Just picked this up from my local Japanese market. Have never bought unagi before without it beyond pre-cooked/marinated, and thought it would be fun to try. Any tips for cooking this? It appears to be raw, and the fillets are much smaller than the pre-cooked ones I’ve gotten in the past.

7 comments

1. Usually simmer in a soy mirin broth concoction and eat them over rice with tons of eel sauce . Prob my fav way honestly

2. You can also grill, oven/airfry them until crispy on the outside and soft in the inside and eat it with your favourite sauce. I recommend eating it with soy sauce base sauces (teriyaki, etc.) and thinly sliced/minced ginger.

3. Please do not eat it raw, such as in sashimi. Eel blood contains toxins, so it’s dangerous. These toxins are broken down and become harmless when heated. By the way, it’s said that when eaten raw, it tastes “similar to pufferfish sashimi and delicious.” As for me, I would grill it with salt. It looks delicious. Also, it’s mentioned that lightly blanching the raw eel and eating it with ponzu sauce is also tasty. Enjoy!

4. That’s anago.

5. The label says “not for retail.” Errrrr…..

6. When I was living in Taiwan and told my grandmother that I wanted to eat eel, she was so cheap that she only bought the heads. I was so grossed out that I only ate rice that night.

7. Ahhhh salmon skin roll