Katsuobushi/Bonito flakes | Glossary | Kikkoman Corporation (2024)

FAQs

Katsuobushi/Bonito flakes | Glossary | Kikkoman Corporation? ›

Katsuobushi / bonito flakes (かつお節 in Japanese) are preserved bonito made by boiling the fish and introducing a specific mold to mature it properly, then drying it out time and again. Katsuobushi is shaved thin, then used to make dashi, or eaten on tofu or white rice.

Bonito is a kind of tuna, and Katsuobushi is dried, smoked bonito. Katsuobushi is often used as flakes shaved from a piece of dried fish. This is actually Kezuribushi, but we still call it Katsuobushi.

They are known to move or dance when used as a topping on foods such as okonomiyaki and takoyaki. It can be an odd sight upon first viewing if moving food makes you squeamish. However, it is nothing to be alarmed about. The bonito flakes move due to their thin and light structure upon the hot food and are not alive.

Katsuobushi (Japanese: 鰹節) is simmered, smoked and fermented skipjack tuna (Katsuwonus pelamis, sometimes referred to as bonito). It is also known as bonito flakes or broadly as okaka (おかか).

Technically speaking, you can eat bonito flakes out of the bag, however you'll be met with a very strong fish flavour and flaky texture. Rather than snacking on bonito flakes, we suggest using them to garnish noodle salads, smoked tofu or rice balls.

Bonito is rich in protein. If unprocessed, it has a 25% protein content, and if used to make katsuobushi, its protein content increases to 77%. It is also rich in inosinate, an important umami substance; the umami is multiplied many times over when combined with glutamate.

As long as they're kept cool and dry and sealed in either the resealable bag they came in or some other airtight bag or container, dried bonito flakes will last for six months to a year. Their shelf life may be shorter in humid climates.

Bonito mold(Aspergillus glaucus)

Use in the production of katsuobushi (dried bonito). This mold absorbs residue moisture from the katsuobushi, produces umami components, and breaks down fats and oils.

The “katsuobushi” must be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight vacuum package.

Product Information. Katsuobushi Salt is a umami and sodium rich flavor bomb. Often used as a MSG alternative due its incredible natural flavor enhancement qualities.

Do bonito flakes taste fishy? ›

The color of the flakes are a pale tan tone and each one is usually no more than an inch or so in length and width. The flavor is strong with a distinctly fishy flavor and has smoky fermented taste.

Allow the water to continue to boil, then add the Bonito flakes to the pot. After it has come to a full boil, use a strainer to strain the soup into a large serving bowl. Dashi broth is a delicious Japanese stock base used for miso soup. It can also be served with noodles, or by itself as a stand-alone broth.

These scrumptious flakes are a healthy daily snack. They can be served just as they are or can be sprinkled atop your pet's food. Although bonito has been stereotyped as a food for cats, don't forget that dogs love fish too.

Hondashi and bonito flakes are similar in that they both come from dried bonito fish. That's really about all they have in common ingredient-wise.

It takes one month of smoking for 1.5 hours a day, then five months for molding (fermentation). Over this long period of time, the fish has time to be completely smoked out and to ferment. When the fish are ready, they take on the appearance of a black block of wood. And they are just as hard as well.

Makurazaki is known to produce the best "Katsuobushi". Not only the best quality, but it also produces the highest production of "Katsuobushi" in volume in Japan. Makurazaki is located in Southwest Satsuma peninsula in Kagoshima Prefecture in the Kyushu island of Japan.