Catfish Kabayaki ナマズの蒲焼

2 days ago 12

A decorative bowl filled with white rice, topped with three glazed, grilled catfish kabayaki fillets, garnished with chopped green onions and sesame seeds. A wooden spoon and soup bowl are nearby on a wooden table.

Recipe Highlights

Growing up in Japan, I ate fish far more often than I do now in the U.S. My mom cooked different kinds of fish throughout the week. She always alternated meat and fish so we could enjoy food from both the sea and land.

Grilled unagi is a dish I love, but good eel is expensive. So I created Catfish Kabayaki as a budget-friendly alternative, and it’s become one of my favorites!

Here’s why I keep coming back to this recipe:

Ready in 15 minutes with easy-to-find ingredients
Uses basa, an affordable catfish with unagi-like flavor
A satisfying rice bowl with fish glazed in sweet-savory tare

If you love Japanese rice bowls, try my Unadon, Oyakodon, and Gyudon next!

Table of Contents

A bowl of steamed rice topped with glazed catfish kabayaki fillets, garnished with sesame seeds and chopped green onions, served with a bowl of soup and chopsticks on the side.

What is Kabayaki?

Kabayaki (蒲焼き) is not a sauce. It’s a Japanese cooking style, much like teriyaki (照り焼き).

A long fish (such as eels and conger eels) is filleted, deboned, skewered, and grilled, then brushed with a sweet soy glaze called tare (たれ). It’s the same method behind Japan’s beloved unagi no kabayaki (鰻の蒲焼き), or grilled eel.

Ingredients for Catfish Kabayaki

Catfish (basa) fillets
Sauce – soy sauce, mirin, sake, sugar
All-purpose flour
Salt and black pepper
Neutral oil

For serving

Cooked Japanese short-grain rice
Green onions/scallions
Toasted white sesame seeds
Sansho pepper (optional)

Find the printable recipe with measurements below.

Jump to Recipe

How to Make Catfish Kabayaki

Prep the fish. Cut the basa fillets in half crosswise, then season both sides with salt and pepper.

Coat with flour. Dust the fillets lightly with flour and shake off the excess.

Pan-fry. Heat the oil over medium heat and fry the fillets 3 to 4 minutes per side, until the crust is golden and the flesh turns milky white.

Add the sauce. In a small bowl, whisk the sauce ingredients until the sugar dissolves. Pour it over the fish and cook 1–2 minutes, spooning it over until it thickens and glazes the fillets. Sprinkle with sliced green onions.

Serve. Spoon the fish and sauce over warm rice. Top with sesame seeds.

A person slicing a raw catfish fillet for kabayaki on a wooden cutting board with a sharp knife, using one hand to hold the fish steady and the other to cut.

Close-up of hands pressing flour onto a piece of catfish kabayaki fillet, preparing it for cooking. Other floured fish fillets are visible in the background.

Namiko Hirasawa Chen

Nami’s Recipe Tips

Here are the tips I rely on to make this dish work every time.

Choose thin fillets – My local fishmonger recommended basa, a type of catfish, because it comes in thin fillets that cook quickly and stay tender.

Dust with flour first – Coating the fish in flour before frying holds the flesh together, gives a crisper surface, and thickens the tare as it reduces.

Cook on medium – Medium heat browns the crust without drying the inside, so the fish stays juicy.

Two hands evenly coating raw catfish kabayaki fillets with flour and seasoning on a wooden surface, preparing the fish for cooking.

Four catfish kabayaki fillets are being cooked in a pan with a bubbling brown sauce. A spatula is about to flip one fillet. The fish is lightly seasoned and the rich sauce surrounds the fillets.

Use more oil for a crispier crust – I use 1½ tablespoons in a nonstick pan, but bump it up to 2–2½ tablespoons in a stainless steel pan for extra crunch.

Use real sake and mirin – These two staples flavor most savory Japanese dishes, so they’re worth stocking. My pantry pages list substitutes if you need them.

A bowl of steamed rice topped with glossy catfish kabayaki fillets, garnished with sesame seeds and chopped green onions, sits alongside a bowl of miso soup and a lidded condiment jar. Chopsticks rest beside the bowl.

A bowl of white rice topped with two glazed, grilled unagi (eel) fillets or catfish kabayaki, garnished with sesame seeds and chopped green onions, with a pair of wooden chopsticks resting on the bowl.

Variations

Feel free to mix and match based on what you have on hand.

