Nihon Chomiryo Tabi
Chikiri Honkarebushi Katsuo Pack (ちきり 本枯節かつおパック)
Stories about this bottle
The story behind it
Yaizu is the port town that lands more bonito than anywhere in Japan. Chikiri Shimizu Shoten has worked on nothing but katsuobushi here for 240 years, since 1782.
Honkarebushi is the highest grade of katsuobushi. Molding and sun-drying are repeated 4 times, with 6 months given over to aging. The mold breaks down excess moisture and fat, and the savoriness alone concentrates. Skip the labor and you never arrive here. This is knowledge distilled since the Edo period.
This pack takes that honkarebushi, shaves it as thin as flower petals, and portions it out. Open a sachet and the first dashi of a ryotei restaurant arrives in your kitchen.
How to use it
One sachet makes about 400ml of first dashi. Upgrade your miso soup dashi to honkarebushi. Also for the simplest luxury of hot rice with a drop of shoyu and a handful of flakes, or as a topping for chilled tofu and ohitashi.