Nihon Chomiryo Tabi
Kayanoya Dashi (茅乃舎だし)
The story behind it
In the hills of Hisayama in Fukuoka stands a thatched-roof restaurant called Kayanoya. A dashi pack its head chef put together for home cooks went on to change kitchens across the country.
It began in 1893 as a small shoyu (soy sauce) brewery in the village of Kubara. In 2005 that company, Kubara Honke, released Kayanoya Dashi: a blend of ground yaki-ago (grilled flying fish), katsuobushi, urume sardine, and ma-kombu, with no chemical seasonings or preservatives. The toasty character of yaki-ago, the backbone of Kyushu dashi culture, comes through as it is.
By lowering the barrier to making dashi from scratch, this pack set off a dashi boom in Japanese homes. It is something of a monument to the moment Kyushu's food culture went national.
How to use it
As the dashi for clear soups, chawanmushi, and simmered dishes. Tear the bag open and the powder seasons takikomi gohan, tamagoyaki, or a Japanese-style pasta.