What Is Dashi, The Fastest Route To A Flavorful Meatless Broth

文章推薦指數： 80 %
投票人數：10人

The simplest dashi is vegan, made from cold-brewing kombu (more on that below), while stronger versions are created by squeezing the flavor out ... SkiptomaincontentLookupumamiinthedictionaryanddashiiswhatyou'llfind.Ittastesasrichandcomplexasabrothorstockthat'sbeensimmeringforhours,butittakeslessthan15minutestomakeand,inmanycases,isbuiltonjustoneortwoingredients.Howisthispossible?!?!Dashiactuallyreferstoagroupofbrothsthatcanbemadefromsteepingvariousingredientsineithercoldorwarmwater.Thesimplestdashiisvegan,madefromcold-brewingkombu(moreonthatbelow),whilestrongerversionsarecreatedbysqueezingtheflavoroutofbonitoflakes(katsuobushi),driedsardines,driedshiitakemushrooms,driedshrimp,driedscallops,adzukibeans,and/ortoastedsoybeans.Amongthedifferentdashi,thecommonthreadistheincomparableumamiflavor.Whatdoesthatmeanexactly?Translatingroughlyto“deliciousness”inJapanese,umamiisthatrich,savory,tongue-coatingqualitythatlingersonyourtongueandmakescertainfoodssoirresistiblydelicious.Thesensationofumami(anditsprimarysource,theaminoacidglutamate)wasdiscoveredin1908byDr.KikunaeIkeda,wholinkedglutamatetokombu.Intheyearssince,foodscientistshaveidentifiedotherchemicalcompoundswhereumamiexists.Andwhenvarioussourcesofumamiarepresentatthesametime,thetasteisnotjustaddedbutmultiplied(likehowwhenyou'rechattingatnormallevelswithonefriendandanotherfriendcomesalong,youallsomehowendupscreaming).Allofthisexplainswhythemostpopulardashi—andtheonethatyou'llmakeforourSobaSoupWithShrimpandGreens—issuchpowerfulstuff.Kombuandkatsuobushi(a.k.a.bonitoflakes)providetwodifferentsourcesofumami(glutamicacidfromthekombu,inosinicacidfromthebonitoflakes),whichmeansthattheflavorofthedashiiswaaaaaaygreaterthanthesumofitsparts.BesuretostrainoutALLofthebonitoflakes. PhotobyChelsieCraig,FoodStylingbyYekaterinaBoytsova"Dashiisassimpleandaseasytomakeassteepedtea,"writesSonokoSakiinherforthcomingbookJapaneseHomeCooking,but"itisneverthelessthefoundationofJapanesecuisine.ThesuccessofaJapanesedishoftenliesintheflavorofthedash."Thehighestcomplimentacheforcookcanreceive,sheexplains,is"Dashigakiiteru!,"whichmeansthatthedinerscantastethequalityofthedashi.Whilechefsspendtheirentirecareerperfectingtheirdashi,thelayperson'srudimentaryversionissimple.You'llstartbysoakingkombu(alargeseaweedbelongingtothefamilyofbrownalgaealsoreferredtoaskelp).Besurenottorinseitfirst:Thewhitespecksonthesurfacearen'tpackagingresiduebutdepositsofmannitolsugar,whichcontributetoitssweetnessandumami.Oncethekombuissoftandflexible(about10or15minutes),turntheheattomediumandbringitupslowly,duringwhichthekombuwillreleasethosevaluable,flavorfulcompounds.Youdon'twantthewatertoboilbecausethatcanresultinbitterdashi,soremovetheseaweedassoonasyouseebubblesrisingtothesurface.Next,addthekatsuobushi,wispy,lightpinkflakesmadefromshavingablockofdriedbonito(skipjacktuna),andbringthewatertoaboil.Turnofftheheatandlettheflakessit.Thelongertheysteep,thefishieryourbrothwilltaste(so,uhh,setatimer!).Strainoutthefishflakesand...that'sit!You'vemadedashi.(Savethekombuandthebonitointhefridge:Youcansimmerthemtogether,alongwithanotherhandfulofbonitoflakes,ifyouhavethem,forsecondarydashi,knowninJapaneseasnibandashi).Usedashiwhenyou'reboilingrice(ormakingcongee),asthebasisofmisoandnoodlesoups,ortogentlycookapieceorfish.Withkombuandbonitoflakesinthepantry,you'realwaysafewminutesaway—andduringcold/flu/generalailment/cookies-everywhereseason,youcan'treallyaskforanythingbetter.Gettherecipe:SobaSoupWithShrimpandGreensDashiisthefastestroutetoasavory,slurp-ablebroth—andtherearenoloooongsimmersorbagsofchickenbonesnecessary.ViewRecipeExploreBonAppétitJapaneseSeaweed

請為這篇文章評分？

延伸文章資訊