Umami Mentaiko Mayonnaise

Mentaiko has made waves over the past few years in Singapore. It has made its way into many dishes, not only in Japanese cuisine, but in other cuisines as well! It's all thanks to its umami flavour, salty and spicy. Lots of people love Mentaiko, especially on top of sushi and have been aburi-ed. In this recipe, we'll share how you can have a mentaiko feast, even at home. It's simpler than you'd expect! 

But first... What exactly is mentaiko? 

Mentaiko is seasoned pollock roe that has been salted and marinated. Unseasoned pollock roe is actually called Tarako, which is more pink. Some mentaiko can be spicy, and it is actually called Karashi Mentaiko. It is seasoned with red chilli pepper sauce, so if you like your food spicy, this will be up your alley. 

How to use Mentaiko

Firstly, you would have to slice the mentaiko sac gently. The sac is just a thin layer so you don't have to use much force. 

Secondly, scrape out the mentaiko from the sac using a spoon. Do this until all that remains is just the sac. 

This is what you should get! You can eat this straight with whatever you like for a splash of saltiness to your dish. It goes great on top of rice, and even fried food. You can also use this and turn it into a beautiful mentaiko mayonnaise... which is what this article is about. 

Using our 90g Mentaiko, squeeze about two tablespoons of Japanese mayonnaise in your bowl and combine well with the mentaiko. You can add more mayonnaise if you are a fan. If you would like it to be spicy, feel free to add the little sachet of chilli sauce that comes with our mentaiko, and if that is not enough, you can add Sriracha. Feel free to adjust this recipe to your preferences!

It should look like this after combining. A delicious creamy sauce that is filled with umami. For an easier way to add this on top of your dishes, put your mentaiko mayonnaise into a piping bag. 

Here we have a salmon bowl topped with the mentaiko mayonnaise. The next step is the fun part: torching or aburi the mentaiko! 

By torching the mentaiko, it will give it a smoky taste, which enhances its flavour profile. Do be careful when handling a blow torch. The blow torch, as well as the bowl, will be hot. 

You can do this to anything that you would like! We have tried it with scallops and our Aka Ebi and they taste great. 

Be creative with this and we are so excited to see what you can come up with! Do tag us @kaizenyasg on our Facebook and Instagram pages if you do recreate this.