Griddled salmon and vegetables with miso and melted butter recipe

I learnt to cook this Hokkaido comfort food classic from Toshi-chan, a fisherman's wife in the town of Shikabe who gives cooking classes in the town hall, says Tim Anderson. The inclusion of mayonnaise is her own twist: though it's not typical, I think it's delicious, so I've included it, too. I also learnt to make the dish with just cabbage and onions, though other vegetables are common as well – carrots and shimeji mushrooms, in particular – so feel free to add them if you like.

Ingredients

80g miso (white is best, but red is fine, too)
4 tbsp saké
2 tbsp mirin
1 tbsp caster sugar
1 tbsp mayo
2 tbsp butter
1⁄2 sweetheart (hispi) cabbage, cut into strips about 2cm wide
2 onions, halved and thinly sliced
about 500g salmon, boneless (you can have the skin on or off, but if you leave it on, it needs to be scaled)

Method

Combine the miso, saké, mirin, sugar and mayo in a small bowl, stirring with a fork or small whisk until no lumps remain.
Add 1 tbsp of the butter to a very wide, non-stick or well-seasoned cast iron pan or griddle over a medium-high heat, then add all of the vegetables and stir-fry for 1-2 minutes, just to coat in the butter while they barely start to cook.
Push the vegetables to the side of the pan, and place the salmon in the middle, skin-side up.
Leave to cook for 2-3 minutes, then turn the fish over so it is skin-side down, being careful not to break the flesh.
Pour the miso sauce all over the fish and vegetables, lower the heat to medium, and cover the pan with a lid or a sheet of kitchen foil.
Leave everything to steam-fry for about 10-12 minutes, until the salmon is cooked through.
Once the fish is done, place the remaining 1 tbsp of butter on top of the salmon and let it melt.
Bring the whole pan to the table to serve, along with rice, soup and pickles.

Taken from "Hokkaido: Recipes from the Seas, Fields and Farmlands of Northern Japan" by Tim Anderson, published by Hardie Grant at £28. Photography by Laura Edwards.

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