Cooked rice and/or soya beans that have been inoculated with a fermentation culture with the Latin name Aspergillus oryzae, used to make popular fermented foods like soya sauce, miso, mirin and sake.
Known in English as kelp, this sea vegetable (Laminaria japonica) is prized for is ability to enhance the flavour of food with the savoury taste umami. It is used to make the traditional Japanese stock Clearspring Kombu and three dried shiitake or maitake mushrooms in about 2 litres of water for at least 15 minutes. Remove the mushrooms, and thinly slice the caps. Then return them to the water, bring it to the boil and simmer gently for 10 minutes. Remove the kombu and keep it to use for cooking as a condiment or with beans.
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This starch is made from the root of the kudzu vine (Pueraria lobata), and can be used to thicken stews, sauces, gravies and desserts, as well as having a number of medicinal uses.