Edomae tempura with Japanese whiting, flathead, and conger eel

This time we made tempura centered on 'Edomae' ingredients. When it comes to Edomae, flathead (megochi) is the fish, and nothing beats it for flavor. It's glossy black and slippery, and I've had a hard time removing that slipperiness — even salting it, it was hard to get off.

Frying the skin side more firmly than the flesh side suppresses the fish's distinctive odor and draws out its umami. Also, when serving to guests, we place the piece in the fryer with the flesh side — which will face up when served — turned outward, so it fries up nicely. Among Edomae fish, conger eel (anago) tends to have a stronger odor than whiting (kisu) or flathead, so fry it a bit more firmly still.

Choose fresh Edomae fish; butterfly open the whiting and conger eel along the back; for the flathead, remove the head while peeling off the skin in one motion, and fillet it pine-needle style.

Lightly dust the flesh with flour, place it in the fryer flesh-side out, and fry the skin side more firmly. Fry the conger eel more firmly than the whiting or flathead so it puffs up fluffy.

Pat the moisture off the bones and deep-fry them raw to make bone crackers.