Other Names
sea urchin, urchin roe

Description
Uni (pronounced OO-nee, “OO” as in food) is the Japanese name for sea urchin and refers to the bright orange reproductive organs contained inside the spiny shell. The pieces vary in size from under an inch to 3″ long and the color can vary from pale yellow to dark golden orange.

What’s it taste like?
They have a creamy texture that melts in your mouth with a sweet briny flavour that can be slightly nutty. When eaten raw, it is slightly slimy making it an acquired taste for many, but when cooked it firms up giving it a texture similar to cheese.

Where do I get it?
Uni is typically packaged in small flats and sold in Japanese grocery stores. In recent years it’s started to show up at fish mongers whole, but you will have to shell and clean them yourself.

When is it best?
Uni is available all year long, but look for firm pieces that are roughly uniform in color. Their surface should have a slightly rough appearance and they should not be visibly slimy or smooth, which would indicate they were either over handled or sat in water too long during processing.

How do I use it?
The most common way to eat it is raw, either as sashimi or in sushi. They are also good steamed in sake, or mixed into sauces or pastas.

• Tarragon Tagliatelle with Sea Urchin Butter
• Lobster with Yuzu Hollandaise and Uni Mashed Potatoes
• Steamed and Salt Cured Uni
• Chirashi Sushi

Other Names
dashima, dasima, haidai, kelp

Description
Kombu is a type of thick flat seaweed cultivated in the northern waters of Japan. Although it may sound like a plant, seaweed is technically classified as a type of algae. Kombu comes in many forms making it a versatile ingredient with uses ranging from soup stocks to wrappers and is even eaten as a snack. While it’s rare to find it fresh outside the areas where it’s harvested, it is dried, salted or vinegared and distributed all over the world.

What’s it taste like?
Because of the high concentration of glutamic acids, a building block of MSG, kombu is filled with umami. It’s not fishy at all, with a briny, almost mushroom-like flavour. The white powder on the outside is where much of the flavour is, so don’t wash it off.

Where do I get it?
You can find kombu at almost any Asian grocery store in bags. Dashi kombu typically comes in small rippled sheets about half the size of a credit card. Look for uniform sheets with lots of white powder on the outside. The bigger sheets are typically for rehydrating and wrapping around things such as fish. Salted kombu comes in thin strips and is covered in salt. If in doubt check the label. Most imported foods in the US have labels translated in English. If not you can look for bags with the following symbols either 出汁 or だし.

When is it best?
There’s no season and dried kombu will keep for a very long time.

How do I use it?
Kombu is most commonly used for making dashi and other soup stocks. The broth it produces is very mellow with a briny umami-filled flavour that bolsters other more flavourful dashi ingredients such as katsuobushi or niboshi. In larger sheets it can be rehydrated and used to wrap seafood or meat for stewing. The salted variety can be mixed with hot rice, or be added to porridge. There are also some snack varieties that are either dried or salted and vinegared and make a good accompaniment for alcoholic beverages.

Nutrition
Kombu is high in Iodine, Vitamin K, Folate, Magnesium, Calcium and Iron.

Other Names
iriko, myulchi, dried baby sardines, dried baby anchovies

Description
Niboshi are baby sardines (anchovies by some translations) that have been boiled once then dried. They vary in size from about 1.5″ (pictured below right) to over 3″(pictured below left) long with the smaller ones having a milder flavour. They’re used in both Korean and Japanese cooking as a flavouring for stock or cooked as a snack.

What’s it taste like?
As you might imagine, dried sardines have a very bold flavour. They’re not “fishy” in a bad sense, but you definitely get a taste of the sea, and they have a sweet, slightly cedar-like aroma. Because they are full of umami-rich glutamates, they make a good addition to stocks and sauces that need a little more oomph.

Where do I get it?
They typically come in small to medium sized bags and can be found at almost any Asian grocery store in the dried food section. There aren’t any other dried fish (that I know of) that have the same shape and size as the ones in the picture above, so they shouldn’t be too hard to find.

When is it best?
Because they are dried, there is no season, but they can go rancid if they are very old, so check for an expiration date and don’t buy them in a store that doesn’t look like they sell much of them. They should be roughly uniform in shape and size and should be mostly whole.

