Fish Heads

Normally I keep this kind of thing on The Food tab, but this was an experience.  Drew found out about a common, and cheap, fish (sanma) that is used for cooking in Japan that he wanted me to try out.  Unfortunately for me, it comes in a package like this:

I guess I was lucky because sometimes it comes as the whole fish.  I have mentioned before that I love to eat fish but I hate the smell and I hate cooking it.  Seeing its head doesn't make it any better.

Now I understand that all of our food was alive, and I truly have no problem eating animals, but I find this sight unappetizing.  The Japanese have grown up in a culture that thinks about food in an entirely different way than I do.  They can be looking at a live fish swimming in a river and say "That looks delicious."  For me, a steak may look yummy but a cow grazing does not whet my appetite.  I know I have a disconnect with where my food comes from, which is why this cooking endeavor was a challenge for me.

The picture above is right after I realized I had been holding the fish by their eyeballs when moving them onto the grill pan.  Yuck.  I can't tell you how many times I washed my hands during this process.  I grilled up the salted fish in our little fish oven and served it with a lime.

It actually tasted pretty good.  However, I need to invest in some fish tweezers because the tiny bones are quite the nuisance.  Now if only I could get the fish smell out of our kitchen.