Both Aburi and Tataki are Japanese cooking techniques that involve exposing food to high heat, but they differ in both purpose and process.
Aburi means “to sear,” and refers to lightly grilling the surface of food while leaving the inside raw.
In sushi, aburi is often applied to fatty cuts like salmon or tuna, where the flame enhances aroma, melts fat, and creates a contrast between the charred surface and the fresh interior. Some chefs use handheld gas burners, though Edomae-style masters often disapprove because of the faint odor left by the gas. For them, aburi is not about making the fish richer, but about controlling fat so the sushi remains balanced.
Other methods such as charcoal grilling, ovens, or iron plates can also be used, producing different aromas and textures. Aburi also appears in vegetables—like peppers or eggplants whose skins are charred and peeled—and in desserts such as crème brûlée or baked custard pudding, where caramelized surfaces are essential.
Tataki, in contrast, is more polysemous. In its seared form, tataki refers to quickly grilling the surface of fish or meat, then cooling it and slicing it.
Unlike aburi, tataki is always finished with seasonings: the slices are eaten with condiments such as soy sauce, ginger, garlic, or other pungent garnishes. This seasoning process is essential to the identity of tataki. The best-known example is katsuo no tataki from Kochi, where bonito is straw-seared, chilled in ice water, and served with generous amounts of aromatic condiments.
The term tataki also extends to finely chopping fish into a mince or even a paste, and to vegetables like cucumber or burdock root that are pounded to soften their texture, but in comparison with aburi, it is the seared and seasoned preparation that is most relevant.
Thus, while both techniques highlight the interplay of cooked and raw, aburi serves primarily as an aromatic finish that enhances natural flavor, whereas tataki is a preparation that combines searing with deliberate seasoning. This requirement of seasoning after searing marks a fundamental difference between the two.