Umami-rich Japanese Ingredients: Miso
A chef’s guide to miso: Explore the rich world of this umami-packed Japanese ingredient, from traditional styles to new forms, crafted by passionate small producers.
Umami-rich Japanese Ingredients: Katsuobushi
Discover how katsuobushi, the cornerstone of Japanese umami, transforms dishes worldwide. Explore grades, shaving styles, and techniques in this chef’s guide from The House of Umami.
Umami-rich Japanese Ingredients: Koji
Koji is the key to Uamami—deep, layered flavors in Japanese ingredients. Discover how fermentation transforms dishes with shio koji, soy koji, and sweet koji.
Chefs’ Umami Tasting Box — by The House of Umami
Hi chefs, Ayako here — founder of The House of Umami. Every few months, I pack a box of about 50 authentic Japanese ingredients and visit chefs in their kitchens (Mostly in Southern California where I’m based and sometimes the East Coast). We taste together, talk about where each ingredient comes from, how it’s made and why it matters. These in-person tasting sessions are my favorite part of what I do. But as much as I’d love to visit every one of you, geography gets in the way. That’s why I created the Chefs’ Umami Tasting Box. Inside are 9...