Yellowtail cheek
Seriola quinqueradiata · Fish
Top 10 pairings
The cheek is the small, round muscle set into each side of a yellowtail's head — hoho-niku ("cheek meat") in Japanese — that works the jaw. Two come from each fish. Firm and dense with a springy, scallop-like bite, it is buttery-clean and mildly sweet, richer than a lean white fish yet milder than the darker bloodline meat: one of the choice morsels dug from the winter head when a whole buri is broken down.
Picking a good onedrag
Just cut, glossy and firmOff: sour, soft, darkened
Counter freshBuy itCook to 145°F (63°C) inside. Pregnant people, children, older adults and the immunocompromised avoid it raw, sashimi-grade included.
Cut face and blood lineMoist and pale, the blood line still red
Press the fleshFirm, the dent fills back quickly
SmellMild, faintly marine
How it is keptOn thick fresh ice, uncovered
These cues are Yellowtail's, and hold across its cuts; where this one differs, its own page says so.