How to Make Salmon Ruibe-zukeHokkaido-Style Marinated Raw Salmon and Ikura

Ruibe-zuke is a Hokkaido dish of raw salmon and ikura (salmon roe) marinated in a soy sauce dressing. Ruibe originally comes from the Ainu people: salmon frozen in the winter cold and eaten in thin slices while still frozen.

We separated the roe ourselves from fresh sujiko, and used salmon sold for eating raw.

It only needs to marinate briefly, so you can eat it soon. Once you know the steps, it’s easier than you’d think.

When to make	September–November (fresh sujiko season)
Marinating time	2–3 hours to overnight
Storage	2–3 days in the fridge. Freeze what you can’t eat in small portions

Ingredients

The amount of marinade is a guide. Adjust it to the amount of roe and salmon.

• About 150 g (5⅓ oz) salmon sold for eating raw
• About 150 g (5⅓ oz) fresh sujiko (salmon roe in its membrane)
• 3 tbsp sake
• 3 tbsp mirin
• 3 tbsp soy sauce
• A pinch of salt
• A storage container

A caution about parasites

Raw salmon and salmon roe can carry Anisakis, a parasite that can cause severe stomach pain.

• Use salmon sold for eating raw. Wild salmon (such as autumn chum salmon) can’t be eaten raw as is.
• The warm water used to separate the roe does not kill Anisakis. Freezing or cooking does.
• Japan’s Ministry of Health says freezing at -20°C (-4°F) for 24 hours or more kills Anisakis. The US FDA recommends -20°C (-4°F) or below for 7 days for fish eaten raw. Home freezers may not get cold enough, so freezing for a week is safer.

Traditional ruibe is frozen fish anyway, so freezing the salmon (or the finished dish) before eating is very much in keeping with it.

How to make it

The steps are: prepare the roe, prepare the salmon, make the marinade, and marinate.

Prepare the roe

Separate the eggs in warm water

Fill a bowl with warm water at about 40–50°C (105–120°F). Warm water makes the membrane come away from the eggs more easily.

Gently lower the sujiko into the bowl.

Stir round and round with chopsticks to separate the eggs.

As you stir, the membrane wraps around the chopsticks; remove it carefully. The eggs turn whitish, but the color comes back later.

Rinse the eggs

Once the eggs are separated, gently pour off the cloudy water and rinse under running water.

Fine bits of membrane keep floating up, so change the water several times until the eggs are clean.

When they’re clean, drain the eggs in a colander.

Salt and rest in the fridge

To remove any fishy smell and excess water, sprinkle with salt (about two pinches) and mix gently. The eggs slowly turn red again.

Cover with plastic wrap and rest in the fridge for about an hour.

After an hour. The color has completely come back, and the eggs sparkle. The roe is ready.

Prepare the salmon

Sprinkle salt over the salmon and leave in the fridge for 20 minutes, then pat off the water that comes out with paper towels. Cut into bite-sized pieces.

Make the marinade

Put the sake and mirin in a pot and bring to a boil to cook off the alcohol. Add the soy sauce and heat over low heat for about 3 minutes.

Move it to a bowl and cool it over ice.

Marinate

The roe, salmon and marinade are ready. Now combine them.

Put the salmon and roe in the container and mix gently so the marinade coats everything.

2–3 hours is enough. Leave it overnight in the fridge if you want the flavor to soak in more.

Done

After marinating overnight. You can see the marinade has soaked in well.

Eat it as is, or over rice as a bowl. A luxurious taste of the season.

Keep it in the fridge and eat within 2–3 days. Freeze what you can’t eat in small portions.