I also put this in r/sushi and am waiting for it to be approved there. Will be putting it here too as it concerns non-sushi foods that have unagi (eg: unadon, unagi onigiri).
\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_
Hello to everyone on r/JapaneseFood, I just had a culinary lightbulb (didn’t need to think real hard about what my username needed to be lol). Title says it all, we could have plenty of sustainable unagi right under our noses.
So for some background, I learned recently just how unsustainable unagi made from the go-to of European/American/Japanese eel (all endangered or critically endangered species of eel that nobody knows how to sustainably farm) is.This was something I was absolutely horrified to learn because it’s not just one of my favorite seafoods, but it seems very available literally everywhere (as in being a mainstay on menus and freezers at stores being packed with unagi kabayaki), which has **got** to be depleting those stocks.
That got me thinking, do any other species of eel exist which would be suitable and sustainable choices? My research yielded the swamp eel, which Wikipedia says isn’t a real eel but also isn’t endangered and is even an invasive species (meaning eating it would have to be *encouraged*).
But rather surprisingly, as far as eating is concerned, Wikipedia says: ” In Japan, it is known as *ta-unagi*, from ç”°, pronounced “ta”, meaning paddy and é°», pronounced “unagi”, meaning eel, usually written in katakana as タウナギ, and usually not eaten. ” [Asian swamp eel – Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asian_swamp_eel)
I don’t understand this. A recipe I found doesn’t either, it said ” Swamp eel fish fillet got oily and delicate flavour, similiar to it’s cousin unagi eel with fins which popular in Japanese restaurant, served as [**Sweet Soy Sauce Broiled** ](https://dentistvschef.wordpress.com/2014/10/13/recipe-unagi-kabayaki-japanese-eel-grilled-sweet-soy-sauce/)[**Eel (**](https://dentistvschef.wordpress.com/2014/10/13/recipe-unagi-kabayaki-japanese-eel-grilled-sweet-soy-sauce/)[***Unagi Kabayaki***\*\*)\*\*](https://dentistvschef.wordpress.com/2014/10/13/recipe-unagi-kabayaki-japanese-eel-grilled-sweet-soy-sauce/). Swamp eel fillet texture is more succulent and firm compare to the unagi eel, but i wondering why swamp eel didn’t got much attention in fine dining restaurant menu. ” [swamp eel fish fillet unagi recipe | DENTIST CHEF (wordpress.com)](https://dentistvschef.wordpress.com/tag/swamp-eel-fish-fillet-unagi-recipe/)
Great minds must think alike lol. With a taste like that, and being an invasive species that SHOULD be eaten almost to extinction where it is invasive like regular eels, I can’t see a reason not to be serving swamp eel unagi. It would also be a lot cheaper because of the abundance.
So it really looks like we have a ton of sustainable unagi under our noses.
Now, I’ve not yet had the chance to try swamp eel so I’ve put in a poll to help gather some opinions in the meantime. Please feel free to elaborate in the comments if you’ve voted.
[View Poll](https://www.reddit.com/poll/10izhr8)
2 comments
You’re not the first one to think of that, Google タウナギ and you will see the answer for yourself (although in Japanese). The majority of websites say that it has a harder texture, less fat, and that the skin smells, and that its a letdown when prepared as a kabayaki like with unagi; however, many will also mention that it is a commonly eaten ingredient in China and Taiwan (stir fry, soup, etc) and that it tastes good when prepared appropriately.
With the massive amounts of eel consumed, I would think that you’d have sustainable farming like with other fish — is it not possible to breed and farm these eel?