How to Eat Grilled Pacific Saury (Sanma) the Right Way in Japan

Autumn is all about Pacific saury (sanma)! If possible, you’ll want to enjoy this seasonal delicacy at a restaurant. But the real question is—how do you eat it neatly? In this guide, we’ll show you how to gracefully remove the bones and enjoy even the bitter guts without a fuss. Special thanks to OOTOYA Gohan-Dokoro, which offers a limited-time fresh sanma set meal every autumn, for their kind cooperation.

【Advised by】OOTOYA　Gohan-Dokoro

Table of Contents

1 Start by Splitting Along the Spine
2 Enjoy It with Just Grated Daikon
3 With Grated Daikon and Soy Sauce
4 Together with Rice
5 The Guts Are Delicious Too!
6 Remove the Backbone Without Flipping
7 Flavor the Underside with Lemon
8 Split the Remaining Flesh in Half

Start by Splitting Along the Spine

Freshly grilled Pacific saury, cooked slowly over a charcoal flame, has arrived! The aroma of the slightly charred, fatty skin is absolutely irresistible!

Don’t just dig in randomly. Start by using your chopsticks to make a cut along the spine from the base of the pelvic fin. It’s as if the fish was made to be eaten—your chopsticks will glide through smoothly.

Continue along the tail to split the fish in half. Then, begin eating from the top portion of the flesh.

Grilled Pacific saury served at restaurants is usually perfectly seasoned, so it’s a basic rule not to pour soy sauce on the meat right away. First, savor the original flavor. Enjoy the contrast of the crispy skin and the fluffy inside—unique to charcoal grilling.

Enjoy It with Just Grated Daikon

Next, try it with grated daikon radish. The key is to eat it without any soy sauce. That way, you can fully enjoy the rich, seasonal flavor of the fatty saury.

With Grated Daikon and Soy Sauce

If you really want soy sauce, pour it over the grated daikon, not directly on the saury. Saury topped with soy-sauced daikon is another delicious way to enjoy the dish!

Together with Rice

Eating the fluffy, grilled saury with rice is one of the highlights of a set meal. The fatty fish pairs perfectly with plain rice!

The Guts Are Delicious Too!

After eating the top half, move on to the bottom half. Don’t worry about the small bones around the guts—you can eat them too. At Ootoya, the seasonal saury served is fresh enough to enjoy the guts. Try it plain before adding any grated daikon.

If the guts are too bitter for your taste, it’s perfectly fine to pair them with grated daikon. Mixing in soy sauce will mellow out the bitterness.

Remove the Backbone Without Flipping

Once you’ve finished the top, move to the underside. But do not flip the fish over. Instead, pinch the head with your left hand and run your chopsticks along the spine to remove it, as shown in the photo. You’ll be amazed at how cleanly it comes out.

Just like this! Place the removed backbone at the edge of your plate.

Flavor the Underside with Lemon

Now it’s time for the lemon. Squeeze lemon juice over the underside (opposite of the spine side). It’s said that squeezing with the skin side down brings out more aroma.

Split the Remaining Flesh in Half

It looks even neater if you divide the remaining meat into upper and lower halves when eating.

The recommendation from the owner of “Ootoya Gohan-dokoro Yoga SBS” is to enjoy the guts with lemon juice and rice. The saltiness and bitterness balance perfectly—it’s an amazing combo.

Look at this! Not even the guts left behind. When you eat this neatly, even the saury must feel honored. Thank you for the meal!

Once you master the art of eating fish beautifully, you’ll enjoy Japanese meals even more.
To ensure a pleasant dining experience for everyone, let’s learn how to eat gracefully!

【Advised by】OOTOYA　Gohan-Dokoro

A nationwide Japanese set meal restaurant chain that takes pride in using fresh ingredients and preparing meals in-house. As of March 2022, the chain operates 302 locations in Japan and 113 locations across 7 cities and regions overseas. Every autumn, they offer a limited-time "Charcoal-Grilled Fresh Pacific Saury Set Meal" (one or two fish per serving). Many loyal customers return each year, easily finishing the two-fish set. Special thanks to "OOTOYA Gohan-Dokoro Yoga SBS Branch" for their cooperation in this feature.