Japanese Food and Sake Dictionary

Nimono

2016-01-25T10:49:00.000+09:00

Nimono:

Simmered foods, one of the basic cooking techniques in Japan. 煮物.

Simmered food is part of every meal except breakfast. It is the principal way of serving vegetables and also one of the popular ways for serving fish. The ingredients are simmered in stock over a long period of time, until the liquid has been absorbed by the ingredients or evaporated. The stock used is a general dashi plus soy sauce, and it can be further flavored with sake, mirin, sugar and other condiments.

[Tai no kabutoni - Simmered head of sea bream]

The simmering is done in a pan with straight sides. A wooden drop-lid called otoshibuta is used in order to spread the heat evenly throughout the ingredients during the simmering process.

Before simmering, there is often a preliminary step in the form of parboiling (blanching), which is done in water.

Depending on the seasoning used, the sort of flavored stock, various types of simmering are recognized. Some important ones are:

Misoni, also misodaki: fish, but sometimes vegetables, simmered in a mixture of miso and dashi, with soy sauce and freshly chopped ginger. Masks the fishy smell of mackerel and other fish.
Nitsuke: A mixture of sake, mirin (or sugar) and soy sauce. Also called "sake simmered." Mainly used for simmering fish.
Shigureni: simmered in dashi heavily seasoned with soy sauce.
Karani: simmered in sake and soy sauce.

As dashi, top restaurants use ichiban dashi, but at home often niban dashi or even instant dashi is used. Seasonings are added to the stock in the following order: sake, mirin (or sugar), salt, soy sauce, miso.

Here are some examples from the huge repertory of simmered dishes:

Saba no misoni: simmered mackerel in miso.
Nishin no nitsuke: sake-simmered herring.
Buri daikon: simmered yelowtail and rettich.
Furofuki daikon: rettich with white miso sauce.
Buta no kakuni: braised pork.
Satoimo no nimono: simmered taro.
Kabocha no nimono: simmered pumpkin.
Nikujaga: braised meat and potatoes.
Oden.

Chomiryo

2016-01-21T09:00:00.000+09:00

Chomiryo:

Condiment, seasoning. 調味料。

The Japanese have a wordplay (goro-awase) or mnemonic technique to remember the main seasonings and in which order they should be used during the preparation of the meal: sa-shi-su-se-so, or: sato (sugar) - shio (salt) - su (vinegar) - shoyu (soy sauce) - miso. The traditional sweetener, by the way, is not sugar (the use of which is relatively restricted in the Japanese kitchen), but mirin. This is a sweet liquid flavoring, made by mixing steamed rice on which a koji-culture has been developed, with shochu (distilled spirits). Of the above list, sugar is modern, salt is used relatively little, and rice vinegar, miso paste and soy sauce are the major condiments of the traditional cuisine.

[Traditional soy sauce brewing vat in Yuasa, Wakayama Pref.]

That leaves out the major flavor enhancer in the Japanese kitchen, the basic stock called dashi. Dashi is not seen as a separate seasoning, but is the stock that forms of the basis of countless dishes and soups and that enhances the original flavors. It is typical for the umami concept in the Japanese kitchen.

One more traditional flavoring that should be mentioned here is sake (nihonshu). Sake is often used to give a "hidden flavor" to a particular dish.

Then there are some other flavorings which are only used in specific dishes, for example:

wasabi - mainly used in the dip for sashimi, or on nigirizushi.
karashi mustard - mainly used as condiment for oden.
Worcester sauce (usuta sosu) - mainly used for yoshoku dishes as tonkatsu.
sansho (Japanese pepper) - mainly used with grilled eel (unagi) to counteract the flavor and smell of fat. Important ingredient in shichimi-togarashi, Japan's "seven spice chili mix."

Nihonshu (flavoring)

2016-01-17T09:09:00.001+09:00

Nihonshu:

Sake 酒.

Besides its use as a delicious beverage, sake (nihonshu) is used as a flavoring in the Japanese kitchen to add some "hidden flavor" to a particular dish, to bring out the aroma or, in the case of fish, the cover up the fishy smell. In simmering fish and poultry it also acts as a tenderizing agent.

In Japan, also special cooking sake (ryorishu) is sold. This is usually very cheap, because it has been made unfit for consumption as a beverage by adding salt and vinegar. It therefore is not subject to tax on alcoholic beverages. In other cases umami elements and sugar may have been added. This cooking sake invariably has a rather chemical constitution and I advise not to use it.

It is much nicer to use real sake. I often put the left-overs (the last bit in the bottle) of sake away to use in cooking. For example, Junmai-shu is very suitable for this and gives a wonderful "hidden taste" to your dishes!

Shio

2016-01-16T08:23:00.001+09:00

Shio:

Salt. しお、塩。

All salt produced in Japan comes from sea water, there are no salt deposits in the country. The old method starts by first producing a heavily condensed saline solution (brine) from sea water through the use of so-called salt-terraces on the beach (located around the Inland Sea or on the Noto Peninsula), and then by boiling down this solution to yield a residue of edible sea salt (evaporation is not sufficient as Japan is too humid: the brine has to be boiled). Nowadays, salt is extracted from sea water via electrolysis (ion-exchange system).

Until 1985 salt was exclusively sold in Japan under a government monopoly. Since 2002 it has been completely liberalized. Most salt produced in Japan is used as table salt. The much greater demand for industrial salt (80% of the total) is filled with imports.

The Japanese intake of salt is high, but this is mainly via soy sauce, miso paste and tsukemono. You won't find table salt on the table in Japanese-style restaurants! Salt is sometimes used with tempura (instead of the dipping sauce) as well as with yakitori. Shioyaki is a way of grilling fish by covering it in thick salt to avoid charring.

Salt plays a ritual use for purification and protection from evil in Japanese culture (kiyome no shio). Take for example the scattering of salt at the start of a sumo match. Another interesting way of using salt can be seen in the small heaps of salt (morijio) placed at the entrance to bars in entertainment districts. Salt for use in rituals in the Ise Shrine is still produced in the traditional way, with salt terraces.

Sato

2016-01-15T10:28:00.000+09:00

Sato:

Sugar. さとう、砂糖。

Japanese sugar is made both from sugar cane (sato-kibi, good for 20%), grown in Kagoshima Pref. and in Okinawa, and from sugar beets, grown in Hokkaido (tensai, good for 80%). Pure white sugar is the norm.

