Spanish mackerel yuba and eel yuba

Combine 35g of grated Yamato yam and 90g of soy milk with three blocks of pressed tofu, season it with 15cc of sugar, 5cc of salt, and 15cc of light soy sauce, and mix in kanpyo (dried gourd shavings) that has been finely chopped and sauteed in sesame oil and light soy sauce, to make the tofu mixture. Then shape it, place it on a sheet of unrolled taguri-yuba (hand-gathered tofu skin), roll it up, and on the final turn press on a piece of nori, roll it the rest of the way, and press it firmly so it sticks together. Afterward, steam it in a tray over medium heat, and once cooled, slice it into suitable pieces, dust it with starch, and deep-fry it in clean oil. Combine 1 shō of sake, 5 shaku of mirin (about 90ml), 10g of sugar, 5 shaku of dark soy sauce, 10g of Shinshu miso, and 10g of Saikyo miso, bring it to a boil, thicken it lightly with kuzu, and at the end add in minced yuzu zest (or ground sansho pepper for the eel version) to make a glaze; brush it onto both sides and grill until finished.

Sawara Yuba / Eel Yuba 1 Combine grated Yamato yam and soy milk with pressed tofu, season it with sugar, salt, and light soy sauce, and mix in kanpyo that has been rehydrated, finely chopped, and sauteed in sesame oil and light soy sauce (for the eel version, also add in coarsely chopped pine nuts) to make the tofu mixture. The kanpyo provides a bit of chew, while the pine nuts suggest the richness of eel fat.

Sawara Yuba / Eel Yuba 2 Transfer it onto a forming board and shape it. Cut a sheet of taguri-yuba to match the size of the tofu mixture and spread it out; without breaking the shape of the tofu mixture from before, slide a knife between the forming board and the tofu mixture, then flip it over onto the yuba.

Sawara Yuba / Eel Yuba 3 Roll it up in the yuba, and with one turn's worth left to go, brush on potato starch mixed with water and press on a piece of nori cut to size, standing in for the skin. Brush on more potato starch mixed with water, and roll it further so that the remaining yuba sticks onto the nori, pressing it firmly together.

Sawara Yuba / Eel Yuba 4 For the eel version, spread it out flatter than the sawara version, press a groove down the center of the side opposite the nori with a chopstick, shaping it to look like a butterflied eel; with an eye to how the flesh will swell up once steamed, place it in the tray while lightly pressing down with the chopstick. After this, steam it over medium heat for 15 minutes, so it doesn't overcook.

Sawara Yuba / Eel Yuba 5 Let it cool, then slice it into suitable pieces (for the eel version, score it diagonally beforehand, so that when it's deep-fried the scoring opens up and looks like the fish's muscle fibers).

Sawara Yuba / Eel Yuba 6 Dust it with an equal-parts starch blend, deep-fry it in clean oil until nicely browned, then combine sake, mirin, sugar, dark soy sauce, Shinshu miso, and Saikyo miso, bring it to a boil, adjust the seasoning, thicken it lightly with kuzu, and at the end add in minced yuzu zest (or ground sansho pepper for the eel version) to make a glaze; brush it onto both sides about twice and grill until finished.