About Ingredients

Basic broth of Japanese food is from kelp! How to cook(Kombu)

Japanese people eat kelp, (called Kombu) and there are many dishes that use it, but often used for broth(called Dashi). I will introduce how to cook and prepare kelp.

There are many types of Dashi (broth) in Japan. Kelp dashi is one of them.
By the way, the reason why broth does not come out from kelp in the sea is because kelp is alive. This is because cells do not break when they are alive.This is because cells do not break when they are alive.

Of course it is delicious to eat.

If you go to a supermarket or a grocery store in Japan, you will find many kinds of kelp. Basically it‘s dry. Dried kelp is said to have no expiration date. It will last for about 3 years. Store in a cool, dry place, refrigerator, etc.

All the kelp is surrounded by a square.

There are large square kelp for broth and tied kelp for simmered dishes. The tied kelp is shaped like a ribbon and looks cute and is an accent to cooking.

Square kelp for dashi
Tied kelp

There are many types of each, but basically the difference is in the place of origin. The price is completely different depending on the production area and the way of raising.

As for kelp, Hokkaido, especially Rishiri (利尻) kelp, is famous.

By the way, there is also instant kelp broth (powder), which is easy because you just add the powder during cooking.

How to make kelp broth

It depends on the amount of broth to be made, but when making broth at home, cut it into 10 cm square pieces.

When kelp is cooked, it will thickens. Therefore, it is important not to boil when taking broth such as miso soup.

Put the dried kelp in a pot of water, and take out just before boiling.
When it is boiled, the kelp becomes thicker, and the miscellaneous taste and bitterness come out.

On the other hand, depending on the dish, there is also a method of boiling it with vegetables without taking it out even if it boils. As for the dishes that are not taken out, it seems that there are many dishes with a strong taste such as simmered dishes with soy sauce and sugar etc.. When you go to an Oden restaurant, you can find kelp for dashi in it.

Related article:What is Oden? click here for a Oden recipe.

When using as kelp to eat

Here, it refers to tied kelp, etc. contained in oden. Basically, I think that dried kelp is often used.

If you put the kelp in hot water for about 15 to 20 minutes, it will be ready to eat, so when you put it in a hot pot, add it about 15 minutes before each time to make it delicious.

Click here for a recipe using kelp Dashi.
(The image is Wonderful japanese food Daikon radish with sweet miso )