Name: Conger Eel Soba & Conger Eel Salad
Cuisine: 和食
Ingredients: Conger eel shirayaki (unseasoned grilled), to taste; Simmered conger eel (Kintoro), to taste; Soba noodles, 1 serving; Furikake soy sauce (mixture of bonito flakes, soy sauce, ichimi chili pepper, and toasted sesame seeds), to taste; Kinome (sansho leaves), a small amount; Breadcrumbs, to taste; Butter, to taste; Parsley, to taste; Lettuce, to taste; Red onion, to taste; Baby greens, to taste; Lotus root, to taste; Burdock root, to taste; Sweet potato, to taste; Watercress, to taste; Sudachi citrus, 1; French dressing, to taste; Tomato (chopped), to taste

About "Conger Eel Soba & Conger Eel Salad"

Iron Chef Rokusaburo Michiba introduces two home-style dishes using conger eel shirayaki (unseasoned grilled eel) and premium simmered conger eel (Kintoro). The first is a unique, brothless warm soba topped with conger eel coated in furikake soy sauce. The second is a Western-style salad featuring conger eel coated in buttery breadcrumbs. These exquisite, beginner-friendly recipes perfectly harmonize the rich, high-quality fat of the conger eel with savory seasonings.

Introduction to 鉄人の台所 →

Tips for Making "Conger Eel Soba & Conger Eel Salad"

Ingredients
- Using packaged conger eel shirayaki or simmered Kintoro conger eel makes home cooking incredibly easy.
Seasoning
- Furikake soy sauce is an all-purpose seasoning made of bonito flakes, soy sauce, ichimi chili, and sesame seeds that keeps for up to a month.
Cooking Method
- The conger eel soba uses no broth; instead, seasonings are tossed directly with hot noodles to coat them in pure umami.

Ingredients for "Conger Eel Soba & Conger Eel Salad"

18 items

* Tap ingredient names to find on Amazon

Congereel shirayaki (unseasoned grilled), to taste
Simmeredconger eel (Kintoro), to taste
Sobanoodles, 1 serving
Furikakesoy sauce (mixture of bonito flakes, soy sauce, ichimi chili pepper, and toasted sesame seeds), to taste
Kinome(sansho leaves), a small amount
Breadcrumbs,to taste
Butter,to taste
Parsley,to taste
Lettuce,to taste
Redonion, to taste
Babygreens, to taste
Lotusroot, to taste
Burdockroot, to taste
Sweetpotato, to taste
Watercress,to taste
Sudachicitrus, 1
Frenchdressing, to taste
Tomato(chopped), to taste

How to Make "Conger Eel Soba & Conger Eel Salad"

1
[Conger Eel Soba]
2
Cut the conger eel shirayaki
Cut the packaged conger eel shirayaki into bite-sized pieces. It features a wonderfully soft texture.
3
Coat with furikake soy sauce
Generously coat the cut conger eel with the furikake soy sauce. The aroma and umami of the bonito flakes will cling to the eel.
4
Boil the soba noodles
Boil store-bought soba noodles according to the package instructions and plate them while still hot. No broth is used.
5
Finish and plate
Place the conger eel coated in furikake soy sauce on top of the hot soba noodles, and garnish with finely chopped kinome. Mix everything together as you eat.
6
[Conger Eel Salad]
7
Make the buttery breadcrumbs
Mix breadcrumbs, butter, and parsley together to make the special buttery breadcrumbs (batapan).
8
Coat the conger eel
Coat the bite-sized pieces of simmered Kintoro conger eel with the buttery breadcrumbs.
9
Microwave
Heat the coated conger eel in the microwave. The exact heating time is not specified in the video.
10
Prepare the vegetables
Arrange fresh vegetables like lettuce, red onion, and baby greens on a plate.
11
Make the dressing sauce
Mix finely chopped tomatoes into French dressing to create a special sauce.
12
Prepare fried vegetable toppings
Thinly slice and deep-fry lotus root, burdock root, and sweet potato to prepare as toppings.
13
Assemble the dish
Drizzle the tomato dressing over the fresh vegetables, top with the fried vegetables, and place the microwaved conger eel on top. Garnish with watercress and sudachi to finish.

Food Science

Why This Dish Tastes So Good

An umami synergy is created by combining the inosinate in the conger eel with the inosinate in the bonito flakes of the furikake soy sauce, as well as the glutamate in the soy sauce and tomatoes. Additionally, the rich fats and sweetness of the conger eel are balanced by the acidity of the sudachi and dressing, the heat of the ichimi chili pepper, and the refreshing bitterness of the watercress and kinome. This harmonizes the five basic tastes, creating a multi-dimensional flavor profile that never gets tiring.

