Seasoned Sardine — Iwashi Ajitsuke

Japanese sardines simmered in soy sauce and sugar, canned by Hoko. Ajitsuke is the everyday Japanese treatment for oily fish — a straight soy-and-sugar simmer that seasons the flesh right through rather than burying it under a sauce.

Sardine makes up the bulk of the can and the fish go in whole. Canning softens the bones completely, so the whole piece is edible and the flesh holds together instead of shredding. It is ready to eat as it comes, cold, straight from the tin.

Why Choose It?

• Hoko: packed and sealed in Japan.
• Soy simmered: seasoned through with soy sauce and sugar, not packed in oil or brine.
• Bones soften right down: eat the fish whole, nothing to pick out.
• Ready to eat: no cooking needed — open it and serve.
• Shelf stable: keeps in the cupboard until the day you open it.

Serving Suggestions:

• Over rice: straight from the tin onto hot rice, with the simmering liquid spooned over.
• Donburi: on rice with spring onion and shredded ginger.
• With noodles: broken through hot udon or chilled somen.
• On toast: mashed onto buttered toast with a squeeze of lemon.
• In a salad: flaked over leaves with cucumber and sesame.

The One Rule:
If you want it warm, tip it into a saucepan or a bowl first. Never heat the tin itself.

Storage:
Keep the unopened tin in a cool, dry cupboard — the best-before date applies to the tin unopened. Once it is open, move anything you do not finish into a covered container, refrigerate it, and use it within a day.

Ingredients:
Sardine (fish), water, soy sauce (water, soy, wheat, salt), sugar, thickener (412), colour (150a).

Allergen:
Contains fish, soy, wheat and gluten.

A proper Japanese tinned sardine, ready whenever you are. Order now.