Hot Oil Salmon Sashimi
Hot oil sashimi was popularised by chef Nobu Matsuhisa in the late 1990s, and is both delicious and a great zero-waste technique for fish lovers. Mt Cook Alpine Salmon is renowned for its rich, buttery flavour and firm texture, and for picture-perfect sashimi I tend to focus on the fattest and firmest sections the fillet (check out this detailed guide on sectioning the fillet). This leaves the thinner edge strips and softer central belly seam, which are perfect for dishes where uniformity isn’t as important, such as poké, donburi, or this hot oil method. Flash-searing these trimmings with scalding hot oil gently cooks slices around the edges while keeping the centre raw.
One great thing about hot oil sashimi is you can switch up both the fish species as well as the garnishes and dressing. Kingfish, salmon, tuna and trevally all work nicely and with kingfish I find even better if its been dry-aged for 48 hours or so beforehand. The dressing in this recipe leans Japanese. To make a Southeast Asian take, I like to combine lime juice, fish sauce and a little palm sugar with chilli flakes, and drizzle that over the fish with garnishes like coriander and finely sliced Thai shallots. Or venture down a Mediterranean route by using olive oil as the heated oil, combining lemon juice with some olive brine and good quality oregano as a dressing, and considering garnishes like sizzled capers, sliced olives and very thinly sliced preserved lemon to garnish.
Ingredients
200g Mt Cook Alpine Salmon fillet (skin off, edge strips and central seam trimmings, sliced thinly )
3 tbsp cold-pressed seed oil*
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp mirin
1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
2 tsp pure sesame oil
1–2 spring onions, finely sliced
1 medium red-skinned radish, micro-diced
1/2–1 tsp yuzu shichimi*
Method
Lay the salmon slices out across a platter or plate like crazy paving, fitting the irregular pieces together in a single layer. Drizzle over a whisked mixture of the soy sauce, mirin, rice wine vinegar and sesame oil then top the salmon with the spring onions, micro-diced radish, and small dots of yuzukosho.
Heat the rice bran oil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat until it shimmers and begins to lightly smoke. Carefully pour the smoking hot oil directly over the garnishes and salmon. It will sizzle instantly, wilting the spring onions, blooming the spicy yuzukosho, and lightly searing the salmon while leaving the center perfectly rare. Serve immediately.
*Notes
I like the sunflower or rapeseed oils by The Good Oil, which are made from seed grown and cold-pressed here in Aotearoa, using no chemicals or heat. They have a high smoke point which is what you want to get the oil super hot without smoking. If you’re using oil with a lower smoke point such as olive oil, the fish won’t sizzle quite as much.
Yuzu shichimi is one variation of many shichimi (seven-spice blends). It features dried yuzu peel which adds a bright, distinctly Japanese citrus note. If you can’t find the yuzu type, use any other shichimi. This locally made blend from Apostle is a good alternative!
