omega-3 fatty acids and in terms of texture, it's a dead ringer for Patagonian Toothfish (a.k.a. Chilean Sea Bass)
While both suffer from a case of mistaken identity, and have a similar texture, there is one important distinction between the two. Patagonian Toothfish is overfished and not sustainable because of its lifecycle, as well as how it's typically caught. Sablefish on the other hand earns a FSSI (Fish Stock Sustainability Index) of 4 (the best possible rating) from the NOAA, making it an excellent alternative.
In Japanese cuisine rich fish like "gindara" (銀鱈 - silver cod) are often prepared as kasuzuke and grilled. Marinated for a few days in sakekasu (the lees leftover from the production of sake), the fish takes on a marvelous earthy flavor that compliments the rich creamy texture of the sablefish. The trouble is that it's difficult to find sakekasu in the US, which is probably one of the reasons why Nobu chose another common way of marinate fish: misozuke.
Miso is a flavorful, fermented soybean paste, rich in umami, that is a cornerstone of Japanese cuisine. It's used in everything from soups to sauces, and when it's combined with some sake and sugar it creates an addictive marinade that's perfect for pairing with fatty fish like Black Cod or Splendid Alfonsino.
📖 Recipe
Units
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon ginger juice
- 2 tablespoons yellow miso
- 2 tablespoons mirin
- 2 teaspoons evaporated cane sugar
- 2 pieces Sablefish (a.k.a. Black Cod)
Instructions
- To make the ginger juice, just grate the ginger into a bowl and squeeze the pulp to get the juice. Put the miso, mirin, sugar and ginger juice into a Ziploc bag and swish it around to combine.
- Add the sablefish to the bag and move the fish around to coat evenly. Press out as much air from the bag as you can (I usually set the bag on the countertop, partially seal the bag, then press out the air before sealing it all the way). This helps the marinade surround the fish. Put the bag in the fridge and marinate for at least 8 hours or up to 2 days.
- When you're ready to grill it, move your oven rack to the upper middle position and preheat your broiler for about 5 minutes. Oil a wire rack with a paper towel and vegetable oil, then place it over a baking sheet.
- Scape the excess marinade off each fillet with your fingers, and then place the sablefish on the rack. Put the sheet in the oven and grill until golden brown, and the meat flakes easily.
- Serve the miso glazed cod with steamed rice.
Heather says
Natto...the first time I tried it was in Hawaii, and let's just say it took many mouthfuls of gohan to smother the taste! But this misoyaki cod would require no such dilution. Gorgeous.
Debi (Table Talk) says
Beautiful crispy skin--- this fish is exactly what I like to have for dinner!
Trissa says
I love this style of cooking and I love cod fish. I've always felt guilty eating it as I knew it was not sustainable but knowing that black cod is - well this is the best news I've heard today!Thanks!
Divina says
Gorgeous dish. Simple yet sublime.
Kristin Conroy says
Mmmm...I'm reading this before breakfast and I actually want to chow down on that right now! I love how the bass is teetering on the gorgeous mound of rabe. Adding it to my shopping list!
Robin says
I spent many too many shopping trips devoted to finding sablefish before I realized it was the black cod I'd so often eaten before. Ah, fish names. I'm really interested to try natto now, slimy okra-like fermented cheese-ish sounds right up my alley! 🙂
Elaine from Cookware Help says
First time to this blog. Got stumbled here while I was searching for a recipe for black cod fish. I must say, your blog has georgeous photos and I'm loving how you present your recipes here. And this dish is just so perfect for my menu plan for the coming Holy Week. I’ll be sure to come back to your blog often.
Recipes Writer says
That looks amazing.
We Are Never Full says
ahhhh... love this dish. it's the dish that put nobu on the culinary map and one of the things that made Nobu Matsuhisa famous. look at that skin, marc. damn. sustainable to boot.
Jane @ Built in Cookers says
We have a holiday weekend come up this weekend. Also my sons birthday, I was looking for something perfect for my menu plan and this looks amazing.
Busy mom says
Marc:
We tried your recipe today, and it's a big hit! I did this at the last minute without having the time to marinate the fish overnight, but it tasted delicious regardless, with the sauce I made with the scraped-off miso paste and the juice from the fish itself. I bet it will be even more delicious next time when it's marinated. Like you said, this recipe works better than the usual soy marinade. Thank you for sharing!
Rumana says
Awesome dish....
Kathy says
I actually made your previous gindara saikyoyaki recipe just a few days ago and thought it was awesome -- the minced garlic and ginger truly added to the flavor, while I liked that your recipe didn't require a whole cup of miso that almost all gets thrown out. (Also for that recipe I used turnip greens instead of broccoli rabe since the former is so easy to find in Japan these days while I've never seen the latter, and it worked very well.) I notice this new recipe has fewer ingredients in the marinade but is still economical with the miso. Will definitely be trying it out soon -- thanks!
Genie says
I always find the different names for fish very confusing. Who knew that black cod wasn't even a cod? Not sure if we have anything similar here in New Zealand as we don't even have Chilean Sea Bass.
Marc Matsumoto says
I don't think sablefish is native to the waters around NZ, so unless it's imported you might not be able to find it. Check Wikipedia for other common names for this fish: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sablefish
Any oily flaky white-meat fish will work, so if you can't find sablefish, try it with something else.
eng ting ting says
Thanks for the explanation. No wonder the cod I buy from the grocer tastes different!
Kelly Siew says
My favourite way of cooking fish! Just blogged about this not long ago, but I couldn't find black cod so I just used the regular ones. Also used the same marinade on Salmon, worked well too.
Kelly Siew says
My favourite way of cooking fish! Just blogged about this not long ago, but I couldn't find black cod so I just used the regular ones. Also used the same marinade on Salmon, worked well too.
fish lover says
Found Black Cod at Fresh Foods, it is in season now!
Roman Taylor says
this is amazing with Halibut as well
sambalamba says
pro tip: freeze your ginger fingers prior to use. When you're ready to use it, microwave until defrosted then squeeze out the juice by hand. It will be much softer and you'll be able to get much more juice from a smaller piece of ginger. and you can cut up candy the squeeze-dried pieces and add them to chicken salad.
Doraemon says
How many minutes to bake/ broil and how many degree do I need to use?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Doraemon, if you're in the US, most ovens have a "boil" setting, If you're oven doesn't have one, use the highest temperature your oven will go to. As for the length of time it's going to depend on how thick your fish is and how hot your broiler is. The best way to tell if your fish is split one of your fillets in half at the thickest part using a fork. It should flake easily and if you look inside it should be opaque (not translucent). You can also use an instant read thermometer, the internal temperature should read between 135-140 F.
Guest says
What is mirin? Can I find this in an Asian market?
Marc Matsumoto says
Mirin is Japanese sweet rice wine. If you live in an area that has Asian markets, chances are any regular supermarket with an asian section will sell it.
Isabel says
Hi Marc! Is it ok to use red miso?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Isabel, red miso tends to have a stronger taste and is sometimes more salty, but as long as you're aware of that and make adjustments as needed, it should work fine.
Isabel says
I used 1 1/2 TBS red miso and it came out AMAZING!!!!!
I actually made an entire miso, No-Recipes meal.
Red miso soup, Miso Cod and Miso-glazed potatoes.
Bowls and plates were licked cleaned. Sooooooo good.
Thanks again Marc, I LOVE this site 🙂
Nam Mujaya says
yummy