tataki

[torakris]

In the summer foods thread Smallworld said:

So how does everyone serve their katsuo tataki?

Tonight I plan to serve it on a bed of fresh mizuna and top it with kaiware-na, shiso and myoga, drizzled with ponzu-shoyu. Sometimes I use, instead of or in combination with those toppings, grated daikon, sliced negi and ginger.

But piling on the toppings tends to cover up the beautiful deep-red katsuo, which is a shame. Does anyone showcase the fish by serve the toppings seperately? Do you pour the ponzu-shoyu on the katsuo or give a little dish full to each diner for dipping?

How do you make your katsuo tataki?

[torakris]

katsuo tataki is one of my favorite dishes and I almost always have a block frozen in freezer, it is sort of an instant dinner for us.

I don't think I have ever made it the same way twice, normally it is served with various toppings like ginger, garlic, scallions, shiso, myouga, etc other times I make it more salad-y with mizina, baby spinach, mesclun mix, etc SOmetimes I dress it with the packet that comes with it, other times ponzu or some type of soy based sauce. other times I have made it more Italian style with basalmic vinegar and EVOO.

Like smallworld says, I too try not to pile too much on top because then you can't see the gorgeous color. So when using the greens I normally place them on the bottom usually mixed with a little raw red onion.

I have a block in the freezer now just waiting for dinner sometime this week.

[smallworld]

Yay- katsuo tataki gets its own thread!

Kristin, I'm going to start serving the 'toppings' in seperate dishes, since it really is a waste to cover up the beautiful fish. Actually, covering it up used to make sense, back when I used to mangle my sashimi with a cheap kitchen knife...

So is frozen katsuo any good? Can you freeze any kind, or do you have to make sure the fish has never been frozen (and how do you tell if the fish has been frozen- it isn't always indicated)?

[torakris]

Yay- katsuo tataki gets its own thread!

Kristin, I'm going to start serving the 'toppings' in seperate dishes, since it really is a waste to cover up the beautiful fish. Actually, covering it up used to make sense, back when I used to mangle my sashimi with a cheap kitchen knife...

So is frozen katsuo any good? Can you freeze any kind, or do you have to make sure the fish has never been frozen (and how do you tell if the fish has been frozen- it isn't always indicated)?

Smallworld,

I buy the blocks that are already frozen (they have been frozen at the place they were "made"). I usually order them form my co-op but sometimes have found them in supermarkets. They taste so much better than the "fresh" ones in the supermarket, they are less fishy tasting. I wouldn't recommend freezing the freh ones because they had most likely already been defrosted.

[helenjp]

My family don't much like katsuo - and while I like it, I often find the supermarket katsuo is stringy!

Am I being too cheap? Or is it a matter of preparation technique?

[torakris]

stringy??

I don't think I have ever eaten stringy katsuo.....

[helenjp]

I must really be too cheap...

Sometimes the katsuo is "layered", with white sinewy layers throughout the meat.

However, I was so inspired by the thread I bought some ready prepared seared katsuo today at the supermarket...wait to feel the archipelago shudder if the diners don't approve!

There was a time when I would never have bought ready seared katsuo. I remember doing all kinds of strange routines that looked like Salvador Dali' paintings, with long skewers to hold the katsuo well above the flame. I'm glad I know how to do it, but also glad I don't feel driven enough to *actually* do it these days

[smallworld]

I've had stringy katsuo too (also stringy maguro).

Helen, the pre-sliced katsuo is a great idea. The inside flesh is visible so you can can tell if it will be stringy or not just by looking. The grocery stores around here tend to sell the the sliced katsuo and the whole slab of katsuo right beside eachother, using the same batch of fish. So far I've had good luck buying whole piece of katsuo based on what the sliced stuff looks like.

The last few times I bought katsuo it was really good- I can't imagine frozen katsuo being better! I will keep my eyes open for it (but I wonder if it's only available from a co-op).

For searing the katsuo, I follow the routine I learned from Gatten- skewer the katso and hold it directly above a high flame. Sear the skin first, until it bubbles, then finish off the sides very quickly. The show said to forget about cooling the katsuo down in an ice-water bath- this removes the 'kobashii' flavour and besides, the searing time is so quick that the inside meat should remain cool. So I just sear, slice and serve.

This technique works just fine and my katsuo tataki has been great ever since.

[torakris]

This is a picture (not very good) of a block of frozen already seared katsuo I bought at a local supermarket.

When they are at the supermarket they are set out in the fresh case (probably so they will be defrosted by the time people want to eat them that night), I always shop first thing in the morning, dig to the bottom of the pile and get one still frozen solid, then hurry home and place it in the freezer.