Sugar consumption was 16.4 kg p.p. in 2010, down more than 5 kilos compared to 1985. Daily consumption per person is also rather low in comparison with other countries: Japan stands at just 45 gram, against 172 g. for Brazil, 167 for Australia, 127 for Germany and 89 for the U.S. (figures from Japanese Wikipedia).

One reason is that in the traditional Japanese kitchen sugar is only relatively little used - there are after all also other sweeteners, such as mirin. Sugar is mainly used in nimono consisting of vegetables or fish which are simmered in soy sauce and sugar. In contrast, the use of sugar in the Western and Chinese cuisines is much more extensive. In Japan, sugar is of course often found in Western-style prepared foods.

Mochi

2016-01-09T11:00:00.000+09:00

Mochi:

Glutinous rice cake. 餅。

Made by pounding hot steamed glutinous rice (mochigome) into an elastic paste and then knead portions of this into the form necessary.

Traditionally, the pounding was done with wooden mallets in barrel-sized wooden mortars (mochitsuki). This ceremony can still be seen at temple and shrine festivals, and also at some marriage ceremonies where bride and groom have to take a go at the pounding with an obvious double meaning.

Today, most mochi are machine-processed and sold ready-made. Sometimes they are sold fresh, but, more often than not, vacuum packed in supermarkets. Shapes can be round, square or sheet-like.

Mochi can be eaten "as such" by grilling them on a wire grill (mochi-ami) and then flavor them with a soy sauce dip. These are called yaki-mochi. Mochi double in size when grilled and develop a crispy skin.

Like the rice used to make them, mochi are culturally significant as being a concentrated version of Japan's staple food, rice - like bread in Christianity, a certain religious (Shintoist) halo is attached to it. We already find mention of mochi as sacred food in the 8th century, and slightly later we find them as food for the New Year celebrations. Mochi were thought to symbolize long life, and also - very practical - to be good for one's teeth.

Today the following use is still made of mochi at New Year:

Kagami-mochi or "mirror mochi." A decorated stack of two rounded mochi cakes put on display during the New year - usually from the 28th until several days after the New Year. The name comes from the round shape which reminded the Japanese of pre-modern, bronze mirrors. Finally, these mochi would be broken into pieces ("kagami-biraki," "the opening of the mirror"), roasted and eaten. (See also my post on Japanese customs in January at Japan Navigator).
Zoni. Mochi are a must at festive occasions, such as the New Year. The most common way to eat them at the New year celebration is to add them to a soup called zoni.

[Shop producing mochi in Fushimi, Kyoto]

Other ways of eating:

Abekawamochi. Wrapped in nori (isobe-mochi), or covered in roasted and sweetened soy flour (kinako).
In zenzai and shiruko. Toasted mochi are also eaten in zenzai, a chunky sweet soup with azuki beans popular in winter as a snack.
In Chikara Udon, "power noodles" with mochi added.

Finally, like the mochigome of which it is made, mochi are often used in confectionery, for example:

Sakuramochi, wrapped in salted cherry leaves, a spring specialty of Kyoto.
Kusamochi. Another sweet for spring made from mochi and leaves of Japanese mugwort (yomogi). Can also be filled with anko, sweetened red bean paste made from azuki beans.
Kashiwamochi. Round-shaped mochi filled with sweet bean paste (an) and wrapped in an oak leaf (from the kashiwa or Daimyo Oak).
Daifuku (-mochi), a small round mochi stuffed with sweet filling, most commonly anko.
Ohagi. Steamed balls of glutinous rice wrapped in red bean paste - so exactly the reverse of Daifuku.
And even "mochi ice cream," mochi with an ice cream filling, which is an internationally available Japanese snack.

Health hazard: every year people die in Japan because of choking on sticky mochi. Especially the elderly are at risk. To prevent this, cut the mochi into small pieces before eating it.

Shoyu

2015-12-21T10:57:00.000+09:00

Shoyu:

Soy sauce. しょうゆ、醤油。

Soy sauce is the basic condiment in the Japanese kitchen and is used in all sorts of dishes, in marinades, dipping sauces and also at the table. Soy sauce is made from soy beans, roasted wheat, salt and koji. Soy sauce boasts a hearty aroma and contains 15% to 20% salt (there are also low-salt varieties).

Although soy sauce has ancient roots (in the form of a fish sauce which is still used in S.E. Asia, a product called hishio or uoshi in Japan), it was only in the middle of the 17th c. developed in its present form. In fact, soy sauce started as a by-product of miso production, in towns like Yuasa, Tatsuno and on Shodo Island in Western Japan. In the 18th c., the soy makers in Noda and Choshi (Chiba Prefecture) also came up, as they were close to Edo. Different from miso, which can be made by small producers, or even in individual households, for soy production large industrial presses are necessary, which asks for a more large-scale, industrial approach.

There are various types of soy sauce:

