Editor’s note: In the Taste of Life series, cooking experts, chefs and others involved in the field of food introduce their special recipes intertwined with their paths in life.

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Katsuhiko Ueda, an “activist to popularize fish-eating,” strives to promote the appeal of fish and methods to cook them.

His background includes working as a fisherman while studying at university and joining the Fisheries Agency after graduating.

When Ueda was working at the agency, a senior colleague who returned from a business trip to Hokkaido told him about a local specialty of Abashiri city called “yuni.” The ingredients are simply boiled in water.

Ueda at that time did not immediately try out the method. But he now describes it as the “ultimate and fastest among the dishes I teach.”

At the onset of his campaign that has lasted for nearly 20 years, he tried to popularize a fish diet through various recipes. Although he spent hours creating fish dish recipes, they did not prove popular.

He began to doubt the idea of “cooking by sticking to the recipe.”

While looking for ways to appreciate the characteristics of fish without relying on recipes, Ueda recalled the technique of cooking fish in boiling water.

Since he was unfamiliar with the method, he started from scratch by studying the amount of salt used for sprinkling on the fish and the heat levels.

When Ueda teaches how to prepare fish dishes now, he places importance on the method’s “mechanism.”

Fish cooked at high temperatures for a long time tend to turn out dry.

When cooked in water, the maximum temperature is 100 degrees, and the fish is enveloped in heat indirectly through water.

This method allows heat to be conducted in a short time without it removing moisture from the fish.

By cooking the fish in temperatures just before boiling, its smell is erased and the flavor is fused inside.

“The cooking time is five minutes or less for any fish,” says Ueda, adding that it is the best cooking method to present the appeal of fish.

“Once you understand the ‘mechanism’ of the boiling method, you can eat any fish with a flavor you prefer. You can enjoy the character of each fish without sensing the fishy smell,” he says.

In addition to the Japanese-style featuring “ponzu,” citrus-based sauce with soy sauce, Ueda introduced seasonings in Western and Chinese styles.

In keeping with Ueda’s wish for people to understand the mechanism of cooking instead of sticking to the recipes, precise amounts are not shown in the basic cooking method part of his series. Only the procedure is introduced.

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Katsuhiko Ueda: Born in 1964 in Shimane Prefecture, Ueda studied at the faculty of fisheries at Nagasaki University while working as a fisherman. He began working at the Fisheries Agency upon graduation.

After leaving the agency in 2015, he struck out on his own as the head of Uekatsu Suisan and continues to convey the appeal of fish to link the front line of the fishing industry and the dinner table.

His books include “Uekatsu no Mekara Uroko no Sakana Ryori” (Uekatsu’s eye-opening fish dishes) published by Tokyo Shoseki.

BASIC COOKING METHOD

For Japanese Style

Main ingredients (Serves three)

3 fillets seabream (tai), 1/2 green onion (naganegi type), some ponzu sauce, bit of seven-flavor chili pepper (shichimi togarashi)

1. Cut green onion into half vertically and chop.

2. Make incisions on skin of fillets. Wet hand, dust with salt. Lightly touch both sides of fillet and apply salt. Do not rub in.

3. Bring water that will completely cover fillets to a boil in frying pan. Add about 3 Tbsp sake to remove smell.

4. Add fillets and turn heat lower so water does not boil. Small bubbles should appear on bottom of pan. Cook until meat of fish can be separated from bone if held with chopsticks.

5. Using turner and other tools to prevent fish from falling apart, remove from pan and serve on plate. Sprinkle with green onion and pour ponzu while still hot and add a dash of seven-flavor chili pepper.

For Western Style

1. Finely slice some onion, immerse in running water and squeeze out water. Rinse white radish sprouts (“kaiware daikon”) and cut off root.

2. Mix equal amount of vinegar and olive oil and season with dried oregano and bit of salt and pepper.

3. Spread onion slices on plate. Place boiled fish on top, pour (2) and top with white radish sprouts.

For Chinese Style

1. Cut a piece of ginger (half the size of thumb) into fine strips. Cut about 10 cm green onion (naganegi type) into fine strips in “shiraga (gray hair) negi” style. Immerse both in water and pat dry.

2. Mix soy sauce, doubanjiang, sweet mirin sake and sesame oil while checking taste.

3. Pour (2) on boiled fish and top with (1).

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From The Asahi Shimbun’s Jinsei Reshipi (Life Recipe) column