Japanese Cooking at Home: 10 Tips and Tricks

August 31, 2023

Japanese cuisine is known for its delicate flavours, fresh ingredients, and meticulous preparation techniques. Whether you're a beginner or an experienced cook, here are some tips and tricks to help you enhance your Japanese cooking at home:

1. Understand the flavours: Familiarise yourself with the key flavours in Japanese cuisine, such as soy sauce, miso, mirin, sake, and dashi. Experiment with combining these ingredients to create a balanced umami taste that is characteristic of Japanese dishes!

2. Use fresh ingredients: Opt for fresh, high-quality ingredients to ensure authentic flavours. Visit local Asian markets or specialty stores to find ingredients like fresh seafood and seasonal vegetables.

3. Master rice preparation: Japanese cuisine often features rice as a staple. Invest in a good-quality rice cooker or learn to cook Japanese rice on the stovetop. Aim for fluffy and slightly sticky rice that pairs well with various dishes.
4. Explore sushi-making: Sushi is a popular Japanese dish that you can easily make at home. Start with basic sushi rolls (maki) using ingredients like cucumber, avocado, and cooked fish or vegetables. Gradually progress to more complex rolls as you gain confidence. We have a wide range of sushi recipes here. 
5. Experiment with tempura: Tempura is a crispy and light Japanese frying technique. Dip vegetables, seafood, or even tofu in a simple batter made from flour, water, and sometimes egg. Deep-fry until golden and serve with tentsuyu sauce (a mixture of soy sauce, mirin, and dashi) for dipping.
6. Try your hand at ramen: Ramen is a comforting and flavourful noodle soup. While making authentic ramen broth can be time-consuming, you can start by experimenting with ramen noodles and enhancing them with homemade toppings like marinated eggs, sliced pork, nori, and green onions.
7. Incorporate Japanese seasonings: Stock your pantry with Japanese seasonings like furikake (a rice seasoning mix), togarashi (Japanese chilli pepper blend), yuzu kosho (citrus and chilli paste), and shichimi togarashi (seven-spice blend). These seasonings can add unique flavours to your dishes.

8. Garnish with precision: Japanese cuisine pays attention to visual presentation. Take time to garnish your dishes with care, using ingredients like thinly sliced green onions, sesame seeds, shredded nori, or edible flowers to add a finishing touch.

9. Keep it simple: Japanese cuisine often embraces simplicity, allowing the natural flavours of ingredients to shine. Avoid overcomplicating dishes with too many ingredients or heavy sauces. Let the ingredients and their quality take centre stage.

10. Learn from Japanese chefs and resources: Gain inspiration from our website, social media, masterclass blog and recipes page.

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