Tamari consists only of soybeans without wheat or with very little wheat. It is a thick, sweet sauce that is especially suitable as dipping sauce for sashimi, as the basis for teriyaki sauce, for tsukudani or for the coating of rice crackers. This is the original soy sauce until the mid-Edo period: as also the name indicates, it was the liquid that runs off miso as it matures, a byproduct from the fermentation of miso. It was originally obtained by pressing miso, but nowadays the production method is the same as for soy sauce, with as only difference that little or no wheat is used. Mainly produced in the Chubu region (around Nagoya).
Koikuchi shoyu (with an equal amount of soy beans and wheat) is dark in color and has a strong taste. This standard type is good for 82% of all soy sauce. As a true versatile all-purpose sauce it is also used at the table. Koikuchi shoyu was developed in the late 17th c. in the Kanto area by improving tamari by adding wheat to the production process (this was done in 1697 by Higeta from Choshi). Koikuchi shoyu is now produced in the whole country, but the production in the Kanto area is still the highest, with companies as Kikkoman (Noda), Yamasa and Higeta (both Choshi) - in the past, these companies could transport their products easily to Edo over the River Tone. Another production center is on Shodo Island in the Inland Sea, where the climate is very suitable (Marukin).
Usukuchi shoyu is lighter in color but (against expectation) also 10% saltier. This type is mainly used in the kitchen and is good for 15% of all soy sauce. Usukuchi soy sauce is especially popular in Kyoto and the Kansai area, for example in clear soups, udon soup and in simmered dishes (nimono). As it is lighter in taste and color it doesn't clash with the light cuisine of Kyoto (where dashi is made only with kelp, without the addition of katsuobushi). The production process is slightly different, too: the wheat is lightly roasted; during fermentation, less koji and more brine is used; and at the end amazake or mizuame (glucose) is added. The fermentation is shorter than for koikuchi shoyu. An important producer of usukuchi shoyu is Higashimaru in Tatsuno (Hyogo Pref.).
Saishikomi shoyu or kanro shoyu is "twice-processed" or "sweet" soy sauce. Both flavor and color are very rich. The koji is mixed with koikuchi shoyu instead of brine. This type was developed in the town of Yanai in Yamaguchi Pref., and is now mainly produced in the Sanin area and Kyushu. It is used for sushi and sashimi.
Shiro shoyu or "white soy sauce." Is lighter in color than usukuchi shoyu, obtained by mainly using wheat and very little soy beans (so the opposite of tamari). Is rather salty and also very sweet, Suitable for simmered dishes (nimono), suimono (clear soups) and chawanmushi. Developed in Hekinan in Aichi Pref.
Genen shoyu and Usushio shoyu are soy sauces with "reduced salt," and "light salt." The first one usually has 9% salt (half of normal koikuchi soy sauce) and the second one 13%.
Sashimi-joyu or Ponzu-joyu etc. These are not pure soy sauces, but sauces on the basis of soy sauce. In the case of the first one tamari, sake and mirin have been added to koikuchi shoyu to make a dip sauce for sushi. The second one is the same mix, but with the important addition of the juice of citrus fruits like yuzu, daidai or sudachi. Ponzu is used as a dipping sauce for one-pot dishes. There are many varieties in Japanese supermarkets of such mixed sauces.

The production process of koikuchi soy sauce is as follows:

1. Equal parts of steamed soy beans and roasted and shredded wheat are mixed together.
2. Koji spores (Aspergillus) are cultivated for 3 to 4 days on this mixture. Koji spores have a high proteolytic capacity, i.e. they break up proteins into amino acids, and produce all sorts of enzymes which are important later on in the process. Other microbes contained in this culture include yeast and lactic acid bacteria.
3. Next brine is added to make moromi, the main mash, which is fermented and aged in large tanks. Instead of brine, also dry coarse salt can be used for dry fermentation. The enzymes in the koji now start working and transform the proteins in the soy beans into amino acids. They also change the starch in the soy beans and wheat into sugars. Lactic acid bacteria produce lactic acid and yeast makes ethanol.
4. The moromi is aged for several months. Through aging and secondary fermentation numerous flavor compounds typical of soy sauce come into being.
5. After it has been sufficiently aged, the moromi is pressed so that the pure soy sauce is separated from the lees.
6. This soy sauce is next filtered and pasteurized.

It is possible to cut corners in soy sauce production by chemical processes (using acid-hydrolyzed soy protein instead of the time-consuming fermentation process - this takes only 3 days), so select soy sauce that has been labeled "honjozo" or "100% genuine fermented." When using soy sauce for Japanese dishes, use only soy sauce produced by a Japanese maker.

Miso

2015-12-18T10:18:00.001+09:00

Miso:

Paste of fermented soybeans, "miso." みそ、味噌。

Japan's traditional seasoning and also a versatile health food - and on top of that very tasty! Made from fermented soy beans mashed into a thick paste. No traditional Japanese meal is complete without miso. Full of umami, the paste is used as a seasoning for soups and a host of traditional dishes.

Miso originated in China and found its way to Japan in the 7th c., after which it was gradually transformed into an intrinsically Japanese seasoning. Initially it was a luxury product that could only be enjoyed by courtiers and priests. In the 14th century it finally reached ordinary Japanese. At that time, miso was an actual side dish that provided a major source of protein; as a preserved food, it was also carried by wartime troops. This miso side dish was chunky, as the soybeans were left uncrushed and so could be eaten easily with chopsticks. Today we still find this type of side-dish miso in Kinzanji miso in Yuasa (Wakayama).

In the 17th century industrial scale production was started. But small-scale - even home - manufacture also continues. There are about 1,400 producers of miso in Japan. Total production is something to the order of 560,000 tonnes per year. The Japanese consume almost 5 kilos of miso per person per year.

The fermentation and aging process of miso involves a multitude of factors. Variations in this process result in different tastes, colors and textures. Throughout Japan numerous types of miso can be found, each with its own distinct flavor.

Miso can in the first place be divided into three types based on the type of koji-culture being used (koji-kin is a healthy mold that produces many important enzymes; it is also used for other food products and for sake making); one also speaks about three different "malt types," depending on which ingredient the koji culture is developed.

The three basic types of miso are Kome miso, Mugi miso and Mame miso.

Kome miso or Rice-malt miso: the Koji-kin (Koji spores) is grown on rice (ingredients are soybeans, malted rice and salt). This is the most common way – 80% of all miso is made according to this procedure. It can be sweet, semi-sweet or full-bodied, and the color can vary from white, via light yellow, to red. Color differences in miso are the outcome of the strength of the aminocarbonyl or so-called Maillard reaction, which is the result of the combination of amino acids and sugars during the fermentation and aging process. Based on color and taste Kome miso can be further subdivided as follows (there are also many other regional types which are not included below):

Shinshu miso (Miso from the Nagano region). The strong-flavored shinshu miso is used widely in households for the daily miso soup.
Red miso (Aka-miso). Aka-miso is higher in salt content and rich in amino acids and other nutrients, the result of the breakdown of soybean proteins, and therefore, it is particularly rich in umami. Examples of red miso are Tsugaru miso and Sendai miso.
White miso (Shiro-miso). Shiro miso possesses a lower salt content that reveals the sweetness of the rice koji. Shiro miso is preferred in the Kansai area surrounding Kyoto and Osaka. The sweetest type, with a higher percentage of rice than of soybeans, is called Saikyo miso and is exclusively produced in Kyoto. It is an expensive top-quality product that fits well to the Kyoto kitchen with its light tastes and is mainly used in restaurants. In ordinary households, white miso usually appears only on special occasions, as during the New Year, when it is used to make zoni soup.
Awase miso, finally, is not a type, but a combination of various kinds of Kome miso; it is usually light in taste.

