The World-Wide Sushi Restaurant Reference
Glossary entry

Unagi. Freshwater eel.

Related words and phrases

Unagi maki. Eel roll.

Unagi no kimo. Eel innards.

Una-don. Grilled eel, served on rice.

Reader comments

• ``Don't know if anyone has replied to this one yet, but the sauce I use is a reduction of 3 parts soy to one part mirin.''

• ``Traditional tare is made by simmering eel broth, sugar (not honey) and soy sauce for two days.''

• ``Pauline's recipe certainly sounds good (I am a garlicaholic) but it really is hardly authentic, or even Japanese. Honey is seldom used in Japanese cooking and so is garlic. Believe me, I know. I'm Japanese. ¶ For the basic sauce, I'd suggest:
  • 1/2 cup soy sauce (Kikkoman)
  • 2 tbs mirin
  • 2 tbs sake
  • Sugar to taste
  ¶ Pour ingredients into a saucepan, and simmer until slightly thickened. You may adjust the proportions according to your taste. If you want thicker, sweeter sauce, increase the amount of mirin and decrease the amount of sake. If you want more fragrant, drier sauce, do the opposite. ¶ For the real sauce:
  • Ingredients as above
  • Head, fins and the backbone of eels
  ¶ Over hot coal, roast the head, fins and the backbone of eels until charred. Put in the above sauce and simmer for half an hour, or until the grease from the eels is well blended with the sauce. Add a tiny bit of sansho, if you like.''

• ``Yes, it's me again, ¶ I would start off with about 2 tablespoons of honey and then work onwards. Again, this is a recipe that you can't quite screw up. Almost like Jello. Always adjust to your own preferences. I prefer a sweeter sauce as opposed to my friend who thinks eels should taste salty. ¶ You can freeze it and use it later. If you can, keep the garlic, ginger and other stuff in the sauce when you freeze it. The next time you use it, just heat it up and serve. I do it all the time. ¶ About the garlic and ginger bit, i honestly don't know if they are the traditional ingredients or not. I can just say that my friend "stole" the secret recipe to unagi sauce when she worked at a very traditional japanese restaurant. ¶ I need a disclaimer or some sort, don't I? ¶ :) Don't take me too seriously :)''

• ``One very important ingredient of the sauce is what's left of the eel after it has been cleaned/opened/deboned. ¶ After the eel is cleaned/opened/deboned, put the head and the bones over hot coal and broil until throughly blackened. Place the head and the bones in a pot and pour in 1/4 c soy sauce, 1/4 c sake and 2tbs mirin. Simmer over low heat until it becomes a little thick. I wouldn't put sugar in it as there's enough of it in the mirin. ¶ From late May until August, you may be able to buy live eels at fish markets especially in Chinatown. Choose small ones less than 16 inches which should weigh somewhere between 6 and 8 oz. After splitting the eel from the back and deboning it, cut into 2 6 in. sections and skewer them. Steam them for 1/2 hour or so to soften the flesh, then broil over hot, hot coal, occasionally brushing both sides with the aforementioned sauce. Oh, yes, do not throw away the gut, either. It can be enjoyed as a "gu" in osuimono, or skewered and barbecued along with the meat. Mmmmm.. delicious. ¶ Oh, yes, don't forget a bottle of chilled sake and a bowl of rice, along with some oshinko...''

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