Dashi

Intermediate 🍳 Food / Culinary

Definition

A delicate Japanese stock made primarily from kombu (seaweed) and bonito flakes, serving as the foundational broth for countless Japanese dishes. It's Japanese cooking's equivalent to French stock, but takes 20 minutes instead of 8 hours.

Example Usage

Make a simple dashi from kombu and bonito for the miso soup base.

Origin

Japanese 'dashi' (soup stock or broth), core ingredient in Japanese cuisine

Fun Fact

First-dashi and second-dashi have different flavor profiles—the second extraction from used ingredients is often saved for other uses.

Source: Japanese culinary foundation

Related Terms