Mugi miso or Barley-malt miso: the Koji-kin is grown on barley (ingredients are soybeans, malted barley and salt). This type is popular in parts of South-Western Japan (Kyushu, parts of Shikoku and Yamaguchi Pref.). This type of miso is rich in minerals and has a mild aroma. It has a sweet taste and fits to a great variety of dishes. The color is light yellow; there is also a full-bodied type which has a reddish color. About 11% of all miso is Kome miso.

Mame miso or Soybean-malt miso: the Koji-kin is grown on soybeans (ingredients are soybeans, malted soybeans and salt). Also called Hatcho miso after the Hatcho area in the town of Okazaki, where this type of miso is made exclusively by only two producers. Hatcho miso is fermented for two years and has a dark, almost black color. It is a powerful, dry miso that looks a bit like chocolate. It has a bitter flavor and lots of umami. This type is popular in the Nagoya region.

In the past, it was customary for every household to have its own special recipe for miso, one to boast about. This is the origin of the Japanese expression, temae miso, "to sing one's own praises."

Miso is made as follows:
Steamed and crushed soy beans are mixed with water and salt. A koji-culture, that has been separately developed on either steamed rice, steamed barley or steamed soybeans, is added to the mix. The mix is then put into vats of cypress wood where it is allowed to ferment and age for a year. During that process, several micro organisms play a role and all ingredients are transformed into a nutritious paste.

Miso is very nutritious because the paste contains high-quality proteins. Miso also contains amino acids and has a hearty and aromatic taste - it is the embodiment of umami!

Some dishes in which miso plays a large role:
- Miso soup (miso-shiru)
- Gindara no yuanyaki, grilled black cod marinated in miso;
- Saba no misoni, mackerel simmered in miso - the miso masks the fishy taste;
- Tofu dengaku, skewered, grilled tofu coated with a warm miso glaze;
- Miso-zuke, one of the many ways to pickle vegetables.

Umami

2015-12-15T10:05:00.001+09:00

Umami:

Pleasant, savory taste; "umami" 旨味, うまみ

Umami is one of the five basic tastes (together with sweetness, sourness, bitterness, and saltiness). The term was devised by Professor Ikeda Kikunae of Tokyo University, who in 1908 identified glutamic acid (glutamate) as the component responsible for the tastiness of dashi stock made with konbu-kelp. As this fifth taste was first recognized in Japan and there was no word for it in other languages, the Japanese term UMAMI has come into general use.

After the scientific identification of glutamic acid in kelp by Professor Ikeda Kikunae in 1908, two more umami components were discovered by Japanese researchers. Professor Kodama Shintaro, a disciple of Ikeda, discovered in 1913 that katsuobushi (smoked and fermented bonito flakes) contain another umami substance, inosinic acid or inosine monophosphate (IMP). And in 1957, Kuninaka Akira realized that guanylic acid or guanosine monophosphate (GMP), present in shiitake mushrooms, also conferred the umami taste.

Another discovery of Kuninaka Akira was the synergistic effect between inosonic acid / guanylic acid (both ribonucleotides) and glutamate. When foods rich in glutamate are combined with ingredients that contain ribonucleotides, the resulting taste intensity becomes many times higher than that of the individual ingredients. That is the science behind dashi, where the glutamate-rich konbu is combined with ribonucleotide-rich katsuobushi or shiitake mushrooms.

People taste umami through receptors in taste buds specific to glutamate. Umami of course not only occurs in Japanese food - in fact, all humans first come across this taste in breast milk! In larger or smaller amounts, umami is present in fish, shellfish, cured meat, mushrooms, vegetables as ripe tomatoes, Chinese cabbage, spinach, celery, etc., and fermented and aged products involving bacterial or yeast cultures, such as cheeses and soy sauce. Rice also contains umami and umami is an important characteristic of sake as well.

Umami was especially important to the Japanese. Already 800 years ago the Japanese spoke of umami, and in writings from the Edo-period (17th-19th century) it is stated that umami forms the basis of all taste. It certainly is the basic principle of the Japanese cuisine, which doesn't use strong sauces or spices to give taste to food, but which aims to bring out the original taste of the ingredients themselves in a delicate way. That is exactly the function of umami.

By the way, nowadays umami components can also be artificially produced according to the methods of the fermentation industry. It was in fact Prof. Ikeda Kikunae who already in 1909 developed a process for mass-producing monosodium glutamate or MSG (he called it "Ajinomoto," "the basis of taste," and this is now the name of one of the largest food companies in Japan). In that case we speak about “flavor enhancers.” During the production of flavor enhancers, guanylic acid and inosinic acid are added to monosodium glutamate, making this another example of the synergistic umami effect.

Konbu Updated

2015-12-13T16:43:00.001+09:00

The post on Konbu (kelp), one of the most important ingredients in the Japanese kitchen as it is used to make the basic stock, dashi, has been rewritten and expanded!

Dashi

2015-12-13T16:31:00.000+09:00

Dashi:

Stock だし、出し、だし汁。

The Japanese basic stock, the pillar of the Japanese cuisine which provides Japanese cuisine with its characteristic flavor. The quality of a Japanese dish is determined by the quality of the dashi that seasons it. Dashi is the foundation for soups, simmered dishes, salad dressings, marinades and much more.