Umami CompoundsBalance of Five Tastes

Detailed Commentary on "Conger Eel Soba & Conger Eel Salad"

* Content organized by topics from the video.

Japan Conger Eel Association & Wild Eel Truths

In this episode, Hideki Ochiai, Representative Director of the Japan Conger Eel Association, joins as a guest to introduce home-style conger eel dishes. Michiba lightens the mood with a joke, saying he thought 'Chef Ochiai' (a famous Italian chef in Japan) was coming. According to Ochiai, the distribution volume of conger eel has dropped by half over the past decade, with domestic Japanese conger eel making up less than 20% of the market, while over 50% is imported from China. Although much of the conger eel eaten at conveyor-belt sushi restaurants is from China, Ochiai reveals that because farming technology has not yet been established, all commercially distributed conger eel is actually wild-caught. Michiba cannot hide his surprise, making for an opening that highlights the preciousness and depth of this ingredient.

The Secret of Premium 'Kintoro' Conger Eel

The ingredient featured is Kintoro conger eel, an exceptionally rare variety of whitespotted conger eel. Caught in specific waters during winter, these eels feed on crustaceans like shrimp and crabs, giving their skin a distinctive golden shimmer. While typical high-quality conger eel has a fat content of around 11%, Kintoro conger eel boasts an astonishing fat content of at least 18%. Furthermore, it is recognized by the Consumer Affairs Agency as a Food with Functional Claims, rich in DHA and EPA, which help lower neutral fats. Michiba is highly intrigued by its outstanding nutritional value and quality, and his culinary passion is ignited as he contemplates how to transform this premium ingredient into home-style dishes.

Michiba's Vision for Home Conger Eel Dishes

Looking at the packaged conger eel products brought by Ochiai, Michiba gives his seal of approval, saying, 'If it comes prepared like this, it's so easy for home cooking.' He jokingly calls himself a 'family-oriented man' while writing down today's menu with his signature calligraphy brush. The menu features four dishes: warm soba, conger eel salad, conger eel rice bowl, and conger eel rolls. In this first part, he prepares two dishes using easily accessible packaged conger eel shirayaki and simmered Kintoro conger eel. Michiba's dedication shines through as he adapts professional techniques for home kitchens, offering exquisite recipes that anyone can easily replicate.

Innovative Brothless Warm Conger Eel Soba

The first dish is warm soba using packaged conger eel shirayaki. The grilled eel is incredibly tender, surprising even Michiba as he cuts it into bite-sized pieces. He pairs it with his special all-purpose seasoning, furikake soy sauce—a mixture of bonito flakes, soy sauce, ichimi chili pepper, and toasted sesame seeds that keeps well for about a month. He generously coats the cut conger eel with this furikake soy sauce. Next, he boils store-bought soba noodles, but boldly declares, 'Broth is a thing of the past!' presenting an innovative style that uses no broth at all, plating the hot noodles directly onto the dish.

Tasting the Umami-Rich Conger Eel Soba

The dish is completed by placing the conger eel shirayaki generously coated in furikake soy sauce on top of the freshly boiled hot soba noodles, finished with a sprinkle of finely chopped kinome. Since there is no broth, you mix everything together as you eat. Upon tasting, Ochiai and Michiba's granddaughter, Natsuki, are thrilled by this new sensation. Even without broth, the high-quality fat of the conger eel and the rich umami of the furikake soy sauce cling beautifully to the noodles, creating a perfect flavor profile. Natsuki praises it, saying, 'The seasoning is simple, but the eel's fat makes it feel substantial.' Packed with Michiba's unique ideas, it also makes an excellent pairing with sake.

Western-Style Conger Eel Salad Transformation

The second dish is conger eel salad using simmered Kintoro conger eel. Bite-sized pieces of simmered eel are coated in a special buttery breadcrumb mixture (breadcrumbs, butter, and parsley) and heated in the microwave. Fresh vegetables like lettuce, red onion, and baby greens are arranged on a plate and drizzled with a special sauce made by mixing finely chopped tomatoes into French dressing. It is then topped with thinly sliced, deep-fried lotus root, burdock root, and sweet potato, followed by the warm buttery-breadcrumb-coated conger eel, and garnished with watercress and sudachi. Upon tasting, everyone is amazed by its Western flavor, exclaiming, 'It's like eating Italian food!' Michiba is also highly satisfied, noting it turned out 'unexpectedly delicious.'

About 鉄人の台所

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