BRAISED FISH & DAIKON

Buri-daikon is one of my favorite meals in Japan. Buri is amberjack, or yellowtail, and the Japanese say it is especially good in winter.

To make buri-daikon, cut about 600g of daikon (giant white radish)  into 2-3cm thick half moons.
Using water in which rice has been washed, bring daikon to the boil for  minutes or so, then turn off heat and leave till cool. (Actually I usually skip this step - because I'm lazy...and I don't think it makes much difference.)
Take 2 buri fillets and cut into two or three pieces. Blanch them by dipping into boiling water then into ice water.
Put 2 cups of dashi (fish stock) into a saucepan and add the daikon and buri.
Bring to boil then add 1 tablespoon of sake and 2 tablespoons of sugar.
Reduce to medium heat and simmer  for about 5 minutes.
Add about 3 cm ginger root which has been finely sliced, 1 tablespoon of mirin (cooking sake) and 3 tablespoons of soy sauce.
Cover with a drop lid (or a piece of aluminum foil resting directly on the food) and simmer until the daikon becomes gold-brown in color.

I haven't tried it, but my recipe book says you can use bonito or tuna fillets instead of buri. You can also use buri cheeks which are considered a 'waste' part of the fish these days. However the flesh from the cheeks used to be highly valued, and is particularly delicious (yes, of course I tried it!) Eating fish cheeks may be a bit fiddly, but just think of it as a challenge for your chopstick skills!