My Fish Dish at Lake Tazawa

Cycling around Japan’s deepest lake, I quite literally stumbled into this place.

The smell of the fire mixed with a roasted fish skin…. The juice dripping out of the edges... The inside sizzling away….I was drawn in like a moth to the light. I found this place by chance, bumbling my bike right up to the outside patio where I could see the fish cooking.

I had ridden my rental bike most of the way around the lake. My stomach was starting to grumble, my body needed fuel.

I was staying a few towns over in Kakunodate, an old samurai village in northwest Japan. I was traveling on my own and had reserved two nights to explore the area. I went into a half dozen old samurai houses converted into museums. They had paper thin walls. In one house, the sun shined through a carving of a sea turtle; as the sun moved over the day, the turtle looked like it was swimming on the wall. I meandered through the streets taking in all the sites.

On my second day, I woke up early and to take a short train ride to lake Tazawa. My tour book said it was the deepest lake in Japan. I wanted to see the blues of the 425 meter deep lake. It qualifies as part of the world’s deepest 35 lakes. Yet, Tazawa is a mere drop in the bucket compared to the deepest, Lake Baikal in Siberia Russia, which clocks in at 1,642 meters—just over one mile!

I read that there was a place that I could rent a bike. I was able to navigate my way to the shop and took off.

After about a mile or so I stopped and put my feet in the water. I wanted to eat my snack.

I had purchased some food from the station…well to be honest, I am not really sure what it was. One was for sure a ball of rice filled with something. The other one looked sweet. Both were sweet and a great snack to give me a sugary boost for my ride.

I loved buying the random rice pyramids with seaweed on the outside (separated by plastic so to remain crisp—just pull the plastic tab and it came straight out!). Those savory treats had a mystery something on the inside. I guessed the cheaper ones were veggie and the more expensive ones were fish. I was in a part of Japan where fewer non-native Japanese traveled, so English was not everywhere. Pictures of food on the menus worked great though! I was never disappointed with what I bought.

Five miles into the ride, I was ready to eat again. I came up to a man cooking at a fire pit.

I saw two beautiful fish with a stick running through them. I tried to compliment him and say how good they looked. But he could not understand any English so smiled and nodded at me. Thankfully, the couple who were getting the fish spoke a little English. They helped me order my own fish.

I asked if the fish was from the lake. The couple translated that it was from a stream nearby. The chef led me to a bucket, got a fish and put it in the sink. It was still alive. I can’t ask for a more fresh, local dish. I still do not know what type of fish it was…except my fisher’s wish!!

He cleaned the fish by removing the guts and gills. He then prepared the fish with a salt on the outside, put it on a stick, and stuck the stick in the fire. I was told it would be ready in 15 min.

I left my bike (unlocked) and wandered around the area.

My whole day was filled with exotic flowers, great views, a rolling cloud with a brief storm. At one point I came upon an amazing statue. It was of the goddess of the lake, Tatsuko. She was legendary for being the maiden of beauty.

I went back to see if my fish was ready. It was set aside on the coals, keeping it warm until I came back.

I devoured the whole thing, like eating corn on the cob. At the end I had the typical Garfield fish skeleton left on my plate. Hands down one of the best fish I have ever eaten.

Sometimes, I use that simple salt technique and grill fish over a charcoal grill—hoping to emulate the deliciousness.

The recipe:

Salt. Add more salt. Cook for 15 minutes on a hot fire. Rotate the fish twice if on a grill. I imagine rotate several times if you were to cook it like this man did, on a stick, in the fire. Eat and enjoy!