What is mirin, manufacturing methods. Calorie content and vitamin and mineral complex in the composition. Effects on the body, culinary uses, product history.
Mirin is a very sweet rice wine, a product of the national Japanese cuisine, which is more often used as a seasoning for fish dishes or various sauces. The smell is subtle, without a note of mash; the taste is sweet, a little sugary; color - light, sometimes transparent, but can be light yellow. The consistency depends on the type of drink - it can be liquid, slightly viscous and resemble syrup. Hon mirin contains 14% alcohol, sio - 1.5% and has a salty taste, mirin-fu-chomiryu tastes similar to wine, but with a strength of 1%. In all variants of sugar 45-50%.
How is mirin rice wine made?
During family dinners, it is rare to see sweet rice wine on the Japanese table - it is sold out only on holidays. But the low-alcohol analogue is more popular, since it is added to many dishes. But they make mirin both with a high alcohol content and with a low one, in almost the same way.
One of the main starting ingredients is the net. This is a distilled Japanese rice moonshine with a strength of 36-45%. Despite the fact that the strength is not reduced during pre-sale preparation, the Japanese dilute the drink to 25%. In the Land of the Rising Sun it is not customary to consume "multi-degree" alcohol.
The second ingredient is polished rice. Cereal shells and endosperm are removed completely. During processing, up to 30% of the nutritional value is lost.
How rice wine is made
- Polished rice is steamed for a long time until it is completely crumbly.
- Cool and introduce konzi mold. The container is kept in a humid warm room for 36 hours.
- Add starter culture to the net and transfer the intermediate product for fermentation to a cooler room - with a temperature of 15-20 ° C. During this process, the percentage of sugar is increased. The end of fermentation is determined empirically.
- Strain the tincture, squeeze out the leaven, and put the liquid to settle in a cool chamber or cellar.
- The finished drink is filtered. Rice wine prepared according to the traditional recipe is allowed to stand for several months.
- If in the future they plan to make a sauce, then the drink is evaporated, the percentage of alcohol is reduced with sugar. If necessary, stir in salt.
The above method of preparing mirin is not the only one. Currently, alcohol is produced on an industrial scale, using special installations for fermentation, apparatus for thickening, chambers for cooling and fermentation. And every family probably has its own secret of how to make a fragrant sauce from weak alcohol.
How to Make Rice Wine Using European Ingredients
- Polished rice is thoroughly washed, and then soaked for 1-2 days, draining the cloudy liquid. You need to get rid of the starch.
- The washed cereal is steamed with boiling water and boiled. Spread out in a thin layer so that it dries evenly, but does not wind up.
- Combine with yeast or wine leaven, add sugar, shake everything up.
- The sourdough is mixed with water, the ingredients are poured into a bottle, a water seal is installed - a rubber glove with a pierced finger. The container is left in a room with a temperature of 20-25 ° C. Rice wine is fermented at home for about 2 weeks.
- As soon as the liquid stops bubbling and the glove falls off, the intermediate product is filtered, the wort is squeezed out and put to ripen in a cool cellar (at 5-15 ° C).
- The drink has to be filtered several times - the sediment must be carefully removed.
- If koji was used instead of wine leaven or yeast, the resulting drink is pasteurized in a water bath, heating to no higher than 70 ° C to destroy the mold flora. If fungi remain in the wine, intoxication may develop after consumption.
How to make homemade koji mushroom rice wine:
- 900 g of round-grain polished rice is poured with cold water (1: 3) and boiled for 1 hour.
- Washed, filtered and re-boiled for 15 minutes. Rinse again.
- Cool, stir in 5 g koji, 1 tsp. wheat flour and the juice of half a small lemon.
- Transfer to a ceramic pan, seal, and form a depression in the middle.
- The container is wrapped in cling film and placed in a warm place (you can press it against the battery). The formation of fluid is monitored.
- After 2-3 weeks, the rice is squeezed out, and the liquid is poured into a glass jar. Close it with a lid and put it on the refrigerator shelf. The sediment is periodically removed.
- After a month, the drink is sterilized in a water bath and bottled.
Homemade rice wine differs in taste and consistency from the real Japanese mirin, but it can be used as an ingredient for fish dishes and national sauces of Japanese cuisine. To achieve a thick consistency, the liquid is evaporated in a water bath or over very low heat. To reduce the strength, sugar is added - 1 tbsp. l. 0.5 l, shake and leave for 2-3 days.
They also experiment with the taste of mirin - reduce or increase the percentage of sweetener, add spices. The finished product is bottled and stored in the refrigerator or in the cellar.
The composition and calorie content of mirin rice wine
Pictured is rice wine mirin
Neither the drink nor the seasoning contains GMO products, preservatives or stabilizers. All ingredients are natural. The nutritional value of rice wine and sauce does not differ significantly.
The calorie content of Mirin is 230-258 kcal per 100 g, of which
- Proteins - 0.2 g;
- Fat - 0.2 g;
- Carbohydrates - 52, 2 g.
The vitamin-mineral complex is represented by tocopherol, carotene, B vitamins - B1, B2, B6, potassium, phosphorus, calcium, magnesium, iron, selenium, zinc and copper. The amount of sodium depends on the type of product. There is not much of it in rice wine - no more than 2 mg per 100 g, but in sio sauce, the content reaches 12-18 mg for the same amount of product. Iodine was even found in the composition of mirin, made according to the traditions of the culinary experts of the Land of the Rising Sun. In the European analogue of wine made from parboiled rice and yeast, it is absent.
Useful properties of mirin rice wine
The positive effect of fermented foods on the human body has been officially proven. Despite the alcohol content, the negative effect on the digestive system is minimized.
Mirin's benefits
- Accelerates metabolic processes, eliminates stagnation in the intestines, stops fermentation and decay.
- Increases overall tone, strengthens blood vessels, normalizes the work of the cardiovascular system, increases blood pressure.
- Strengthens the nervous system, helps to quickly recover from emotional stress. Facilitates falling asleep, helps to relax.
- Prolongs the life cycle of hepatocytes, slows down the development of fatty liver.
- Stimulates the production of digestive enzymes, improves digestion.
- Increases vitality.
- Suppresses the vital activity of pathogenic bacteria. It has anthelmintic activity.
In Japan, sweet rice wine was considered a drink for women not only because of its sweetness. Traditional healers recommended that women entering menopause drink 30-40 g per day to reduce the frequency of painful symptoms - headaches, hot flashes, mood swings. It is advisable to take the "mixture" before bedtime, 30-40 minutes in advance.
