Yasumaru All-Purpose Dashi, Red (やすまる 和風万能だし)

The story behind it

Yasumaru is a dashi brand made by Takahashi Shoten (Willbe Co., Ltd.) in Matsuyama, Ehime. The large character 泰 printed on each bag is its mark, and the color of the circle changes with each type of dashi.

The red-circle All-Purpose Dashi is built on bonito flakes, combined with dried sardines, mackerel flakes, kombu, and shiitake for five ingredients in all. It is lightly seasoned with powdered soy sauce and more, so simply simmering a pack gives you a finished, ready-to-use stock.

The blue-circle Premium Seafood Dashi uses tuna as its base, an unusual choice for dashi. Comparing the two side by side, from the same maker, is part of the fun of this brand.