Dashi is the basic Japanese soup stock used in many Japanese dishes. Learn how to make Awase Dashi at home with umami-packed ingredients like kombu (dried kelp) and katsuobushi (dried bonito flakes).
When you decide to make Japanese food, you will realize that a lot of recipes require dashi, Japanese soup stock.
With this unfamiliar ingredient, you may think Japanese food is hard to replicate at home. On the contrary, dashi is actually the easiest soup stock anyone can make from scratch as it requires only 1-2 ingredients and 20-minute prep time. This post shows you how you can make Awase Dashi using a combination of ingredients. Once you learn the ins and outs of dashi making, you’ll be ready to tackle Japanese cooking with a breeze.
Table of Contents
- What is Dashi?
- How to Make All-Purpose Basic Dashi
- The First Dashi
- The Second Dashi
- Do we really need to make dashi twice?
- Dashi Shortcut
- The Ultimate Dashi Guide
What is Dashi?
Dashi(だし, 出汁) is Japanese soup stock that builds the bases for many of your favorite Japanese dishes like miso soup, chawanmushi, ramen, and shabu shabu. It is the essence of authentic Japanese flavor, and it tells the dishes apart if other substitutions are being used in place of the soup stock. And what defines dashi is the use of carefully selected ingredients like kombu, bonito flakes, shiitake mushrooms, and anchovies, and each ingredient is uniquely Japanese.
In general, there are five different types of dashi(two are vegan). Scroll down to see 5 different types orcheck out myUltimate Dashi Guide. When we say “dashi” in Japan, it usually impliesAwase Dashibecause it’s the most commonly used stock.
Awase Dashi(合わせだし) ismade from a combination of kombu (dried kelp) and katsuobushi (dried bonito flakes), and it’sthe seafood-based stock. *Awase (合わせ)means “to combine”, “mixed”, or “together.”
How to Make All-Purpose Basic Dashi
The First Dashi
The base of Awase Dashi is a veganKombu Dashimade from dried kelp. You can cold brew or hot brew kombu to make the dashi. Then you would add dried bonito flakes to the kombu dashi. This makes the stock more enriched. When you make dashi from the spent kombuandkatsuobushi, it’s calledIchiban Dashi(一番だし). It’s basically the first pure dashi.
The Second Dashi
Niban Dashi(二番だし), or the second dashi is made from the spent kombu and katsuobushi, which you reserved from making Ichiban Dashi. Niban Dashi is a lighter, less intense dashi, yet still provides a great umami flavor despite the previously used ingredients.
Do we really need to make dashi twice?
At a regular household, we make such a small amount of dashi that it’s not very efficient to make both Ichiban Dashi and Niban Dashi. My suggestion is to make very good Ichiban Dashi and utilize the used kombu and katsuobushi to make Homemade Furikake (rice seasoning) and Kombu Tsukudani (simmered kombu) after collecting enough used kombu and katsuobushi. This way, there will be no waste, and you get another side dish to accompany your meal.
So then who makes Niban Dashi? Japanese restaurants make a huge batch of dashi daily. They useIchiban Dashi for dishes like Clear Soups (Osumashi おすまし) and Chawanmushi, which require the pure and maximum amount of umami from the dashi ingredients. They typically use Niban Dashi for simmered food (Nimono) and miso soup, which doesn’t require much flavor from the soup stock.
Dashi Shortcut
Sometimes life happens and you just don’t have 20 minutes to make dashi from scratch. On those occasions, you can use Dashi Packet or Dashi Powder.
I love using Kayanoya Dashi Packet (left) and Shimaya Dashi Powder (right). Both are MSG-free and additive-free.You can purchase them at Japanese grocery stores or on Amazon:
The instruction on how to use them (recipes) can be found in theDashi Packet post andDashi Powderpost.
Easy & Delicious Recipes Using Dashi
- Homemade Miso Soup
- Spicy Shoyu Ramen
- Agedashi Tofu
- Japanese Hot Pots and Stews
The Ultimate Dashi Guide
Dashi plays an important role as a flavor enhancer in Japanese cooking, so you don’t need to season the food with too much salt, fat, and sugar. Rich in minerals and other vitamins, dashi is considered a healthy ingredient in our daily diet.
There aresix different types of dashi you can use in Japanese cooking, including vegetarian and vegan dashi (*).
