Dashi is a stock made from dried kelp (konbu), dried Shiitake mushroom, katsuobushi (fermented dried bonito flakes). Dashi is the heart of Japanese cuisine. It is used in most of the Japanese food, incuding Miso soup, Udon and many others.

Ingredients:

• Konbu (dried kelp) about 3" x 6" in size.
• 4-5 dried Shiitake mushroom.
• 1 oz of Katsuobushi (about 1/3 of the bag. See the product info at the bottom.)

Direction:

1. Put a gallon of water, Konbu and Shiitake mushroom in a pot, and let it soak for about 30 mins.
2. Set it on the stove at mid-low heat and let it simmer for about 20 minutes.
3. Add Katsuobushi and cook another 20 minutes.
4. Strain it into another pot and squeeze all the liquid from Shiitake mushroom and katsuobushi and discard them.
5. It is ready to be used as a base for miso soup, udon and many others.

*This recipe produce more than 10 servings. If you are making Dashi for just for yourself, it is best to freeze it in multiple Ziplock containers.

Katsuobushi

Katsuobushi comes in different sizes. For stock, you should use Hanakatsuo (finely shaved bigger flakes). It usually comes in 100g bag. You will be using 1/3 of the bag for this recipe. Katsuobushi, konbu (diried kelp) and dried Shiitake mushroom can be purchased at Japanese grocery stores. You can find Katsuobushi here.