Seafood ── Fish
Hiramasa
yellowtail amberjack — a summer fish valued above buri by many chefs
Similar in shape to yellowtail but taller-bodied and flatter, at its best in summer. Strongly migratory, it is mostly taken around Kuroshio-adjacent islands, and some sushi chefs rank its texture above buri.
- White fish
Lineage
What it's made of
Similar in shape to yellowtail and kanpachi but taller-bodied and flatter, at its best in summer. Less fatty than yellowtail, but its firmness and crisp bite stand out, unfolding a refined sweetness with every chew — and some sushi chefs rank its texture above buri. Few fish reach market in winter, making it a summer white-fish standard instead.
How it's made
Strongly migratory, and fish that keep swimming through open water are said to firm up the most. The common handling is pole-and-line capture followed by ike-jime bleeding and shinkei-jime nerve destruction, slowing deterioration — so how carefully it's bled shows directly in the bite. Thick-sliced sogi-zukuri cuts are favored to let that firm chew come through fully.
Why it took this shape
Island waters touched by the Kuroshio tend to have strong tidal flow, an environment well suited to migratory yellowtail amberjack. Around the Goto Islands off Nagasaki, close to the current, boats target incoming fish by pole-and-line — grounds shaped equally by the islands' terrain and the current running past them. The more exposed an island sits to open water, the more its waters serve as a waiting ground for fish on the move.
Before you go
- How to shop at a supermarketHow to choose prepared foods, sashimi, and packaged sushi, when discount stickers tend to appear, region-only specialties, buying by weight, the checkout and bagging flow, and sampling etiquette at a local supermarket.
- Roadside stations, direct-sale stands, and marketsHow to enjoy buying food near where it's produced, visiting and shopping at morning markets and fish markets, what to expect at farm stands, and finding local food at roadside stations (michi-no-eki).
- Foods to look for in springA guide to foods often seen in Japan around spring — early bonito, bamboo shoots, sakura mochi, hanami bento, new-season tea, and butterbur sprouts — with rough pointers for finding them.
Dishes in the same style
- AinameA white-fleshed fish of rocky shores, served raw or simmered in old Edomae style. Sedentary by nature, it varies by region, and in some Tohoku ports its liver is eaten too — a fish long prized as a local catch.
- AmadaiA pink-skinned fish with a subtle sweetness, known in Kyoto as 'guji'. Fish caught in Wakasa Bay were lightly salted and carried inland along the old Saba Kaido route, a history that made lightly-salted Wakasa amadai prized in Kyoto cuisine.