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Suzuhiro Kamaboko 鈴廣かまぼこ, a traditional Japanese fishcake company, has released a fun home cooking kit! Japanese fishcakes, known as kamaboko (かまぼこ or 蒲鉾 in Japanese), are a traditional and healthy food.
You can purchase their おうちでかまぼこてづくりたいけん ouchi de kamaboko tezukuri taiken (homemade fishcake experience kit) on their online shop and at their museum in Odawara, Kanagawa prefecture.
What is kamaboko? Is it healthy?
mimi@TOKYO / © PIXTA
Just like I mentioned earlier, kamaboko is often translated as “fishcake” in English. So it’s easy to guess that the food is made from fish, but still, it’s difficult to imagine how it’s made only based on its appearance.
Kamaboko is made from white fish meat such as Alaska pollock and Largehead hairtail. The fish meat is filleted and pounded into a paste. Then, it is mixed with sugar, salt, fish sauce, egg whites, and Japanese sake. Sometimes, other artificial preservatives are mixed in, but Suzuhiro Kamaboko pride themselves on the fact that they don’t use any artificial ingredients.
Since kamaboko is made from fish, it is full of protein! If it was just for the protein, you could have many alternative choices. However, kamaboko has less fat compared with other foods.
For example, it only has 1/14th of the fat of ham, making it nutritious and also low-calorie. Protein is an essential nutrient for your muscles, blood vessels, hair, organs, and other parts of your body. Eating kamaboko can be an excellent way of efficiently boosting your protein intake while avoiding excessive calories.
How to serve kamaboko
Since kamaboko is already steamed before being packed, you can eat it by just slicing it without cooking. The easiest and popular way to eat is to serve it with just wasabi and soy sauce. In order to appreciate the delicious flavor and the uniquely smooth and chewy texture, Suzuhiro recommends cutting kamaboko into slices that are 12 mm (0.5") thick.
According to their tips, the ideal thickness differs depending on your cooking method. For example, if you want to use it as a substitute for ham or bacon, cut the fishcake into slices that are 3 mm (0.1") thick and stir-fry. If you want to use it just like cheese cubes in a salad, 15 mm (0.6") cubes are recommended. The world of kamaboko is so deep!
What kind of product is it really?
I was born and raised in Japan and kamaboko is a really familiar food. However, I’ve never made it by myself from scratch. The process of making it from fish is too difficult to do at home.
Fish powder: 50g, plastic bags: 3x, Mold, and Cooking Guide
Fish powder looks like this.
This powder is made from only white fish meat, salt, and sugar with no preservatives and artificial ingredients.
Thanks to this powder, the normally complicated process is simplified into only 4 steps! You don’t need to prepare the fish!
This is an example of deep-fried fishcake.
If you put colorful ingredients such as green dried seaweed in step 1, you can make cute fishcakes like the ones you see below!
You can make adorable and nutritious food very easily! It's a fun activity to enjoy on your own or with kids because it doesn't involve cutting utensils.
Why don’t you try cooking your own fishcakes at home. Due to the ongoing pandemic, many of us are still spending a lot of time at home, so it's a great home activity.
About Suzuhiro Kamaboko Co., Ltd.
Suzuhiro Kamaboko Co., Ltd. started their kamaboko business in 1865. At that time, their main business was retailing seafood, not kamaboko. The fourth owner of Suzuhiro Kamaboko started the kamaboko business as a side business. However, as time went by, their kamaboko business expanded.
Although Suzuhiro Kamaboko had a hard time during the Second World War, they didn’t give up and restarted their business after the war. Not only do they sell traditional kamaboko, nowadays they even sell cheese, salmon & avocado, crab & egg, and fig & cheese flavored kamaboko! Suzuhiro Kamaboko is a very traditional and historical company, but their products are always innovative, unique, and healthy!
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