← Nouns Cooking · Japanese

Ingredients

• 200 g Spaghetti
• 2 tbsp salt, for the pasta water
• 80 g Mentaiko (spicy salted pollock or cod roe), membrane slit and roe scraped out
• 2 tbsp Butter, softened
• 2 tbsp double cream or milk
• 1 tsp Soy sauce
• 1 tsp lemon juice (optional)
• ½ sheet Nori, cut into thin strips
• 4 Shiso (Japanese perilla) leaves, finely shredded (optional)

Method

1. Bring a large pot of water to the boil, add the salt and cook the spaghetti until al dente.
2. Meanwhile, in a large bowl mix the mentaiko, softened butter, cream, soy sauce and lemon juice. Save about 1 tbsp of roe for the top.
3. Scoop out a mug of pasta water, then drain the spaghetti and tip it straight into the bowl while still steaming hot.
4. Toss quickly so the heat of the pasta melts the butter and turns the roe pale pink and lightly cooked. Add a splash of pasta water if it looks dry; it should be silky, not wet.
5. Pile into bowls and top with the reserved roe, nori strips and shiso.

Tips

• Look for mentaiko or tarako in the freezer section of Japanese and Korean shops; tarako is the unspiced version.
• Contains fish, wheat and dairy. Mentaiko is cured raw roe and is only lightly warmed here, so it is not advised in pregnancy or for anyone with low immunity unless cooked through.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

Just One Cookbook RecipeTin Japan Japanese Cooking 101