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| Ichiban Dashi |
Ok here it is - Dashi! Umamstick ;) Udon, miso soup and Japanese food in general are so much loved in my family that I will be making this again soon and probably be freezing it.
I have got a kezuriki as a present from a very dear friends from Japan to shred katshuobushi myself -how exciting-but you can, of course, buy dried bonito flakes from any Japanese grocery store instead. Ichiban dashi is used for clear soups and many other Japanese dishes which I am yet to try making. And Niban dashi you can use for miso soup.
Ichiban Dashi (First Stock)
4 cups water
1 10 inch by 2 inch strip of dried kombu
1 big handful of katshuobushi
1 10 inch by 2 inch strip of dried kombu
1 big handful of katshuobushi
Place the water and the kombu in a pot and let the kombu
soak overnight in a refrigerator. Next day place the pot over heat and adjust the temperature so that it reaches boiling between 20-30 minutes. If you see bubbles showing up around the edges of the pot too soon adjust the temperature. Right
before the water starts to boil remove the kombu.
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| Kombu |
Boil the stock for a few minutes (after removing the kombu). Add a little cold water to the stock to stop it from boiling further and add a big handful of katshuobushi and immediately turn off the heat. Let the katshuobushi sink to the bottom of the pot and then strain it through the fine cheese cloth.Do not squeeze the cloth to get all the soup out but just let it drip.
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| Whole Katshuobushi |
Voila! The stock should be clear yellow and full of umami :)
Refrigerate the stock for up to 4 days in refrigerator if you are not going to use it right away (not happening at my house).
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| Freshly shredded Katshuobushi |
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| Udon with tofu |
Niban Dashi (Second Stock)
4 cups waterKombu and katsuobushi used in ichiban dashi
Combine all of the ingredients in a pot. Place the pot over low heat and cook the mixture for 10 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat and strain the stock. Now you can squeeze all the liquid out.
Refrigerate the stock for up to 4 days in a refrigerator (not happening at my house either).
WOW!!!! Thank you, Cecili! :)
ReplyDeleteNow I've learned how umami was discovered ;)
http://www.umamiinfo.com/2011/02/the-discovery-of-umami.php
Hmm. I did not know for asparagus and especially not for tomato! I would say tomato is distinctively sweet and acidic ;) But this is probably true for the old good sorts of tomatoes (which are for some reason disappearing I think). Here they call it types with "deep flavor", at least that's what they told me at a farmers market when I was asking for it for my garden last spring.
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