Traditionally, there are five kinds of dashi:

Konbu dashi ("Kelp stock"), made with only konbu. This is vegetarian stock, shojin dashi, a delicate and clear broth.
How to make: After wiping the kelp with a paper towel (do not rinse!), bring 40 grams of kelp to the boil over medium heat in one liter of water. Remove the konbu before the water starts boiling (after about 10 minutes, never allow the kelp to boil as it will become bitter). Your stock is finished! Alternatively, you can also simply soak the kelp in cold water for about eight hours (overnight), without heating.
Ichiban dashi ("First brew stock") made from konbu (kelp) and katsuo-bushi (shavings of preserved, fermented bonito). Ichiban dashi has a subtle and refined flavor and weak color and is used for sensitive preparations as clear soups (suimono), chawan-mushi, and dipping sauces for cold soba noodles.
How to make: Follow the instructions for making kelp stock. Immediately after removing the kelp, add 30 grams of bonito flakes (kezurikatsuo or hanakatsuo). Bring again to the boil (takes about 10 seconds), immediately turn off the heat, skim off the foam and let the mixture stand for a few minutes. Strain through a fine sieve - and your stock is ready.
Niban dashi ("Second brew stock") made from konbu and katsuo-bushi by reusing the ingredients used for making ichiban dashi. Niban dashi has a stronger aroma than ichiban dashi and a cloudy appearance and serves as a basic seasoning. It is used for miso soup, as broth for hot noodles, and as a liquid for simmering other ingredients (nimono). It can also be used to dilute soy sauce and mirin resulting in a sauce called warishita which is used in one-pot dishes.
How to make: simmer the kelp and bonito flakes used for making ichiban dashi for 15 to 20 minutes in 1.5 liter of water - do this immediately after making the ichiban dashi, as the ingredients can't be kept. At the end add 15 grams of new bonito flakes and then immediately remove from the heat. Allow the new flakes to settle for about one minute, then remove foam and strain the liquid through a sieve. (Now the ingredients should be discarded, you can't reuse them a third time!).
Shiitake dashi ("Shiitake stock"). Another vegetarian stock, made from dried shiitake mushrooms. Like kelp stock it can also be combined with katsuobushi.
How to make: just soak 30 grams of dried shiitake mushrooms in one liter of water for about two to three hours. For regular stock, so-called koshin dried shiitake are used; for a stronger flavor, use donko dried shiitake.
Niboshi dashi ("Sardine stock"), a type of fish stock, made with dried sardines or anchovies, which is a more hearty type of dashi. Used in miso soup or nabemono (one-pot dishes), as sardine stock is more savory than bonito stock. Also often used in hot broth for udon noodles.
How to make: Remove the heads and entrails of the fish as those would lead to bitterness. Bring 40 grams of niboshi to the boil in one liter of water or kelp stock and simmer for about 8 minutes. Strain through a sieve after removing from the heat.

Of these four types, dashi made with kelp and dried bonito, so ichiban dashi and niban dashi, is the most common type in the Japanese kitchen.

For good dashi, it is important to have good quality soft water. Hard water contains minerals as calcium and magnesium which influence the taste of food, especially when - as is the case in the Japanese cuisine - no strong spices or sauces are being used. Soft water, on the contrary, possesses a mild and sweet taste that fits well to the character of dashi, i.e. to emphasize the own taste of the ingredients. No wonder that countries with hard water, such as European countries, have as basic sauce a strong-tasting sauce on the basis of meat extract. Good Japanese food always starts with a perfect dashi!

"Umami" is the basic characteristic of dashi: the "fifth taste" which enhances the taste the ingredients possess of themselves (defined in 1908 by Ikeda Kikunae). That is why kelp, bonito flakes and shiitake mushrooms are used to make dashi: modern research has shown that these ingredients possess the highest concentration of umami elements. When used together, they further enhance the umami through a synergistic effect. For example, by combining kelp with flakes of fermented and preserved bonito, the umami factor increases eight to ten times.

Top restaurants are proud of the excellent dashi they make fresh every day. However, despite the fact that dashi is simple and quick to make, our convenience culture has led to the virtual disappearance of fresh dashi from home-cooking, where often instant dashi is used, either in liquid or granulated form.

Kinton (Kuri Kinton)

2015-01-02T09:10:00.002+09:00

Sweet confection of mashed sweet potatoes with candied chestnuts. A festive dish popular at New Year. Lit. "chestnut gold mash."

Satsumaimo (sweet potatoes) are mashed and made with sugar into a sweetened puree (an), to which whole or crumbled candied chestnuts are added. Dried gardenia pods (kuchinashi no mi) can be added to enhance the yellow-golden color, although this is not an imperative as satsumaimo already have a yellow color of themselves.

The puree is eaten with a spoon. The taste is rather sweet, but not unpleasant.

This dish is part of osechi-ryori, the traditional New Years dishes, which always have an auspicious aspect. In this case it is the "gold" color (which also appears in the name, "kinton" could be pieces of gold), which suggests wealth and prosperity in business. Note that, despite its sweet character, this is not a dessert!

[Kuri kinton]

Kintoki Ninjin

2015-01-01T10:46:00.000+09:00

Kintoki carrot. 金時人参。Daucus carota.

In Japan, both the orange-colored Western carrot and the reddish Japanese carrot are popular vegetables.

The modern carrot originated in Afghanistan in the 10th century - an Arab agriculturist at that time describes both yellow and red varieties. Cultivated carrots appeared in China in the 14th century, and in Japan in the 18th century. The now all over the world so popular orange-colored carrots appeared in the 17th century in the Netherlands, where orange is the national color.

[Kintoki carrot]

There are two indigenous varieties in Japan, both fresh red in color: kintoki and takinogawa; both are fairly long and slim (the takinogawa is even very thin).

Japanese carrots are in season in autumn and winter. They are often prepared as nimono, simmered dishes, and can also be used in nabemono (hotpot) and soups.

The kintoki is a Kyoto-brand vegetable and also called "Kyoto (red) carrot." These beautifully tapered carrots are deep-red in color. Compared to orange carrots, the kintoki carrot contains many nutrient components. The red color contains not only Beta carotene, but also lycopene. The flesh is tender and the taste is sweet. Kintoki carrots do not break apart during boiling. They are sweet and have only little typical carrot smell, but their characteristic flavor is stronger than that of other carrots.

Manganji Togarashi

2014-11-03T18:37:00.001+09:00

Manganji Togarashi are large peppers, with thick, soft flesh and only few seeds. They are not at all spicy, but have a pleasant touch of sweetness, like Shishito peppers.

Manganji Togarashi are a hybrid, obtained through crossing Fushimi Togarashi (a Kyo Yasai) with American capsicum. They are grown in Maizuru in the northern part of Kyoto Prefecture.

Manganji Togarashi can be prepared in various ways: sauteed, grilled or simmered; they can also be used for tempura.

[Manganji Togarashi]

Suzuki

2014-05-10T10:41:00.002+09:00

Japanese Sea Bass. Lateolabrax japonicus. スズキ、鱸。

A beautiful and delicious fish, with a shiny, silvery skin and mild-flavored, white flesh. In Japan it is compared in quality to sea bream (tai). Sea bass can reach a length of one meter. It lives near rocky shores and in estuaries and is a popular target of Japanese anglers.

