Buri (Yellowtail) / Hamachi (Young Yellowtail) Sushi

Hamachi (Japanese Amberjack)

White Fish & Salmon

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Order Perciformes, Family Carangidae, Genus Seriola

Buri and hamachi are the same fish. It is a "shusse-uo" (promotion fish), whose name changes with size. The names differ by region, but hamachi is the Kansai name for a buri of around 50 cm, and farmed fish are also sometimes called hamachi. In every region, once it exceeds 80 cm it is called buri.

Buri is a shusse-uo whose name changes with size, and hamachi is the name for a buri of around 50 cm in the Kansai region. The same size is called inada in Kanto, and there are various names by size throughout Japan, but once it reaches over 80 cm it becomes buri everywhere. Also, since the farming of hamachi began from the Taisho to the Showa era, hamachi became synonymous with farmed fish. Buri is a large carnivorous migratory fish born in the south in early spring that swims north, and because farming is thriving, it is distributed on the market year-round. Its flavor varies greatly by size, becoming delicious once it exceeds 30 cm, and the most delicious time is the winter period of December to February, when it is called "kanburi" (cold buri). Buri caught off Himi City in Toyama Prefecture, the midpoint of its southward migration, is said to be in its fattiest state, and Himi buri is a kanburi famous nationwide. Grown buri from Hokkaido, Sanriku, Sakaiminato, Sado Island, and elsewhere also fetch quite high prices.

The Compatibility of Buri / Hamachi with Sushi

Because buri is popular as a sushi topping, many sushi restaurants offer richly fatty buri as one of their signature items. In sushi it is used from the hamachi/inada size range, and hamachi in particular is a size where the umami increases, and being widely farmed and reasonably priced, it is also commonly seen at conveyor-belt sushi. The so-called kanburi of autumn to winter is extremely fatty and is one of the high-grade toppings. When making sushi with buri or hamachi, it is generally pressed raw, but lightly blanching it to remove fat is also refreshing and delicious. Sometimes it is eaten not with wasabi but with grated daikon radish and ponzu. Some shops also marinate it in soy sauce (zuke) to remove the smell, and Toyama Prefecture, a famous buri-producing area, has a pressed sushi made with buri flesh and turnip pickled in sweet vinegar. Not only is it delicious, but it is also rich in nutrients useful for maintaining health, including DHA, which activates the brain, IPA/EPA, which make the blood flow smoothly, vitamins, and amino acids. Also, the vinegar in the vinegared rice softens the fishy smell and makes the fat refreshing, so even fatty buri or hamachi can be eaten with a clean aftertaste. Sushi and buri/hamachi are a very good match.

There Is Fruit-Flavored Buri?!

Have you ever heard of mikan buri, sudachi buri, or kabosu buri?
These are buri raised with fruit added to their feed to remove the fishy smell, fruit fish that appeared as a measure to halt young people's growing distance from fish. Mikan buri was even served at Kura Sushi and became a topic of conversation.
Various fruit fish other than buri have appeared, so if you spot one, why not give it a try?