Recipe: Tasty Candied Dried Baby Sardines (Tazukuri) for New Year's

Candied Dried Baby Sardines (Tazukuri) for New Year's. Toasted baby sardines and sesame seeds coated in a sweet honey soy sauce glaze, Tazukuri is a crispy savory snack commonly served as part of Osechi Ryori. They are also great little bites to enjoy with a cold beer! I feel a bit odd to post recipes for Japanese New Year foods, Osechi Ryori (おせち料理), before Christmas arrives.

Welcome in the New Year with classic Japanese New Year delicacies, such as this Tazukuri candied sardines. Traditionally eaten as part of 'Osechi ryori', this popular side dish consists of roasted baby sardines coated in a sweet soy sauce glaze and symbolises bountiful harvest. Candied Dried Baby Sardines (Tazukuri) for New Year's Small dried sardines (Japanese anchovies) • Sesame seeds • ○Soy sauce • ○Sugar • ○Sake • ○Honey (or starch syrup) • ○Water • ○Vegetable oil Candied Baby Anchovies (Tazukuri) Japanese New Year's dishes are called "osechi ryori." Each dish holds a special meaning and wish for the coming year. You can cook Candied Dried Baby Sardines (Tazukuri) for New Year's using 8 ingredients and 5 steps. Here is how you achieve it.

Ingredients of Candied Dried Baby Sardines (Tazukuri) for New Year's

1. It's 40 grams of Small dried sardines (Japanese anchovies).
2. Prepare 1 tbsp of Sesame seeds.
3. It's 1 tbsp of ○Soy sauce.
4. It's 1 tbsp of ○Sugar.
5. It's 2 tbsp of ○Sake.
6. It's 1 tbsp of ○Honey (or starch syrup).
7. You need 1 tbsp of ○Water.
8. You need 2 tsp of ○Vegetable oil.

Tazukuri symbolizes the wish for a bumper. Put dried baby sardines and sesame seeds in a frying pan. Stir constantly so the sesame seeds won't burn. Then, transfer to a plate lined with parchment paper.

Candied Dried Baby Sardines (Tazukuri) for New Year's instructions

1. Prepare the sardines. They should be about 3-4 cm long..
   
2. Pan-fry the sardines and sesame seeds in a frying pan without any oil. Use very low heat and make sure they don't burn..
   
3. Put the ○ ingredients into a saucepan and boil until decreased by half..
   
4. Add the sardines and sesame seeds to the saucepan and simmer over low heat until only a small amount of liquid remains. You should leave about 1-1.5 tablespoons of the liquid..
5. Cool the contents of the saucepan as you stir. Arrange on a plate and it's done!.

In the same frying pan, combine sake, sugar, soy sauce, honey and oil. Tazukuri are candied sardines or anchovies, and in the olden days, farmers used dried sardines for an abundant harvest in the fields. They are also often eaten to pray for a good harvest in the coming year. Tazukuri is dried small sardines (Gomame) cooked in sugar and soy sauce. It is a part of Osechi Ryori, the traditional Japanese new year feast.