Like yellowtail (buri), sea bass is a Shusse-uo, a fish whose name changes as it grows. It is therefore associated with advancement in life and seen as a luck-bringing fish. There are many regional varieties in the names by which the smaller sea bass is called in Japan; in the Kanto area, young fry is called koppa, the fish of one year old and appr. 25 cm in length is called seigo, and when it reaches 50 cm and is 2 to 3 years old it is named fukko. After that it finally becomes suzuki.

The season of sea bass is summer (although now available all the year - it is also farmed) and its meat has a delicious flavor rivaling both red seabream (madai) in summer, and hirame in winter. The meat from the back is chewy, while that from the belly is more fatty and soft. Like hirame, suzuki makes an elegant, paper-thin sashimi (often as arai, thinly cut sashimi that has been immersed in cold water). It is delicious on sushi, but also eaten in one-pot dishes (nabemono), or steamed (mushimono, especially sea bass steamed in sake - suzuki no sake-mushi - is a popular dish). It can also be grilled, either with salt or herbs and prepared à la meunière.

[Salt-grilled sea bass]

Karei

2014-04-19T09:16:00.001+09:00

Righteye flounder. Pleuronectes. カレイ、鰈。

Flounders are a species of flatfish, with both eyes on the same side of the head, one or the other migrating around the head during development. Righteye flounders are so called because they have both eyes on the right side and lie on the sea bottom on their left side. (There are also lefteye flounders, but these are a different family, Paralichthyides). Flounders are found on the bottoms of oceans around the world and are, together with other flatfish, popular as food fishes. Most flounders are between 40-50 cm in length.

Righteye flounders are caught in large quantities in seas off Chiba, Ibaraki, Tottori, Shimane and Oita Prefectures. There are several varieties: ma-garei (littlemouth flounder; the most common among the 11 species found in Japan, taken on the Hokkaido and Japan Sea coast), mako-garei (marbled flounder; also very common, taken from southern Hokkaido to southern Japan), ishi-garei (stone flounder; found in seas around Japan, can get as long as 70 cm), meita-garei (ridged-eye flounder; found in seas south of Hokkaido, has a ridge between the eyes) and baba-garei (slime flounder; found in seas near central Japan and farther north).

Karei resemble hirame, another type of flatfish - the best way to tell them apart is not so much that hirame have the eyes on the left side (as some flounders also do), but that flounders usually have a very small mouth.

Flounders are available almost around the year - the season for most of them is from autumn to winter, but the mako-garei is in season from May to July. When mako-garei is caught in the Bay of Beppu in Oita, it is called "shiroshita-garei," "the flounder beneath the castle," as it is rumored to feed in the fresh waters beneath Hiji Castle. This is an especially tasty variety that is also eminently suitable as a sushi topping.

Righteye flounder is often prepared as follows:

kara-age, dusted in flour and deep-fried (the bones of the fish are also eaten here)
nitsuke, simmered in soy sauce
shio-yaki, dusted with salt and fried, as in the photo below
sashimi and sushi topping if the fish is fresh enough - the mako-garei, which is in season during the summer is best, as it has translucent meat and a delicate sweetness. A prime sushi ingredient is also the engawa, the sinew along the flounder's fin, which has a tough texture but also a fatty portion and which contains much collagen.
konbujime, a sort of marination where the fish is wrapped in kelp (konbu), which adds a subtle depth of flavor.
à la meunière, as sole meunière, dredged in milk and flour, fried in butter and served with the resulting brown butter sauce and lemon.

[Karei no shioyaki]

Buri

2014-04-09T11:09:00.001+09:00

Yellowtail, Japanese amberjack. Seriola Quinqueradiata. ぶり、鰤。

Large fish about 15 kilos in weight and reaching a length of 1.3 meters. It is a migrating, fast swimming, predatory fish, found in the north-western Pacific, and belonging to the family of the Carangidae. It is an important fish in the Japanese cuisine.

Buri is extensively cultivated artificially (about 120,000 tonnes per year) in cages in the sea. In May, small wild fry (mojako), which can be found under floating seaweed, are caught for that purpose.

In Japan, buri is called "shusse-uo," literally a "fish that makes career," which is indicated by the different names by which it is called at different stages of growth. In other words, buri is not always called buri! On top of that, there are many regional differences in naming - I give here those from the Kanto and Kansai which are most common, but note that for example in the Hokuriku area again totally different names are used! The system is basically as follows:

Kanto (Eastern Japan): wakashi (less than 35 cm) → inada (35-60 cm) → warasa (60-80 cm) → buri (more than 80 cm)

Kansai (Western Japan): tsubasu (less than 40 cm) → hamachi (40-60 cm) → mejiro (60-80 cm) → buri (more than 80 cm)

To make things more complicated, "hamachi" is used in the Kanto area to designate cultivated buri.

The largest number of wild buri is caught in Shimane Prefecturre, followed by Tottori, Nagasaki, and Ishikawa. Cultivated buri mainly come from Kagoshima Prefecture, Ehime, Nagasaki and Oita.

[Buri no teriyaki}

Among the wild buri, the most delicious is the so-called "kan-buri," or "buri from the cold season." This fish has the highest fat content, as it puts on fat in winter before producing eggs in spring. This type of buri, caught in the wild, is a typical delicacy of the Hokuriku area such as Toyama. As also the Sinograph with which buri is written (alluding to "shiwase," the poetical name for the month of December) indicates, buri indeed is a typical winterfish, best from December to February. In Western Japan, the fact that its is a "career fish" gives it an auspicious quality, and therefore it is often used in the meal eaten at the New Year (osechi).

The small fish called inada (hamachi in the Kansai) is in contrast to the full-grown buri a summer fish. The use in the Japanese cuisine is also different:

inada: sashimi, zuke (pickled in soy sauce), marinated.

buri: teriyaki (grilled with a glaze of soy sauce and mirin - see the photo above), shioyaki (grilled with salt), buri-daikon (a form of aradaki, the head and body with the bones still on it simmered in stock flavored with soy sauce, sake and mirin).

