What is katsuobushi, main characteristics, manufacturing method. Calorie content, beneficial and harmful effects on the body. Food recipes, product history.
Katsuobushi (bonito flakes, okaka) is a food product of the national Japanese cuisine, shavings of dried, smoked and fermented tuna. Taste and smell - fishy, unsharp, neutral; color - pinkish-brown or gray-pink. The size of the katsuobushi can be small: individual particles resemble flakes in appearance, as well as larger ones, resembling wood shavings. In stores and for export, the product is supplied already packaged, but the culinary specialists of the Land of the Rising Sun can store the back of the fish and plow it as needed. The purpose of an ingredient is to reveal the base flavor of the main course.
How is katsuobushi made?
The product gained popularity only after the invention of deep freezing, that is, in the twentieth century. Before that, it was not possible to obtain the desired structure of the product, and chips from dried fish fillets were used for food only in Japan.
It is impossible to cook katsuobushi outside Japan as required by all the rules and canons. Japanese fishermen catch tuna only with a fishing rod, far in the ocean, in clear waters. The catch is immediately placed in quick-freeze refrigerators. The best fish is the one that did not have time to sleep. On the shore, without defrosting, fragments are cut out of the frosty carcasses - fillets.
The fish is first smoked over low heat for 1-2 hours. Then they check if the smallest bones are left. They are selected by hand using special tongs. The fat should be melted out.
The pieces are then carefully smoked, hung over smoldering oak wood and dried in the sun. The secreted fat is removed all the time. During these processes, parts of the fish acquire the hardness of a stone, and the surface becomes mother-of-pearl with a pale pink tint, which appears brilliantly matte in the sun.
For the preparation of katsuobushi, the hardened fillet is placed in wooden boxes and treated with the fungal culture of Aspergillus. The quality of the intermediate product is periodically checked by cutting off any protruding mold from the surface. When the fluff stops growing, you can take out pieces. The fossilized fillet is called karebusi or honkarebusi. The yield is 20% compared to the initial volume of the original product.
Japanese cooks keep karebusi in the kitchen, and with the help of a special katsuobushi kezuriki device, which most of all resembles a plane, they cut as many shavings as necessary to prepare a particular dish. The thickness and dimensions can be adjusted. Thinner, transparent, reminiscent of sakura petals hanakatsuo, suitable for side dishes and decorative purposes, decorating dishes. Thick particles are called kezurikatsuo.
Japanese restaurant chefs or housewives (or owners) do not need to think about where to buy karebusi and how to make katsuobushi. Fermented tuna flakes can be purchased at the supermarket, where the product is sold as Bonito Flakes. In Russia, a package of 500 g costs 1,300 rubles, in Ukraine, a pack of 30 g can be purchased for 70 UAH.
Composition and calorie content of katsuobushi
In the photo katsuobushi or bonito flakes
The nutritional value of individual shavings is different. The difference is insignificant and depends on the conditions under which the tuna was grown, processing methods and additional presale preparation. The better the muscles of the fish are, the more protein there is in the bonito. The Japanese original product does not contain additives, but when exporting, additional stabilizers and preservatives may be added.
The calorie content of katsuobushi is 249-335 kcal per 100 g, of which:
- Proteins - 50, 9-64 g;
- Fat - 2, 3-5 g;
- Carbohydrates - 6, 2-9 g.
The rest is dietary fiber and ash, moisture content is up to 2%, no more.
Of the vitamins, D and E, cholecalciferol and tocopherol predominate; in the mineral complex - potassium, iodine, phosphorus, chlorine, iron, fluorine, selenium, copper and sodium. But these are not the only nutrients in katsuobushi - the flakes contain palmitic, palmitoleic, mristic and stearic acids, omega-9, omega-3 and omega-6. There are 14 fatty acids in total.
Bonito flakes are valued not only for their ability to improve taste, but also for their easily digestible protein and the ability to replenish vitamin and mineral reserves.
