Saba Shioyaki — Salt-Grilled Mackerel Fillets Breakfast Set

Ingredients

• 2 Mackerel Fillets fillets, skin on
• 1½ tsp fine sea salt
• 1 tbsp sake
• 2 cups hot cooked short-grain rice
• 2 cups dashi
• 2 tbsp miso paste
• ½ cup cubed tofu
• 3 tbsp grated daikon
• 1 tsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp Japanese pickles
• 1 lemon, halved

Method

1. Pat the Mackerel Fillets dry, brush with sake, and salt both sides evenly. Rest on a rack in the fridge 30 minutes — beads of moisture will surface and the flesh will firm up.
2. Wipe the fillets dry again. Any water left on the skin means steaming instead of crisping.
3. Broil skin-side up about 4 inches from the element for 6–8 minutes until the skin blisters and blackens in spots and the flesh flakes at 145°F (63°C). No flipping needed.
4. Meanwhile, warm the dashi with the tofu, then take it off the heat and whisk in the miso.
5. Serve the fish with a mound of grated daikon dressed with soy sauce, a bowl of rice, the miso soup, pickles, and a squeeze of lemon.