Goma

2014-04-03T10:24:00.001+09:00

Sesame. Sesamum indicum. ゴマ、胡麻。

Sesame is an annual, flowering plant which is cultivated for its seeds, which grow in pods. Sesame has been long known to mankind as an oilseed: it was first cultivated about 5,000 years ago in Egypt and the Sahara area. It was already know in Japan in the middle or later Jomon-period (2,500-300 BCE) and there are records of its cultivation for lamp oil in the Nara-period (710-784). In the ensuing Heian-period (794-1185) it was also used for medicinal purposes.

Nowadays, 99.9% of all sesame used in Japan is imported. Only a small amount is produced on Kikaijima, one of the Amami Islands belonging to Kagoshima prefecture. The highest production of sesame comes from Burma, India and China.

Sesame has a nutty flavor and is rich in oil. It comes in three forms: white, black and golden (this last one is said to have the best aroma, but is not readily available). White sesame seeds contain more oil than black ones, but black sesame has a somewhat stronger, nuttier flavor.

Sesame seeds are sold in four forms: (1) untoasted, (2) toasted, (3) toasted and roughly ground as well as (4) toasted and ground into a smooth paste.

One can toast sesame seeds oneself by heating a dry frying pan over low to medium heat, then put in the seeds and toast them in 1-2 minutes. Shake the pan occasionally so that all the seeds get heated through. Be careful not to overroast the sesame.

For grinding, in Japan a suribachi is used, a bowl-shaped ceramic mortar which has small grooves on the inside. For the grinding, a wooden pestle (surikogi) is necessary, so that the bowl is not damaged. Grind the seeds until they are flaky and aromatic. Ground sesame is only good fresh, so use it soon after grinding.

[Sesame seeds (goma) with mortar (suribachi) and wooden pestle (surikogi)]

Sesame is used in Japan in the following ways:

Toasted but not ground (irigoma): black sesame seeds are sprinkled over rice or other dishes to add a color accent (furikake). Sesame seed is also an important ingredient in prepackaged furikake. Both black and white sesame seeds can be used on the outside of uramaki (inside-outside rolls, like the California roll).
Toasted and ground sesame is called surigoma in Japanese. Used in many recipes in the Japanese cuisine, starting with adding it to shira-ae (cooked vegetables dressed with tofu). As on the picture above, surigoma can also be used in the sauce for tonkatsu.
Sesame dressing (gomadare) is one of the most popular dressings for salads in Japan and can be found in all supermarkets.
Sesame paste (nerigoma) is also sold in supermarkets and can be used as a spread on bread, like peanut butter (but much more tasty!).
Sesame oil (goma-abura). The best oil for cooking, thanks to its flavor, often blended as it is rather thick. It is indispensable in the oil mixture used for deep-frying tempura.

Sesame is high in proteins and since olden times, various health benefits have been ascribed to it.

"Goma" has also found its way into general culture. As grinding sesame seeds in a suribachi is hard work, the expression "goma-suri" was born to indicate "flattery," especially flattery of one's superior.

Komatsuna

2014-03-27T10:10:00.000+09:00

Komatsuna:

Japanese mustard spinach. Brassica rapa var. perviridis, コマツナ、小松菜。

A variety of Brassica rapa, the plant that also has given us the turnip and Mizuna. Although it resembles spinach somewhat, the plant is more like a leafy turnip.

A pure Japanese vegetable, komatsuna has been cultivated in Japan since olden times. It gets it name from Komatsu-gawa in Tokyo, where it was originally harvested in the Edo-period. Komatsuna was offered to the Shogun Yoshimune when he was on a falcon hunt in the area.

Komatsuna is originally a favorite winter vegetable (although now harvested throughout the year). The glossy leaves are rich in calcium. The leaves can be harvested at any stage of growth; the flavor grows stronger the more the leaves mature. Major growth areas are around the big cities: Tokyo, Saitama, Chiba and Kanagawa; Osaka and Hyogo; and Aichi and Fukuoka.

There are many ways to use this versatile vegetable: in nabemono (one-pot dishes), in soups, in ohitashi (soused greens), stir-fried (as itamemono), boiled and even pickled. It can also be used in salads. In fact it can be used in any way spinach is used. In the Kanto area, komatsuna is also used in the New Year's dish of zoni.

Tachiuo

2014-03-23T17:37:00.002+09:00

Largehead hairtail, Japanese cutlass fish. Trichiurus lepturus. 太刀魚、タチウオ。

The Japanese name "tachiuo" literally means "swordfish." The largehead hairtail is a member of the cutlass fish family. It is a long, slender fish (like an eel) which can grow to about 1.5 meter in length. The body has a shiny silvery color and the tail ends in a hairlike thread. The head looks rather mean, with sharp teeth like the pike conger (hamo). It lives in shallow coastal waters, rising to eat planktonic crustaceans during the day and returning to the sea bed at night.

Tachiuo is suitable for sashimi, and can be grilled or eaten as kara-age - shioyaki is probably the most delicious. It has a deliciously light taste and little fat. The season is autumn to winter.

[Tachiuo no Shioyaki]

Sawara

2014-03-14T17:35:00.000+09:00

Japanese Spanish mackerel. (Scomberomorus niphonius) サワラ、鰆。

A fish much consumed in Japan, as well as in Korea and China, this is one of the larger fishes in the mackerel family, with lengths to one meter and a weight of 4.5 kilograms.

Sawara is prevalent in waters around Japan and is tastiest in winter, when it has the largest fat content; it is also caught from April to June when it enters the Inland Sea (Setonaikai) to spawn. It is mainly caught by trawling, but can also be caught by line. Mackerel matures fairly quickly and produces large numbers of offspring.

Not suitable for sashimi (raw fish) due to parasites, but delicious as shioyaki (grilled with salt) or teriyaki. The white flesh is quite succulent and not for nothing is sawara regarded as the best mackerel species in Japan.

[Sawara no shioyaki - salt-grilled Japanese Spanish mackerel]

Nanohana

2014-03-11T09:36:00.001+09:00

Rape shoots, turnip rape. （Brassica napus). 菜の花。

Rape shoots are the immature stems and buds of the rape plant. It is a vegetable representative of early spring, when you can see whole fields of the typical yellow nanohana flowers swaying in the breeze. This is a sight that has often been celebrated in haiku, for example this one by Buson:

rape flowers -
the moon in the east
the sun in the west

Nanohana ya | tsuki wa higashi ni | hi wa nishi

Buson here describes a vast expanse of rape flowers: between the moon rising in the darkening sky in the east and the sun sinking in the still bright west, there is nothing but a great field of yellow flowers (for this and other nanohana haiku, see R.H. Blyth, Haiku: Spring, p. 592-6). Nanohana is a kigo (season word) indicating "early spring."

