Cured Mackerel – ‘Saba’ (Japanese Style Boston Mackerel)
Ingredients
Salt
Large Whole Boston Mackerel (to cut into fillets) – Defrosted if frozen
White Vinegar
Plastic container (long enough to have the fillets laying down)
Tweezers – For bone removal
Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cure Time: 1-3 hours
Fillet the Boston mackerel
Lay down the fillets with the skin down and flesh up in the container, make sure they do not overlap.
Put a liberal amount of salt on the fillets- a decently layered coat should be enough. When the salt still has ‘white’ after salting, this is the right amount. Avoid getting salt on directly on the skin. In the next hour, the salt will draw out a lot of moisture from the fish.
Important: However long you let the salt sit in the fillets is how long you should let the fillets soak in the vinegar. Vinegar is stronger and will penetrate the salt.
1 hour later, submerge the fillets in a 30/70 water and vinegar solution in the plastic container. The fillets should be completely submerged in the solution, so it cures evenly – the flesh side should start to turn a white color.
Refrigerate the fillets in the vinegar solution for 1-3 hours.
Once it’s finished curing, remove the fillets from the vinegar solution. Lay it down with the skin facing up. Dry the fillet with a paper towel.
On the skin side of the fillet there is a thin layer of skin, also known as the membrane that lays on top of the beautiful iridescence color of the mackerel. Grab one corner of the fish either at the top part or the tail end – gently peel only the membrane.
If you see some of the color underneath the membrane that peels off during the process, it’s because the salt got on the skin (the salt makes the skin stick to the membrane).
Remove the bones from the center of the fillets – find them by running your fingers up and down the flesh.
The fish is now ready to eat – slice for sashimi.