We are off to Japan…sadly not literally…
Japan is my favourite place in the entire world. The Hubster and I have travelled extensively within our lifetimes, and we went on a family vacation to Japan with our son. We had never visited Japan before, so this was an adventure which left us speechless.
We had an amazing 3 weeks travelling and eating around all of Japan. I have to say I left my heart in Hiroshima. The most beautiful place in the world.
Japanese food and culture is one that my family and I are obsessed with. I don’t believe I have ever eaten as much food as I did on that 3 week adventure. Every stop, every corner I would eat and eat and eat. A lot of the time I didn’t really know what I was eating but bi jingo everything was just sublime.
My obsession with Furikake started 6 years ago and I noticed this stuff (I say stuff because I didn’t know what it was at the time) that was sprinkled on rice, and it was out of this world. On further investigating (and thank you google Translate) I worked out what I was eating.
For those of you who are not familiar with Furikake it is basically a savoury yet sweet rice seasoning, but it is also a delight sprinkled on traditional Japanese foods such as onigiri and udon noodles. It is to die for on popcorn and when sprinkled lightly on a salad it turns a bland salad into something out of this world.
Our version of Furikake is made using sesame seeds, sea salt flakes, nori, bonito flakes, dried shrimp, and a pinch of sugar. It tastes nutty. Its crunchy and its literally the Japanese version of salt and pepper.
Let’s break this down a bit…the two ingredients that I think some may not of have heard before are nori and bonito flakes. Nori is dried edible seaweed and what sushi rolls are wrapped with. Bonito flakes are ultra-thin fish shavings and usually the fish of choice is tuna. The tuna is dried, fermented and then smoked and when I say that pack a umami flavour…believe me! The flavour is intense but damn good. Bonito flakes are also known as Katsuobushi.
Furikake can really amp up your bland dishes. The word Furikake in Japanese literally means to sprinkle.
The nerd in me couldn’t resist so I went researching Furikake as I wanted to find out more. Furikake dates back to the 12th century where there is evidence of Furikake being made as a salty powdered condiment that consisted of dried sea bream, salmon, and shark.
In the early 20th century Furikake was considered a nutritional supplement. It contained fish bones and poppy seeds, and this was made with the intent to address the calcium and nutrient deficiency amongst the Japanese population.
Furikake is not just wonderful on a bowl of steamed rice. It is exemplary sprinkled on a soba noodle salad, on a piece of grilled salmon on onigiri (Japanese rice balls), on steamed vegetables, poultry, fish, steak just to name a few. I love it on avocado which I call my Japanese avocado toast, on eggs, and I love to add it into my creamy pasta dishes. As with most of Zoitsa Homely Produce’s products it can be added to anything. Its extremely versatile.
I recommend that if you are not using much then to pop it into your freezer and simply use when needed. The shelf life for most of our products is 12-24 months but with Furikake it is best to consume within 6 months.
Furikake is rich in calcium, iodine and iron and it really is a healthy alternative to seasoning your foods. Unfortunately, this is not vegan or vegetarian friendly nor suitable to people with seafood allergies/intolerances.
From our kitchen to yours!
