How should Dashi made with kelp and bonito flakes smell?
I attempted to make homemade Dashi with kelp stands and bonito flakes. It looks as suggested on multiple Japanese cooking sites but it smells like low tide. Is that how it's suppose to smell?
Best Answer
Since dashi is, after all, made with seaweed and dried fish, it will smell and taste a bit of the sea. If you don't eat or prepare much seafood, this smell might seem quite strong to you; for people, like most Japanese people, who eat fresh seafood five times a week, the smell and taste are subtle.
The other possibility is that you made an error in preparation which caused the stock to become far too fishy. Any of the following can cause this:
- using very low quality kelp or "instant" bonito
- using expired/rancid bonito
- allowing the pot to come to a roiling boil with the kelp and bonito in it
- forgetting to rinse the kelp first
- adding too much bonito, especially instant bonito
- letting the dashi steep much too long
I would suggest that you back off on the quantities of ingredients you are using, let them steep for a shorter time, and make sure the pot doesn't come to a boil. Clearly, whether or not your dashi tastes like it should by Japanese tastes, it's fishy to you.
EDITED TO ADD: also, if you don't eat seafood regularly and are finding even good dashi much too fishy, consider making dashi with konbu and dried shitake mushrooms instead. This is commonly done in Japanese Buddhist vegetarian cuisine and is quite good.
Also, you might go to a good Japanese restaurant and get some kind of clear soup so that you can taste what you're shooting for.
Pictures about "How should Dashi made with kelp and bonito flakes smell?"
What is dashi supposed to smell like?
Since dashi is, after all, made with seaweed and dried fish, it will smell and taste a bit of the sea. If you don't eat or prepare much seafood, this smell might seem quite strong to you; for people, like most Japanese people, who eat fresh seafood five times a week, the smell and taste are subtle.Does kombu smell fishy?
Flavour profile They are often harvested from July to September. To make Japanese soup stock (dashi), second-year kombu is often preferred for the best flavour. Due to its high concentration of glutamic acid, kombu has a umami flavour. The taste is not fishy at all, but more like a mushroom-like flavour.Do bonito flakes taste fishy?
Bonito flakes have a smoky, savory, and slightly fishy flavor.Is dashi fishy tasting?
It brings stable umami and goes well with simmered dishes and miso soup. Compared with katsuobushi, niboshi dashi has a slightly more fishy taste. It can be used for dried food and pungent ingredients and miso soup.How to make Japanese Dashi broth from bonito flakes and kelp
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