[torakris]

In Japan there are many dishes that have tataki in the title, tataki is from the verb tataku which means to hit or beat. From an online dictionary:

たたく 叩く

1 〈打つ〉 hit; 《fml》 strike; beat; knock 《on [at] the door》; rap 《(on) the table》; 〈平手で〉 slap; 〈軽く〉 pat 《a dog, sb on the arm》; tap 《on the window, sb on the shoulder》; 〈強く〉 bang 《on [at] the door》; 〈打ちのめす〉 beat [《俗》 paste] sb; 《俗》 give sb a beating; 〈繰り返し〉 pound [hammer on] 《the table》

last night I made a gobo tataki, in which the gobo is beaten with a stick then cut into bite sized pieces, this particular dish was dressed with a sesame-vinegar-sugar-soy dressing.

I also make a cucumber tataki pickle and a nagaimo (mountain yam) tataki salad, then there are couple fish dishes that are aslo called tataki, most of these are the raw fish flesh minced up and mixed with flavorings but some of them (ie katsuo-tataki)

are seared and then just sliced.

What are some of your favorite tataki dishes?

[helenjp]

Tataki kyuuri...can't think why beating the cucumber should improve the flavor so much, but beating a cucumber or three so that they break up into rough-shaped sticks, then dressing them in soy/sesame oil/vinegar makes a great salad.

[gus_tatory]

ok Kristin--

the newbie Japanese hiragana-learner (that would be me ) has a question:

in the West when you see "tataki", it's always seared beef or tuna. how does seared meat fit in with the idea that tataki means "beaten"?

thanks in advance,

gus

[torakris]

ok Kristin--

the newbie Japanese hiragana-learner (that would be me  ) has a question:

in the West when you see "tataki", it's always seared beef or tuna. how does seared meat fit in with the idea that tataki means "beaten"?

thanks in advance,

gus

←

I have no idea!!

I was hoping someone could come along and explain this as well....

[gus_tatory]

I have no idea!!

I was hoping someone could come along and explain this as well....

←

maybe it's tenderized with a (Japanese word for mallet) before it's flash-seared? is that likely?

[torakris]

I just pulled out a (in Japanese) cooking encyclopedia and it gives the definition of tataki as:

(loosely translated by me! )

any foods that have been hit/beaten with either a knife blade or handle, a wooden pestle (surikogi) or hands. It gives a couple samples and then discusses katsuo-tataki (bonito) and says the katsuo is seared over a flame, sliced, sauce/dressing is poured over it, then it is slightly pounded/kneaded with your hands to allow the flavors to penetrate more. So this is why some seared dishes have the name tataki.

I don't recall ever seeing this as a step in any of the tataki dishes I have seen recipes for though....

[Hiroyuki]

Here is another interesting description:

As for gyuu no tataki, which is beef seared in a similar way as with katsuo no tataki, beef is not pounded at all.

牛のたたきは、カツオのたたきを真似して肉の表面を焼いたもので、まったくたたかれていません。

from here:

http://backno.mag2.com/reader/BackBody?id=...000000131917000

[helenjp]

I don't remember where I saw it, but I remember a recipe that showed the cook "slapping" the seasonings into katsuo with his hands, with an explanation that this was the "tataki" referred to.

[torakris]

one of my favorite versions of katsuo tataki, sort of Italian style with baby spinach, yellow peppers, red onions, tomato and a balsamic and EVOO dressing

[torakris]

the katsuo tataki thread

[torakris]

gyu-tataki (beef)

It would have looked better if I had remembered to buy scallions or something else for a garnish.

the middle is grated radish and the whole thing was dressed with bottled yuzu ponzu.

tips for good gyu-tataki:

--don't use to big a block of meat, about 2 inches wide is good, any bigger and you need to sear it for longer to get the heat to the middle and the meat can get tough

--bring the meat to room temperature before searing and season well with salt and pepper (pepper is optional, but use plenty of salt)

--open flame is best (I sear mine directly over a gas flame) but you can use a fry pan or griddle pan with the highest heat possible

--immediately after cooking plunge the beef into ice wate and let it sit for a couple minutes until it has cooled down

--before slicing, wrap it in some saran wrap and let it sit in the refrigerator for a couple hours

--the better the beef the better the tataki, but if you follow the steps above even a cheaper cut can give decent results. The picture above was a 350 yen (little over $3) block of meat, very cheap in Japan yet produced a quite tender tataki.

[kazuo]

Now that is some fabulous gyu tataki. Wow. Do you ever use bincho-tan in an outdoor grill for tataki, or is it too much trouble unless you're cooking other things? I've found that the bincho-tan imparts a bit more char and smokiness than a gas burner.

Have you ever tried toro salmon tataki? Roughly the same concept as katsuo, but the fat content in the salmon makes for a very rich dish. We tend to serve it with momiji oroshi, which might also go well with the gyu tataki.

[torakris]

I have never made tataki outdoors.... I really don't know why..

I have used bincho-tan on a couple occasions and while I enjoy the taste it leaves, it is just too expensive for every day (or every weekend) use.

I love toro salmon tataki, I used to make it quite a bit before my kids discovered just wonderful it is as well and now I can only afford to make it on special occasions.