Odawara Kamaboko

Quick answer

Total time: 70 min
Level: Hard
Servings: 10 servings
Ingredients: 5

About this dish

Odawara kamaboko is a steamed fish cake from Kanagawa made by removing fresh white meat from guchi fish, rinsing it in cold water to remove fat and blood, draining it, and grinding with salt, sugar, and mirin until elastic.

The paste is sieved, shaped into a smooth half-cylinder on a wooden board, steamed at about 90°C, and rapidly cooled. Known as a Tokaido specialty associated with Odawara, it is valued for its fine white texture and springy bite. Keeping the fish cold, removing every small bone and skin fragment, and developing the salt-bound paste before shaping are the key controls.

Ingredients (10 servings)

Ingredient	Amount	Unit
guchi white fish meat	500	g
cold rinsing water	2000	ml
salt	10	g
sugar	20	g
mirin	15	ml

Instructions

Read the steps as a cooking flow: prep, heat, seasoning, doneness control, and finish.

4 steps

1

Prep

Remove bones and skin from 500g fish, wash 3 times in 2000ml cold water, wrap in cloth, and press 10 minutes to drain.
2

Season

Grind chilled fish 5 minutes, add 10g salt and grind 5 minutes, then add 20g sugar and 15ml mirin.

Press through a fine sieve.
3

Step

Press paste without air onto a damp board in a 5cm half-cylinder.

Steam at 90°C for 20 to 25 minutes until at least 63°C inside and springy.
4

Prep

Immediately cool on a metal tray over ice until below 10°C at the center, refrigerate, and slice 1cm thick when fully cold.

Practical Cooking Checks

The cues that matter most while cooking.

Key technique: Cold-water washing keeps guchi meat white
Finish cue: Immediately cool on a metal tray over ice until below 10°C at the center, refrigerate, and slice 1cm thick when fully cold.
Storage and reheating: Keep fish paste cold throughout and refrigerate immediately if it warms before becoming elastic.