Mentaiko dishes for all budgets
If I had to name my favourite sushi, it would hands down be salmon mentaiko sushi. The classic salmon sushi, when combined with creamy mentaiko mayo, becomes an instant delicacy after being lightly torched. And I’ve recently realised that my love for mentaiko needn’t be restrained to just eating sushi; there are many new tasty mentaiko dishes out there, waiting to be discovered. Here are 10 mentaiko dishes for all you mentaiko lovers to add to your list of must-try eats!
1. Mentai Mayo Cheese Croquette
This Mentai Mayo Cheese Croquette ($2.50) from Tokyo Eater is a deep-fried potato patty that comes with umami mentaiko mayo sauce and melted cheese. Served hot, its crispy casing creates a welcomed contrast to the soft, mushy potato filling. Together with the sauce and cheese on top, this forms a delicious mouthful of savoury flavours that’ll kick-start your appetite. This is only available until 30 September 2018, so pop by before that to give it a go!
Address: 23 Serangoon Central, #B1-80, NEX, Singapore 556083
Opening hours: Daily 11am to 10pm
Tel: 6634 7437
Website
2. Mentaiko Cream Sauce Omurice
The yellow blob in this omurice from Omu is not just an omelette; it’s a lava-style omelette. Once your knife slices through it, it splits open to reveal soft, fluffy insides that coat your rice with a layer of creaminess. You get to choose from six sauces for your omu rice, and a must-try is, of course, their Mentaiko Cream Sauce Omurice ($13.80++).
Check out our full review of Omu!
Address: 3 Temasek Boulevard, #01-301A/301B West Wing, Suntec City, Singapore 038983
Opening hours: Daily 10am to 10pm
Website
3. Mentaiko Oyster
You might not believe this, but these delicious-looking oysters are from a food court! Named Oyster Trio ($16.80), this dish from Japan Foods Garden comes with three oysters topped with different ingredients: garlic chips with soy sauce, butter seaweed, and flamed mentaiko. Our attention rests on the flamed mentaiko one, which is rich and immensely umami. A hint of smokiness reveals itself on your taste buds as you slowly savour the oyster.
Check out our full review of Japan Foods Garden!
Address: 1 Scotts Road, #B1-01, Shaw Centre, Singapore 228208
Opening hours: Daily 11am to 10pm
Tel: 6493 7300
Website
4. Mentaiko Salmon bowl
If I worked in the CBD, I’d definitely head to Big Bowls Project at least once a week. While their Mentaiko Salmon ($8.90) doesn’t look like typical mentaiko dishes – it’s not pink, for one – its taste definitely doesn’t lose out. On top of the thick chunk of salmon is a layer of mentaiko sauce that’s been lightly torched. Eat it with the brown rice given to let the flavour of its marinade stand out.Â
Check out our full review of Big Bowls Project!
Address: 7 Maxwell Road, #02-90, Amoy Street Food Centre, Singapore 069111
Opening hours: Mon-Fri 11:30am to 2:30pm
Tel: 8183 0250
Website
5. Cod Fish & Chips with mentaiko sauce
Whathefish! at Tanjong Pagar is where I’d go to for value-for-money fried fish. Their Cod Fish & Chips ($7.50) comes with a crispy casing and is oh-so-soft on the inside. Add $2 for a generous drizzle of their mentaiko sauce. The dish also includes plenty of seasoned fries and a spoonful of coleslaw.
Check out our full review of Whathefish!!
Address: Blk 1 Tanjong Pagar Plaza, #02-04, Dingxin Mei Shi Coffeeshop, Singapore 082001
Opening hours: Mon 11am to 2:30pm, Tue-Fri 11am to 2:30pm, 5pm to 8pm
Tel: 8644 8652
Website
6. Ishiyaki Mentai Chazuke Wazen
The orangey slices in this Ishiyaki Mentai Chazuke Wazen ($21.90++) are not sausages. They are slices of spicy pollock roe, AKA mentaiko. Unlike mentaiko mayo, these are way stronger in flavour. They are very salty, with a little spicy kick, and are best eaten with rice. This dish also comes with stir-fried pork belly, as well as chawanmushi, deep-fried dory fish, and mentaiko ice-cream. Get it at Ichiban Sushi from now till 4 June 2018.
Address: 53 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3, #02-01, AMK Hub, Singapore 569933
Opening hours: Daily 11am to 10pm (last order at 9:30pm)
Tel: 6555 1617
Website | Full list of outlets
7. Salmon Mentaiko Pasta
Sutachi’s Salmon Mentaiko Pasta ($7.50) may not be much of a looker, but its taste certainly impresses. The mentaiko sauce is slightly torched on the surface, and when you mix it into the pasta, you’ll get mouthfuls of creamy, smoky, savoury flavours. Another dish to try here is their Foie Gras Gyu Donburi ($19.50). It comprises succulent beef slices and buttery foie gras sitting atop rice.
Check out our full review of Sutachi!
Address: 335 Smith Street, #02-060, Chinatown Complex Market & Food Centre, Singapore 050335
Opening hours: Mon 11:30am to 2:30pm, Tue-Sat 11:30am to 2:30pm, 6pm to 9:30pm
Tel: 9785 1382
Website
8. Mentai Maki
If you crave for mentaiko sushi as often as I do, you’d know that going to a restaurant every time isn’t the solution – your wallet suffers as soon as your taste buds are satisfied. So I’ve learnt to head down to Donya Japanese Cuisine instead. This hawker stall offers delicious Mentai Maki ($5.80) that’s affordable and good. If I’m starving, though, I’d go for their Chicken Katsu Don ($5.80) instead. It’s the same price as the maki, but way more filling and value-for-money.
Check out our full review of Donya Japanese Cuisine!
Address: 126 Lorong 1 Toa Payoh, Singapore 310126
Opening hours: Daily 11am to 2:30pm, 5pm to 9pm
Tel: 8866 2126
Website
9. Hakata Mentaiko Tonkotsu Ramen
Cheer yourself up on a gloomy day with a piping hot bowl of Hakata Mentaiko Tonkotsu Ramen ($14.90++) from Men-ichi Japanese Ramen. The creamy ramen broth is made by boiling pork bones and chicken for over 10 hours. The dish is then completed with noodles, chashu, half an egg and a chunk of mentaiko. While the broth itself doesn’t have any mentaiko flavour, the mentaiko itself helps to give the dish that deep, savoury flavour that us mentaiko lovers can’t get enough of.
Address: 23 Serangoon Central, #B1-79, NEX, Singapore 556083
Opening hours: Daily 11am to 10pm (last order at 9:30pm)
Tel: 6794 5125
Website | Full list of outlets
10. Mentaiko cup noodles
Image credit: @liangcourt
Let’s be real, instant noodles is part of our everyday lives. Make your next cup noodle meal a slightly more atas one with this MYOJO Ippeichan Instant Fried Noodle Mentaiko Flavour ($3.90). The dry noodles have a base of pork yakisoba sauce, and you’re supposed to mix them with the mentaiko mayo and preserved pollock roe that are provided. It’s a quick fix that can be whipped up in less than five minutes.
Check out more unique cup noodles to try!
Get it from:
Meidi-Ya Supermarket
Address: 177 River Valley Road, #B1-50, Liang Court Shopping Centre, Singapore 179030
Opening hours: Daily 10am to 10pm
Tel: 6339 1111
Website
Mentaiko dishes for all mentaiko fans
Aside from mentaiko sushi, there are many more mentaiko dishes for us to add to our list of must-tries. Let us know in the comments if you know of more delicious mentaiko dishes!
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