[Nanohana]

Nanohana is one of the oldest vegetables cultivated in Japan. It is closely related (but not identical) to the rapeseed in Europe and America, but as a member of the Brassica family, it has also links to broccoli - in fact, the florets of nanohana resemble tiny broccoli. In contrast to the West, where rapeseed is only grown for its seeds from which oil is extracted, in Japan the spring shoots of the plant are used on the table. This is our nanohana, which literately means "flower of vegetable." The mature plant is called aburana, and this is used for oil as in the West (natane abura - see my post on cooking oils).

The entire vegetable of nanohana is consumable, not only the young buds which are just about to blossom, but also the stem and leaves and even the yellow flowers. Nanohana has a slightly bitter taste.

Nanohana is sold in Japan in February and March.

Nutritionally, it is high in vitamin C and also contains various minerals.

When keeping nanohana, it should be boiled and then put in the refrigerator. It cooks rather quickly, so be careful not to overcook.

Common cooking methods include stir-frying, steaming, boiling, and deep frying (as tempura). It can also be used in soups. Nanohana doesn't need any special pre-treatment.

A typical side dish is nanahana no karashi-ae (cooked salad dressed with mustard), as on the picture below. Nanohana is also used in tsukemono (pickles).

[Nanohana no karashi-ae]

Uguisu-mame

2014-03-07T13:35:00.001+09:00

Green peas boiled down with sugar. 鶯豆。

It is a beautiful name: "uguisu-mame" literally means "bush warbler beans" and the bush warbler is the bird that in Japanese poetry announces the spring - but reality is more prosaic: ordinary peas are boiled down with some salt, and lots of sugar or mizu-ame (glucose syrup).

[The Japanese Bush Warbler - Photo Wikipedia]

Even less than prosaic is the reason why these boiled down peas are called "bush warbler peas:" it is because they resemble the droppings of the bush warbler! Bon appetit!

The "uguisu" or bush warbler is a bird which appears frequently in Japanese poetry. Its distinctive breeding call ("Hooo-hokekyo") can be heard throughout much of Japan from the start of spring.　In poetry the bird is associated with plum blossoms, although in fact its distinctive song is usually not heard until well after the plum blossoms have scattered.

The beauty of its song led to the alternative English name "Japanese Nightingale," although the Japanese Bush Warbler does not sing at night as the European nightingale does.

In addition, as squeaking wooden floorboards reminded the Japanese of the low chirping of the bush warbler, these floors were called "uguisubari" - such floors were on purpose designed to squeak, as one often reads in order to warn of the approach of ninja, but I believe it was more for aesthetic effect. Examples can be seen in many old temples in Kyoto as Chion-in, as well as in Nijo Castle. In English such floors are usually called "nightingale floors."

Those bush warbler droppings were, by the way, in the past used as a cosmetic, as they seem to contain an enzyme that works as an agent that whitens the skin and helps remove wrinkles. And therefore the association with something dirty did not exist, so that even boiled green peas could be compared with such cosmetic droppings.

Back to the peas! These sweet, boiled peas are used as such, as a side dish, but they also form an ingredient in Japanese sweets (wagashi) or even in bread. There is, in fact, a great variety of uses. Often the link with spring is stressed, or in other words, only in spring green peas are sold as "uguisu-mame."

Horenso

2013-09-26T09:06:00.000+09:00

Spinach. ホウレンソウ、ほうれん草, 菠薐草 (Spinacia oleracea).

Spinach is an edible flowering plant, with a high nutritional value and rich in iron. Spinach originated in central and southwestern Asia, perhaps ancient Persia, and was brought to East Asia via the Silk Road. It reached China already in the 7th century, where it was called "Persian vegetable," but Japan had to wait for spinach until the 17th c. It is said that the famous warlike daimyo Date Masamune loved spinach.

Spinach today is a favorite vegetable in Japan (Japan is the top third spinach producing country in the world, after China and the U.S.), although the way it is used differs greatly from Western cuisine. It is most popular in a cooked salad (aemono) called horenso no goma-ae, that is: cooked spinach dressed with sesame seed. It is also excellent in o-hitashi, parboiled and soused in dashi with soy sauce and mirin, and served chilled. Besides that, spinach is used in soups.

[Horenso no goma-ae, Cooked spinach salad dressed with sesame]

Mizu-Yokan

2013-09-05T08:16:00.001+09:00

Red-Bean Jelly. 水羊羹、みずようかん。

Sweet jelly made of ground red beans. Mizu-Yokan is a firm yet delicate confection that is usually eaten in summer and should be served chilled. It is a variety of Yokan, a traditional tea sweet or wagashi that belongs to the category of namagashi, uncooked sugar confections. Yokan is made with an (sweet red bean (azuki) paste), sugar and kanten (agar-agar). To Mizu-Yokan more water is added than to ordinary Yokan (hence the name) so that it becomes lighter. Various flavorings, such as green tea powder, but also persimmons or chestnuts, can be added.

The Chinese characters used for Yokan are interesting 羊羹: yanggeng means "soup with sheep (meat)," i.e. probably gelatine made from sheep. Presumably that was the ingredient for a Chinese confection that was brought to Japan by Zen monks in the late 12th c. In Japan, the animal gelatin was substituted by azuki beans and wheat flour. The Yokan were initially steamed, but that changed after agar-agar started being used around 1800.

As a refined form of wagashi, Yokan and Mizu-Yokan are popular gift items in Japan. Mizu-Yokan are often sold in aluminium or plastic cups, but one also finds the traditional packaging of inserting it in a piece of hollow bamboo, as in the photo below.

The author Natsume Soseki (1867-1916) wrote about Yokan in his novel Kusamakura ("A Pillow of Grass"): "I saw that the sweets-plate contained some beautiful Yokan. Of all wagashi, Yokan are my favorite. It is not that I especially enjoy eating them, but I consider that their smooth fine texture, and the way in which they become semi-transparent when the light falls on them, makes them indisputably a piece of art."