- Awase Dashi– a stock made from a combination of dried kelp + bonito flakes
- Kombu Dashi *– a stock made from dried kelp
- Katsuo Dashi– a stock made from dried bonito flakes
- Iriko Dashi– a stock made fromdried anchovies/sardines
- Shiitake Dashi *– a stock made fromdried shiitake mushrooms
- Vegan Dashi * – a stock made from dried shiitake mushrooms and kombu
If you are new to different types of dashi, check out myUltimate Dashi Guide.
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Awase Dashi (Japanese Soup Stock)
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Dashi is the basic Japanese soup stock used in many Japanese dishes. Learn how to make Awase Dashi at home with umami-packed ingredients like kombu (kelp) and katsuobushi (bonito flakes).
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Video
Prep Time: 5 minutes mins
Cook Time: 15 minutes mins
Total Time: 20 minutes mins
Servings: 1 batch (3⅓ cups, 800 ml)
Ingredients
- 1 piece kombu (dried kelp) (10 g; 4 x 4 inches, 10 x 10 cm per piece)
- 1 cup katsuobushi (dried bonito flakes) (packed; 10 g)
- 4 cups water
Japanese Ingredient Substitution: If you want substitutes for Japanese condiments and ingredients, click here.
Instructions
Before You Start…
Sometimes life happens and you just don‘t have 20 minutes to make dashi from scratch. On those occasions, you can use a Dashi Packet or Dashi Powder.
Gather all the ingredients. Most Japanese recipes would say to gently clean the kombu with a damp cloth. However, these days, kombu is quite clean, so just make sure it doesn't have any mold spots and it‘s ready to use. Do not wash or wipe off the white powdery substance, as it has lots of umami.
Make several slits in 1 piece kombu (dried kelp) to release more flavor.
To Make the Cold Brew Kombu Dashi Ahead of Time (Optional)
Put 4 cups water and the kombu in a large bottle and let it steep on the counter for 2–3 hours in the summertime and 4–5 hours in the wintertime. You can also cold brew the kombu dashi overnight in the refrigerator.
To Make the Awase Dashi
Add the kombu and water to a medium saucepan. If you have cold brew Kombu Dashi (previous step), add the Kombu Dashi and hydrated kombu to the saucepan.
Turn on the heat to medium low and slowly bring to almost boiling, about 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, clean the dashi by skimming the foam and debris from the surface.
Just before the dashi starts boiling gently, remove the kombu from the saucepan (discard or repurpose in other recipes—suggestions follow). If you leave the kombu in the saucepan, the dashi will become slimy and bitter.
Add 1 cup katsuobushi (dried bonito flakes) and bring it back to a boil again.
Once the dashi is boiling, reduce the heat, simmer for just 30 seconds, and turn off the heat.
Let the katsuobushi sink to the bottom, about 10 minutes.
Strain the dashi through a fine-mesh sieve over a bowl or measuring cup. Reserve the katsuobushi and repurpose it; see the suggested recipes that follow. The Awase Dashi is ready to use.
To Store
If you are not using the dashi right away, store the dashi in a bottle or mason jar and keep it in the refrigerator for 3–5 days or in the freezer for 2 weeks.
What to do with the spent katsuobushi and kombu?
Save the spent kombu and katsuobushi in an airtight container and store it in the refrigerator for a week or in the freezer for up to a month.
With the spent kombu, you can make Simmered Kombu (Kombu Tsukudani).
You can also make Homemade Furikake (Rice Seasoning).
Optional: Niban (Second) Dashi
In a medium saucepan, put 2–4 cups* of water and previously used kombu and katsuobushi from making the first dashi. Bring it to a boil over medium-low heat. *2 cups would make a stronger dashi.
Remove the kombu just before the liquid comes to a boil, then lower the heat, and cook for 10 minutes, skimming occasionally.
Add an additional ½ cup (5 grams) of fresh katsuobushi and turn off the heat.
Let the katsuobushi sink to the bottom and strain the dashi through the fine-mesh sieve.
Equipment
Nutrition
Serving: 1 batch · Calories: 5 kcal · Carbohydrates: 1 g · Protein: 1 g · Sodium: 42 mg · Potassium: 32 mg · Fiber: 1 g · Sugar: 1 g · Calcium: 138 mg · Iron: 1 mg
Author: Namiko Hirasawa Chen
Course: Condiments
Cuisine: Japanese
Keyword: dashi, katsuobushi, kombu, stock
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Editor’s Note: This post was originally published in January 2013. The images and content have been updated in April 2019.
