Mentaiko Pasta

I know people who are true connoisseur of pasta will scream at the thought of Japanese-style pasta. But to a lover of all food Japanese, like myself, I have come to love these pastas. Natto (Fermented Soy Beans) Pasta, Uni (Sea Urchin) Pasta and of course Mentaiko (Spicy Fish Roe) Pasta are on top of my favorite pasta list. (FYI, if you have no idea, Mentaiko is actually originated from Korean cuisine).

Mentaiko pasta (or any Japanese style pasta) used to be a rare find in Singapore but over the years, or rather recently, you can find it at a lot of the Izakayas or more casual-style Japanese restaurants. And some of these Japanese restaurants like Augus Steak House at Takashimaya, Ma Maison at Bugis/Central and Kandagawa at Hotel Royal serve up pretty good Mentaiko Pasta and where I will go for my regular fix.

But occasionally, when I chanced upon any Mentaiko, I would buy and whip up some Mentaiko pasta. Just last week, I bought some really good Mentaiko from the Hokkaido Fair at Takashimaya.

My version of Mentaiko Pasta is nothing fancy ( and of course not how italians will cook their pastas), just a few of the very basic ingredients that you can easily find in your pantry thrown together. While many Mentaiko Pasta recipes that you might come across in cookbooks use Japanese mayonnaise/or quite a lot of cream, I prefer a less creamy version (too much mayo or cream will mask the flavor of the mentaiko). And what I will also do usually is to under-boil my dried pasta a little and allow the noodle to later braise with a soy-dashi stock for a more flavorful take. The result is always wonderful.

Recipe: 

Serve 2

200gm dried spaghettini/ capellini

2 strips of streaky bacon, diced (optional) (Actually Japanese restaurants usually use pork belly strips)

1 tbsp unsalted butter

¼ onion, finely chopped

A good splash of sake

Approximately 1/3 cup shoyu seasoned dashi

Approximately 1/3 cup fresh cream

2 sacs of Mentaiko (tarako=non spicy version)

Garnish:

Kizami nori (shredded seaweed)

Boil pasta according to package instruction. (I will usually under-cook by 3mins or so.) In a frying pan, pan-fry bacon over medium heat till crsip and golden(optional). Remove from heat and set aside for later use. In the same pan, sauté the chopped onions with butter till the onions is softened and add a good splash of sake. Allow the sake to reduce before adding the bacon and cooked pasta to the pan. Give the pasta a few good stir before adding the dashi. Allow the pasta to “braise” in the stock. Stir in the cream and remove from heat. Mix in the Mentaiko and toss to mix well. Garnish with kizami nori.  

Where to find good mentaiko pasta:

Angus Steak House

#04-25 Takashimaya Shopping Centre

Ma Maison

#02-51 Bugis Junction

#03-96 The Central

Kandagawa

#03-01 Hotel Royal