How do I use it?
In Japanese cuisine they are typically used to make dashi which is the basis of almost every soup (from miso soup to udon soup) and sauce in the Japanese food repertoire. Because of it’s bold flavour, niboshi stocks are typically reserved for heavier soups and dishes with katsuobushi or kombu being used for lighter stocks. Niboshi dashi is commonly used in stock for udon, kakuni, and red miso soups. It can also be stewed with soy sauce, mirin and sugar to make tsukudani which is an accompaniment for rice. Seasoned and dried, they’re often eaten as a bar snack with almonds and rice crackers.

In Korean cuisine, myulchi are fried with peppers, soy sauce, sugar and sesame oil to make a type of banchan. They are also used to make stocks for various soups and stews.

Nutrition
High in calcium when consuming the whole fish.

Other Names
inaniwa udon, kishimen, sanuki udon, okinawa soba, udong

Description
Udon is one of the 3 most common Japanese noodles. While there are many regional differences in thickness and texture, it is almost always made with wheat flour. As with any type of pasta, fresh udon is the best, but they also come frozen as well as dried. The cooking time varies widely from a few minutes to as much as 20 minutes depending on the thickness and density of the noodle. If the package you get does not have english directions look for a number followed by the following symbol “分”, which means “minutes”. This should give you an idea of how long they need to be boiled for.

What’s it taste like?
Because the noodles are typically served with a soup or dipping sauce they don’t have much of a flavour on their own. They do however have a wide variety of textures. Some regional varieties such as Kishimen and Inaniwa Udon tend to be thinner, but still have a slightly chewy texture when cooked al dente. Sanuki Udon on the other hand which comes from the Kagawa prefecture is thick and very chewy with a texture almost reminiscent of rice cake (even though the noodles are made from wheat flour).

Where do I get it?
You should be able to find dry Udon at almost any supermarket that has an Asian food section. If they carry it fresh, it would most likely be in the refrigerated aisle near the tofu. For the best selection, try to find a Japanese market in your area.

When is it best?
Fresh is best, but some of the frozen ones and even the dry ones can be quite good as long as you don’t over cook them.

How do I use it?
Udon can be served hot in a broth, or cold with a dipping sauce. The toppings and soups are similar to soba with variations such a tempura udon, kitsune udon (with fried tofu) and tsukimi udon (with a raw egg on top). Other variations that are exclusive to udon noodles include karei udon (with japanese curry on top), and yakiudon (pan fried with veggies, seafood and a sweet sauce).

Nutrition
Udon noodles are high in carbohydrates and protein.

Other Names
kezuribushi, kezurikatsuo, hanakatsuo, shaved skipjack, shaved bonito

Description
This is a basic ingredient in the Japanese kitchen made from dried bonito (skipjack tuna) which is a fish prized for its high concentration of umami compounds. By drying it, the level of umami is further concentrated, making katsuobushi a core component of most Japanese stocks (dashi).

What’s it taste like?
Since it’s dried and shaved very thin, it has an almost paper-like consistency, but as it meats your tongue, it explodes with an intense smoky flavour that almost tastes like you’re sucking on a bouillon cube. If you’ve ever had miso soup before, you’ll recognize the flavour since miso soup is made using stock extracted from katsuobushi. Unfortunately the art of making dashi from katsuobushi is dying as most people opt for the more convenient “instant” dashi powders which are loaded with MSG.

Where do I get it?
Katsuobushi should be available at any Japanese grocery store and may be found in the “Asian” section at major supermarkets. They either come in big plastic bags, or in smaller bags which contain small serving sized packets.

When is it best?
Since it’s a dried food, there is no season, however you want to make sure it’s not past its expiry date as the flavour diminishes as it gets older.

How do I use it?
Katsuobushi comes in a few different thicknesses. The thick ones are used for making dashi (Japanese stock), while the thinner ones can be used as a topping for various dishes including okonomiyaki and oshitashi. When mixed with soy sauce, it’s called okaka and is a common filling in onigiri (rice balls).

Nutrition
Some studies have shown that when katsuobushi interacts with certain enzymes an oligopeptide is produced that lowers blood pressure.