金目鯛 · キンメダイ · kinmedai
Kinmedai
Kinmedai (splendid alfonsino) is a red-skinned deep-water fish with fatty, gently sweet white flesh — usually served seared skin-on to render the fat beneath.
- Also known as
- golden eye snapper, alfonsino
- Species
- Beryx splendens (Splendid alfonsino)
- Category
- White-flesh fish (shiromi)
- Texture
- tender — sweet, fatty, soft
- Peak season
- Dec, Jan, Feb
- Sustainability
- varies — Deep-water species; status varies by fishery.
- Mercury
- Not in the FDA consumer table
- Pregnancy
- Eat in moderation
- Price tier
- $$$
Golden eye, red skin
Kinmedai is named for its big golden eye (kinme); on the plate you know it by the brilliant red skin, which is almost always left on. The white flesh underneath is soft and gently sweet, with more fat than most shiromi.
Why it’s seared
That fat sits just beneath the skin, so chefs often lightly sear kinmedai (aburi) skin-side — the heat renders the fat fragrant and crisps the skin while leaving the flesh tender. A winter favorite, and an approachable step up into the richer white fish like nodoguro.