Saba
Mackerel
鯖、さば
Scomber Japonicus
Beautiful, mother-of-pearl hued, with a silvery-black stripe running along its back, mackerel are little cousins of bonito and tuna. Like tuna, mackerel most of the time swim fast, so their muscles are loaded with Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP). They also contain lots of glutamate and glycine, so they have lots of umami. Mackerel can attain a length of 50cm. They are best in autumn when fat increases, but can be caught the whole year through.
Sushi chefs divide fish into three basic categories: red (tuna, swordfish, etc.), white (sea bream, sea bass, flounder etc.) and blue. This last category refers to fish with a silvery blue skin, and therefore they are also called hikari-mono, "shiny things". Mackerel belongs to this last category.
Found throughout Japan; the main fishing port is
Choshi in Chiba, but the largest catches are brought on land in Ibaraki, Nagasaki and Shizuoka.
Saba dishes:
Saba no sashimi. Fresh mackerel are delicious as sashimi or seared (tataki). You can feel the richness of the taste, which is fuller of umami than other fish. It also goes very well with vinegar. The sashimi should be prepared by a specialist, as there is a risk of anisakis parasites.
On sushi: nigiri-zushi, battera-zushi (Osaka), bo-zushi (Kyoto).
Shimesaba, vinegared mackerel
Saba no shio-yaki, mackerel grilled in salt
Saba no misoni, mackerel simmered with miso. Miso is popular for simmering, as it absorbs the fishy odor.
Saba no nitsuke, mackerel lightly pickled in vinegar
Saba no oroshini, simmered mackerel with grated radish
Saba no goma-ae, mackerel dressed with sesame