How To Make Perfect Dashi
Miso soup ingredients; kombu, bonito & brown rice miso
Dashi forms the flavour foundation for many Japanese dishes. It can be used as the base for soba or ramen, or as a poaching liquid for fish. I love to make simple miso soup as a snack. Just stir in some miso and it’s ready!
According to Japanese master Yoshihiro Murata, the key to a tasty dashi with a clean finish is in the temperature. The most umami is extracted from the kombu at 60⁰C. Don’t worry if you don’t own a food thermometer; you can do it by eye. 60⁰C is below a simmer. You’ll see small wisps of steam coming off the surface, but there will be no bubbles at all and the contents of the pan should be completely still (not unlike the looking into a hot cup of tea).
Ingredients
· 40g kombu
· 2L pure water
· 20g shaved bonito
Method
Wipe the surface of the kombu with a damp cloth. Add to a medium saucepan with the pure water and bring up to 60⁰C over a low heat with simmer mat in place. Let it infuse at 60⁰C for 1 hour.
Remove the kombu, then raise the heat to 80⁰C (a gentle simmer). Turn off the heat, then add the shaved bonito. Shake the pan to immerse all the flakes, but do not stir. Infuse for 10 seconds, then strain through a sieve lined with cheesecloth. Let the bonito flakes drain freely without squeezing or pressing them.
Your dashi is now ready! Place any you don’t use today in the freezer for a quick meal or snack.