This ingredient turns your rice into a real flavor explosion
Rice is a great staple ingredient for countless dishes. It crosses cuisines around the world: from Thai curry to Italian risotto, and from Spanish paella to Japanese sushi. They all have their own flavors and preparation methods, but rice is the foundation. Still, you don’t necessarily need to follow elaborate recipes to make rice delicious. One simple ingredient can be enough for a real flavor explosion.
We previously recommended Lap Cheung as the ultimate flavor booster for your rice. It’s a Chinese dried sausage. Now we’re turning to another Asian country: Japan.
Dashi: a flavor booster from Japan
Have you ever heard of dashi? Dashi is a flavor booster that has been used in Japanese cuisine for centuries. Originally, it is a broth made from kombu (seaweed) and bonito flakes (dried, fermented and smoked tuna flakes). Kombu gives dashi a subtle savory flavor, while bonito flakes add a rich umami note. The broth can be enhanced further with, for example, mushrooms, miso or soy sauce. Whatever you prefer.
We just hinted at it, but dashi has a delicious umami flavor. Some people also taste something slightly briny; after all, it contains tuna flakes. Depending on what else you add to the broth, dashi can develop other flavor profiles too. Mushrooms, for example, make dashi taste more earthy, while sugar adds a hint of sweetness. In any case, good dashi should simmer for hours, giving the flavors plenty of time to develop properly. A real flavor bomb.
Quick and easy flavor bomb with dashi powder
But did you know you can get that delicious umami flavor from dashi faster and more easily? Dashi powder—or instant dashi—is similar to stock powder, which you may know as a base for soup. It is available as loose powder, but also in stock cubes like the ones you see in supermarkets. Dashi powder is just difficult to find in regular supermarkets; you have to get it at an Asian grocery store.
And that’s exactly what you should do now—hurry to the Asian grocery store for dashi powder! Because dashi powder is all you need to turn your simple portion of rice into a true flavor sensation: umami-rich, complex, full-bodied and with a very mild briny touch. Just one teaspoon (per cup of rice) is enough to add so much flavor to your rice. Of course, you can also make a delicious broth from the powder afterward, but as far as we’re concerned, it’s definitely the number-one flavor booster for our rice.
Since you’re stocking up on your Japanese pantry anyway: this super powder absolutely shouldn’t be missing from your collection either. The Japanese cuisine is incredibly rich in amazing flavor boosters.
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