If you ask Japanese cuisine connoisseurs what their favorite dishes are, sushi and miso soup will undoubtedly share the top spot. These famous soups have that characteristic “Japanese” recognizable taste thanks to the combination of miso paste and the soup base—dashi broth (also known as dashi, with the emphasis on the last syllable).
Dashi is the most sought-after and popular base for most dishes in traditional Japanese cuisine. Dashi broth is used not only to make soups, but also ramen noodles, sauces, stewed and boiled dishes, and the broth base for shabu-shabu (the Japanese version of Chinese hot pot). Dashi is found in every fourth Japanese recipe. Those who have set themselves the goal of mastering the art of making their favorite miso soup at home will be interested in learning the simple subtleties of preparing dashi broth. Let’s talk about how it is prepared in Japan.
Dashi broth is a very simple soup base that takes no more than 20 minutes to prepare. After preparation, it is not stored to avoid loss of flavor, but used immediately. To make dashi, in addition to water, only a few ingredients are used:
- kombu seaweed,
- katsuo bushi (bonito flakes),
- shiitake mushrooms,
- dried anchovies.
Kombu seaweed (kelp) is sold in dried form, in the shape of wide, large dark green plates with a whitish coating (sea salt). This product has a bright sea flavor and aroma. It is very popular not only in Japanese cuisine, but also in many other cuisines of Southeast Asia. Kombu seaweed is used to make soups, stewed meat and seafood, noodles, rice, salads, and appetizers.
Katsuobushi is a very popular seasoning in Japanese cuisine. It consists of shavings of tuna, first smoked and then dried until the fish becomes almost “wooden.” Thin, almost transparent shavings are removed from the tuna prepared in this way. The small flakes are used as a topping for rice and stewed dishes to give them a bright, deep aroma of smoked fish, while the larger shavings are used to make dashi broth.
Shiitake mushrooms are known to all connoisseurs of Asian cuisine. When dried, they have the strongest, sharpest, and most intense aroma and taste. Small dried anchovies have long been used in both Japanese and Korean cuisine to flavor broths and soups.
Kombu seaweed, shiitake mushrooms, bonito flakes, and dried anchovies are rich in natural monosodium glutamate, which gives the dish its umami flavor. Dashi broth is prepared using a mixture of these ingredients or just one of them. Each of the listed ingredients has its own distinct flavor and aroma, which shapes the taste of the broth and gives it special nuances.