Soy-simmered hamachi 鰤のあら煮 · buri no ara-ni · collars and trimmings in dashi-soy
Source: handwritten note and photos, 6 Nov 2026. Different from the class nizakana: dashi instead of water + sake, far more soy, a long low simmer instead of a 15-min boil-down.
Uses the ara — collars (kama), belly trim, pieces on the bone, skin on — left after filleting a hamachi. Cut into large chunks, 4–6 cm.
Ratio
Dashi 5
Dark soy 3
Sugar 1
Mirin 1
+ 3 cloves garlic
+ 3 slices ginger
Enough liquid to submerge the fish. No sake.
Method
Combine dashi, soy, sugar, mirin in a wide pot; add the garlic, whole, and the ginger.
Add the fish pieces so they sit in one layer, fully covered.
Bring up to a simmer, then keep it low and gentle — about 2 h. The liquid stays thin and brothy, not reduced to a glaze; the fish takes the colour deep into the flesh and the collar meat pulls off the bone.
Serve a few pieces in a small bowl with a ladle of the liquid.
The 2 h is an estimate, not timed. Fillet pieces would fall apart long before that; the long simmer is for the bony collar and head pieces. Keeps in the liquid in the fridge; reheat gently.