Simmered
Japanese conger (Anago)
【Nigiri sushi: Nimono】
Anago (Japanese conger) used for sushi toppings is the Conger myriaster species of the Anguilliformes order, Congridae family. There is an old saying that “The best Anago is from Edomae (the old name for Tokyo Bay)” and even now, the Anago found in the seas off of Haneda (in front of Tokyo International Airport), is considered to be high quality, but they are not available in high quantities and aren’t often put on the market. However, besides the seas off of Haneda, the conger eel found in Tokyo Bay, such as in Kanazawa-hakkei, Kanagawa prefecture, or Kisarazu and Futtsu, Chiba prefecture, also have good flavor. Japanese conger eel itself is found throughout Japan, from Hokkaido southward. They are often caught in Tsushima, Nagasaki prefecture, and the Seto Inland Sea.
When Yohei Hanaya, the founder of Edo-style sushi, first opened a shop, it is said that he added boiled Japanese conger as a topping when he added clams and Kuruma prawns as toppings. Since Japanese conger has been used as a sushi topping since Edo-style sushi was born, special attention to detail is given in the preparations, and each shop comes up with its own unique flavor.