Donko, a fish that is overflowing with charm and flavor that you just can't stop eating [Internship article]

Hello. My name is Umi Moriguchi (my name is pronounced "katsuo") and I am an intern at Kesennuma Regional Strategy for one month starting from February 2th.

I'm originally from Gifu Prefecture and currently attend Miyazaki University, but I participated in an internship to learn about DMOs in Kesennuma City, a pioneer in DMOs that manage local areas through tourism.

By the way, what comes to your mind when you hear Kesennuma? I'm sure many of you think of seafood such as bonito, oysters, and shark fins. At first, I also thought of bonito when I heard of Kesennuma. When I actually went to see a fishery in Kesennuma, I saw rows of oysters and large cod, but among them I found a fish with a shocking appearance.

Yes, that's "Donko".

A big, wide open mouth with a mysterious round object sticking out of it. I was surprised and intrigued as to what this fish was. So, this time I would like to introduce you to the donko.

1. What is Donko?

Donko is a type of cod that belongs to the Gadiformes order, and its official name is "Ezo Iso Ayu-nami (Ezo Iso Ayu-nami)." Its most distinctive feature is the appearance of something coming out of its mouth!

This is actually the stomach! Because it is a deep-sea fish, when it is caught, the water pressure causes it to come out of its mouth.

By the way, in Kesennuma, there is an event called "Ebisu Ko" to worship Ebisu, the god of "prosperity in business", on October 10th of the lunar calendar, which in 20 would be December 2020th (Friday), a day of great fortune. Generally, sea bream is offered as an offering to Ebisu, but in Kesennuma, donko fish are offered.

When I spoke to Isoya Suisan, a local fishmonger, I learned that donko have big mouths and "eat anything" and "bring in a lot," so people offer donko as offerings in hopes of "bringing in a lot of money."

2. Go to the pier to fish for donko

I heard from a fishing enthusiast that it's possible to catch a donko by yourself, so I decided to go fishing right away. Since I didn't bring any fishing gear, I went shopping at Marukano in Shishiori, Kesennuma City.

As soon as you enter, they sell low-priced fishing rods for beginners, and I was able to get everything I needed, including bait, for about 3,000 yen.

Now, let's go fishing!

The interesting result was...we didn't catch a single fish.

When I asked the person who brought me there, he said that it's usually easy to catch fish, but unfortunately the weather was terrible that day, so we ended up with disappointing results.

3. Prepare and eat the donko yourself!

I wasn't able to catch one myself, but I still wanted to try eating some donko, so I went and bought some myself.

I made two dishes, namero and donko soup. I filleted the fish like I would with any other fish, but I'm a beginner at filleting fish. This time, I used a video by Anahazeti, a Kesennuma-based YouTuber who mainly focuses on fishing, as a reference (I'll post the URL of the video at the end).

<Namerow>

Ingredients

・Fillet of donko
・Donko liver (it is a good idea to boil the liver a little beforehand)
·miso
·Ginger
・Green onion

Method

1. Pound the fish fillets.
2. Add miso and ginger and beat.
3. Add the parboiled liver and green onions and pound again.
4. Finished!

This was shockingly delicious! The donko liver gives it a very rich flavor. It's great as a snack with alcohol or as a side dish with rice.

<Donko Soup>

Ingredients

・Donko meat
・Donko bones and bones
・Donko liver
・Green onion
·miso

Method

1. Make a stock using the bones and bones that were removed when filleting the fish.
2. Add the donko meat.
3. Dissolve the miso.
4. Add the liver.
5. Finished!

The taste is rich with the donko broth, and the liver added at the end gives it even more umami and richness.

4. Summary

Among the many seafood delicacies available, such as oysters and shark fins, we focused on donko this time, and everything from the meat to the liver and bones was delicious.

The other day, when I spoke to Hamayoshi, a fishmonger, he said, "I would like you to buy the whole fish, not the fillets." This was the first time I bought a whole fish and filleted it myself, and I can see why he says this, as every part can be used in cooking and it's cheaper than buying fillets. I would like to use this internship as an opportunity to rethink the way I buy fish.

Interview cooperation:　Isoya Fisheries,Hamayoshi

Reference: Anahazeti: "This sludgy deep-sea fish. If you catch it, don't throw it away.
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