Useful properties of katsuobushi
When making dashi broth, in which the amount of tuna shavings is measured in grams, the healing effect on the body is not manifested. But if there are dishes in which bonito is added to the side dish, then you can appreciate the benefits of katsuobushi for the body.
Useful properties of bonito flakes:
- They normalize the state of the intestinal flora, even after intoxication caused by an increase in temperature, maintaining the balance of lacto- and bifidobacteria.
- Promote the distribution of energy throughout the body, replenish the reserve of fluorine and phosphorus.
- They improve the work of the cardiovascular system, strengthen the walls of blood vessels and increase the tone.
- They stop age-related changes, prevent early formation of wrinkles.
- Stabilizes the thyroid gland.
- Protect the retina from degenerative changes.
- Prevents malignancy of neoplasms.
- They normalize the acid-base balance in the oral cavity, which inhibits the activity of pathogenic microorganisms that colonize gum pockets and carious cavities.
If a pregnant woman introduces this product into the diet, then she does not experience insomnia in the last trimester, and babies sleep well for the first 3-4 months after birth.
Japanese scientists have identified a link between consuming bonito and preventing Parkinson's disease and senile dementia.
Contraindications and harm of bonito flakes
New products, which, moreover, are not traditional for Europeans, can provoke intestinal disorders and the development of allergic reactions. For this reason, you should not introduce katsuobushi to pregnant women, lactating women and young children, despite the possible benefits for the body. In Japan, this product has been eaten since childhood, the body has become accustomed to the original taste, and when introduced into the diet, regardless of the patient's status, it does not cause a negative effect on the condition.
The use of katsuobushi is harmful for impaired liver function, kidney and heart disease. You should refuse dishes with such an ingredient with high acidity, exacerbation of gastritis and peptic ulcer disease. One of the properties is the acceleration of food digestion by stimulating the production of enzymes. An increase in the amount of bile salts, hydrochloric acid and pepsin in the food bolus has an aggressive effect on the mucous membrane lining the gastrointestinal tract and digestive organs.
It is not known in what conditions the fish lived. Despite the fact that it is caught in ecologically clean areas, during its migration, it could visit dangerous habitats. One of the negative properties of tuna meat is to accumulate heavy metals (including mercury) and chemical toxins dissolved in water. Despite the multi-stage processing, it is not possible to completely get rid of them. This is another reason why you should avoid introducing a new ingredient into the dishes of people with a special status - pregnant women, lactating women and those with weak immunity.
Recipes with katsuobushi
Bonito flakes are used to prepare many dishes of the national cuisine of the Land of the Rising Sun. They are used as a dressing for rice, a filling for onigiri (rice balls), a seasoning for cold dishes - dzarosoba, bento, takoyaki, okonomiyaki, and the "centenary egg". To achieve the desired taste of the dish, season the shavings with soy sauce and sesame oil.
Recipes with katsuobushi:
- Fried tofu … The dense bean curd is cut into small cubes and blotted with a paper towel to remove the tear. Several plates are prepared for the batter: flour is poured on one, a beaten egg on the second, bonito on the third, and white sesame seeds pre-fried and grated on the fourth. Heat ghee or any flavored vegetable oil in a pan. Each piece of cheese is strung on a wooden stick, doused with flour, dipped in a beaten egg, then in shavings and sesame seeds. The batter treatment is repeated up to 3 times. Fried in boiling batter until golden brown. Served with sliced greens - parsley or cilantro.
