Kabayaki is a Japanese cooking method where fish, particularly eel (unagi), is prepared by splitting it, gutting, deboning, butterflying, and then skewering and grilling it. The fish is then dipped or basted with a sweet, soy sauce-based sauce before grilling, creating a glazed, flavorful dish.

Grilled eel is often served on top of a bowl (donburi) of rice, and called unadon, the fancier form of which is the unajū, placed inside a lacquered box called jūbako. It is also torn up and mixed up evenly with rice to make hitsumabushi , which is enjoyed especially in the Nagoya area.