Nerimono

Nerimono is a term used for any food that is made of cooked ground fish and spices.

Kamaboko is a form of nerimono that contains no fish heads, innards, or anything else of that nature.For a while catfish was the fish of choice, ground and spread on a flat board, cooked slowly and sprinkled with sake and then roasted on sticks. About 170 years ago it was found that steaming the meat made for a better taste.

Catfish has been replaced by flounder, cod, sea bass and related fish.

Other kinds of nerimono include: chikuwa, which is skewered ground fish on a bamboo pole, roasted over an open file, and then the hollow bamboo tube is stuffed with cheese or some other filler. Hampen is a soft nermino often used in oden and other hot, stewed dishes. It consists of ground fish and grated yams. Tsumire is a fish ball made by kneading pulverized fish, eggs, flour, soup stock and other items. Its use, though, is limited to soups and stews.