Also known as Grilled Yellowtail Collar, Hamachi Kama is a flavorful broiled fish that you will find on menus throughout Japan. You just need four ingredients and 15 minutes to make this traditional rustic dish.
Prep Time5 minutesmins
Cook Time10 minutesmins
Total Time15 minutesmins
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Japanese
Keyword: seafood, yellowtail
Servings: 2(as main dish)
Calories: 164kcal
Author: Namiko Hirasawa Chen
Ingredients
2pieceshamachi kama (yellowtail collar)(11 oz, 312 g; available in Japanese markets)
⅛tspDiamond Crystal kosher salt(optional; skip if you plan to lightly dip your fish in yuzu-flavored soy sauce)
Gather the ingredients. If the hamachi kama is frozen, thaw it beforehand by placing the fish, still in its vacuum-sealed package, in a bowl under a thin stream of cold running water for 20 minutes. Alternatively, you can put the fish in a bowl of iced water to defrost for 2 hours (takes longer but saves water), or in the refrigerator for 9 hours.
To Broil (Recommended)
Preheat the broiler* with a rack placed about 6 inches (15 cm) away from the top heating element (in the center of the oven) for 5 minutes. When broiling, you don‘t control the temperature in the oven; instead, you control the distance between the broiler and the surface of the food. It‘s similar to using hotter and cooler zones on your grill. *Broiler setting: Low (450ºF/232ºC), Medium (500ºF/260ºC), and High (550ºF/288ºC). I usually use the Medium (6 inches away) or High (8 inches away) setting.
Crinkle a sheet of aluminum foil and line the baking sheet. This helps prevent the fish skin from sticking to the foil.
Place 2 pieces hamachi kama (yellowtail collar) on the foil, skin side down. Sprinkle ⅛ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt over the fish.
Broil on Medium (500ºF/260°C) for 8–10 minutes until the surface is blistered and browned a bit. Please remember the cooking time varies depending on the thickness of the fish and the distance between the broiler and the food. You do not need to flip the fish. It should flake easily with chopsticks or a fork.
To Bake (optional)
Preheat the oven to 425°F/218ºC with a rack placed in the middle and bake for 10–12 minutes, until the edges are crispy and the top is golden brown and opaque. A good rule of thumb to remember is to bake 5 minutes per ½ inch thickness (measure at the thickest part of the fish). You do not need to flip it. It should flake easily with chopsticks or a fork.
To Serve
To make the yuzu-flavored soy sauce, mix 1 Tbsp soy sauce and ½ tsp yuzu juice (extract) together and divide into individual small dipping dishes. Serve the freshly grilled fish immediately on individual plates with the dipping sauce on the side and an optional 2 wedges lemon. Squeeze the lemon over the fish and dip the Hamachi Kama lightly in the sauce to eat. Enjoy!
To Store
You can keep the leftovers in an airtight container and store it in the refrigerator for up to 2 days or in the freezer for a month.
Notes
Recipe by Namiko Chen of Just One Cookbook. All images and content on this site are copyright protected. Please do not use my images without my permission. If you’d like to share this recipe on your site, please re-write the recipe and link to this post as the original source. Thank you.