Try another fish. Any mild white fish with slender, thin fillets works well with the same tare glaze.

Make it vegetarian. Coat firm tofu or eggplant in flour and pan-fry as in my Soy-Glazed Eggplant Donburi.

Spoon it over noodles. Skip the rice and serve the fish and sauce over udon or soba.

Tweak the sauce. Swap in my Homemade Eel Sauce (unagi tare) for a deeper, more traditional sweet-salty flavor.

What to Serve with Catfish Kabayaki

Add these sides to make a complete meal.

Cabbage and Onsen Tamago Miso Soup – A warm bowl with a soft poached egg to start the meal right.
Green Bean Shiraae – The creamy tofu-sesame dressing adds a cool, nutty contrast to the glazed fish.
Namasu (Daikon and Carrot Salad) – The sweet-tart pickle cuts through the rich tare.

White ceramic bowls containing Cabbage and Onsen Tamago Miso Soup topped with green onions and shichimi togarashi.

Green bean shiraae in a Japanese ceramic.

Storage and Reheating Tips

To store: Transfer leftovers to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to a month.

To reheat: Warm gently in a covered pan over low heat.

FAQ

What kind of fish should I use?

I use basa, a type of catfish, but any thin white fish works. Pick thin fillets so they cook through quickly.

Does this taste like real unagi?

It isn’t identical—catfish is milder than eel. But the sweet tare glaze and warm rice make for a satisfying unadon experience at a fraction of the cost of real unagi, which can run $30 or more per fillet.

Can I cook this without sake or mirin?

I recommend keeping both on hand, since they flavor most savory Japanese dishes, but my pantry pages list substitutes if you’re in a pinch.

What is sansho pepper?

It’s a citrusy Japanese pepper often paired with grilled eel, and a small pinch adds a light, tingly finish.

I’d love to hear how yours turned out! 💛 Please leave a star rating and comment below to share your experience. Your feedback not only supports Just One Cookbook but also helps other home cooks discover recipes they can trust.

Catfish Kabayaki

Prep: 5 minutes

Cook: 10 minutes

Total: 15 minutes

To Prep

Gather all the ingredients. It's best to start when the rice is resting.
Cut 2 basa fillets (catfish fillets) crosswise in half. Season both sides with ⅛ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt and ⅛ tsp freshly ground black pepper.
Lightly coat the fillets with 1½ Tbsp all-purpose flour (plain flour) and shake off the excess.

To Cook

Heat 1½ Tbsp neutral oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add the fillets and fry for 3–4 minutes per side until the crust is golden brown and the flesh is opaque and milky white.
Nami's Tip: Use 2–2½ Tbsp oil for a stainless steel pan or for a crispier texture.
In a small bowl, whisk 3 Tbsp soy sauce, 2 Tbsp mirin, 2 Tbsp sake, and 1 Tbsp sugar until the sugar dissolves. Pour over the fish and cook for 1–2 minutes, spooning it over the fish until the sauce thickens and coats the back of a spoon.
Thinly slice 2 green onions/scallions and sprinkle over the fish. Turn off the heat.

To Serve

Divide 2 servings cooked Japanese short-grain rice into the donburi bowls and top with the fish. Drizzle with the pan sauce and sprinkle with 1 tsp toasted white sesame seeds and Japanese sansho pepper, if you'd like.

To Store

Transfer the leftovers to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 2–3 days or in the freezer for up to a month. To reheat, warm it gently in a covered pan over low heat so the flesh stays moist.

Japanese short-grain rice: ½ cups (300 g, 2 rice cooker cups) of uncooked Japanese short-grain rice yields 4⅓ cups (660 g) of cooked rice—just right for 2 donburi servings. Cook it your way: rice cooker, pot on the stove, Instant Pot, or donabe.

Variations

Try another fish. Any mild white fish that comes in slender, thin fillets takes well to the same tare glaze.
Make it vegetarian. Coat firm tofu or eggplant in flour and pan-fry, then glaze with the tare for a meat-free bowl.
Spoon it over noodles. Skip the rice and serve the fish and sauce over udon or soba.
Use eel for the classic version. Swap in grilled unagi and make traditional unagi no kabayaki.

Calories: 515kcal, Carbohydrates: 40g, Protein: 31g, Fat: 21g, Saturated Fat: 11g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 94mg, Sodium: 1247mg, Potassium: 586mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 8g, Vitamin A: 122IU, Vitamin C: 2mg, Calcium: 35mg, Iron: 2mg