【Reading】さより

【English Name】Halfbeak

Sayori (Japanese halfbeak) is a saltwater fish of the family Hemiramphidae of the order Beloniformes, characterized by its slender body and a distinctive mouth in which only the lower jaw extends forward. Its total length is at most about 40 cm; the back is blue-green, the belly silvery white, and the flesh has a delicate, semi-translucent quality. As a sushi ingredient it is known as a high-grade fish with refined leanness and a faint sweetness, and when made into nigiri the silver of its skin shows beautifully. For sashimi, applying tatejio (a technique of soaking in lightly salted water) brings out its sweetness. Its season is the spring months of March to May, and it is also a seasonal word (kigo) in haiku. It is famous as the origin of the colloquial expression "black-bellied" (harguroi, meaning malicious) because its peritoneum is black, but in reality this is an adaptation to prevent the transmission of light.