- Takoyaki … Fresh octopus is boiled: dipped in boiling water and left at the rate of 13 minutes for every 300 g. For 4 servings, 300 g are needed. Leave to cool in the liquid that was boiled. If done correctly, the skin will come off easily. Fry the whole octopus on the grill, on both sides for 2 minutes, and cut into "noodles". 0.5 cups of katsuobushi flakes are ground into powder in a mortar. Mix 2 cups of flour, 2 tsp each. dry kombucha and baking powder for the dough. Beat 4 eggs with 2 tsp. soy sauce, mix well-pounded dry ingredients and a glass of dashi broth. The dough should turn out to be very thin, like for pancakes. If it is too watery, add flour. Preheat a takoyaki pan (this dish looks like a metal muffin pan). All depressions are generously lubricated with refined sunflower oil. Batter is poured into them, slices of octopus, a little chopped green onions and grated tuna flakes are poured into each, a little tonkatsu (complex sauce) is poured. The dough circle should darken slightly. Condiments and spices - to your own taste. It is customary to add white and black pepper powder, sesame seeds, grated ginger. Bake the takoyaki for 3 minutes to set the surface and brown the bottom. Turn over, fry on the other side. Prepare a dressing on their own - 1 tsp. rice vinegar, 2 tbsp. l. lemon juice and the same amount of garlic sauce. They prick hot hemispheres on a wooden knitting needle, transfer to a plate, sprinkle with dried seaweed and whole bonito flakes. Tasting should be done very carefully, inside the takoyaki are hot and cool slowly.
- Omusubi rice balls … Katsuobushi, 3 tbsp, mix in 0.5 tsp. soy sauce. 1 tbsp. l. dark sesame seeds are fried in a dry frying pan until golden brown and a standard nori sheet is fried on both sides in the same pan and cut into 3 strips. Cooked round glutinous rice, while still warm, season with salt and form into tortillas. Put the katsuobushi filling in the middle, roll the blank into a ball, roll it in sesame seeds and wrap it with a nori ribbon. You can fry for 20-30 seconds in a dry frying pan or warm it up in a water bath. Served with a thick omelet with vegetables.
- Rolls maki … For the filling, cut salted salmon and fresh cucumber without skin into thin sticks. The nori is soaked and cut too. Spread a layer of glutinous rice on the mat for twisting, on it - pieces of nori, evenly lay out the filling. Roll up the "roll", cut into rolls, roll each in tuna flakes. Served with wasabi sauce and grated pickled ginger.
Interesting facts about bonito flakes
After multi-stage smoking and fermentation, tuna meat is called the hardest fish in the world. Now, for the manufacture of semi-finished products, not only fillets are used, but also backs. When Japanese cuisine gained worldwide popularity, they also began to be used to make karebusi, although this is a violation of tradition.
However, these traditions do not go back centuries. Freezers were invented only at the beginning of the 20th century. Before that, it was impossible to taste real fresh tuna in Japan. Only the poor ate the meat of those who were fished closer to the shores. The species is not popular with consumers in Japan, which is why they say about it: "Even a cat steps over this fish", that is, it disdains.
Even at the famous Tokyo Tsukiji market, it is impossible to buy fresh tuna. It quickly deteriorates, loses its attractiveness in the air, becomes covered with mucus. That is why the fish is frozen immediately after fishing, and then thawed on the shore. Japanese fishermen say that katsuobushi is a shavings of surprised tuna. This expression appears in the fish because, immediately after being removed from the hook, it was placed in a chamber with a low temperature.
By the way, from the parts of tuna, which are not suitable for making bonito, they make canned food, exported to the territory of the post-Soviet space, and fertilizers for their own fields. And unsold shavings from the backs are sold as high-protein food for domestic cats.
If you are planning to buy a katsuobushi, you should not purchase a large package. It is unlikely that Japanese dishes will fit into the daily menu. The exception is a special diet for weight loss. After the package is opened, katsuobushi loses its useful properties. The shavings must be used within 3 days. In sealed packaging, in a cool dark place, the product can be stored for up to a year.
Katsuobushi will give the European dish a new flavor, which is described as umami in Japan. It goes especially well with cheeses - Parmesan or Roquefort. You should not give up culinary experiments - bonito flakes are sold in large supermarkets, sushi departments.
Watch the video about katsuobushi:
