Gomame or Tazukuri, Candied Dried Fish for New Year

[helenjp]

Gomame or Tazukuri, Candied Dried Fish for New Year

This is one of the trio of festive dishes for New Year in Japan – black beans, salted herring roe, and candied dried fish – served as drink snacks.

Gomame are a different species of sardine than the usual “niboshi” used for dashi. They are slender, firmer, and have a yellowish stripe.

• 20 g gomame (tiny dried fish)
  
• 1 T sugar, generous
  
• 1 T soy sauce
  
• 1 tsp mirin (sweet rice wine)
  
• 1/2 tsp sake
  
• little oil
  

* Prepare a plate or tray with nonstick baking paper over it.

* Spread out gomame, remove any broken pieces etc.

* Transfer to a heatproof dish in one layer, well spaced, and heat in microwave 2-3 minutes, until one snaps crisply rather than bending when tested. You can achieve the same result by dry-frying while stirring in a heavy frypan over moderate heat.

* Put sugar, soy sauce, and mirin in a small pan, bring to the boil, shaking but not stirring, until the mixture foams up.

* When you see coarser “eyes” in the fine foam, quickly sprinkle in the oil (preerably sesame) and sake, and add the fish. Stir (with chopsticks) briefly and shake the pan, till well coated. Turn off heat.

* Quickly remove to nonstick paper covered plate, spread out to cool. The faster they cool, the shinier and more attractive they will be.

Variations: add sesame seeds or chopped/slivered almonds to the candying mixture with the fish, or sprinkle parmesan cheese or white poppy seeds over the hot candied fish as it cools.

Keywords: Hors d'oeuvre, Seafood, Intermediate, Japanese

( RG2066 )