Anzeige
Shoyu Tare: Traditional Japanese Seasoning Sauce for Ramen and Yakitori
More recipes: Japanese recipes · Sauces and basics · All Asian recipes
1 Stdtotal
6servings
–kcal
Japanese
CuisineShoyu Tare: Traditional Japanese Seasoning Sauce for Ramen and Yakitori
Laura Chen
6
40 Minuten
20 Minuten
Japanese
Sauce/Condiment
Japanese tare is a seasoning sauce with deep roots in traditional Japanese cooking. Cooks build many dishes around it, above all ramen, where a spoonful in the bowl gives the broth its depth and rich umami. Tare also shows up across Japanese cooking as the glaze and marinade for yakitori, the grilled chicken skewers sold at street festivals and in izakayas (Japanese pubs).
A good tare balances sweet, salty and deep umami flavors. Its texture changes with the job: thick and syrupy for grilling, thin and liquid for soup. That range lets you use one sauce across many dishes.
The recipe below makes a classic shoyu tare from soy sauce, mirin and sake, layered with kombu, katsuobushi, scallions, ginger and garlic. Use it as the base for ramen broth, or spoon it over other dishes for extra depth.
A good tare balances sweet, salty and deep umami flavors. Its texture changes with the job: thick and syrupy for grilling, thin and liquid for soup. That range lets you use one sauce across many dishes.
The recipe below makes a classic shoyu tare from soy sauce, mirin and sake, layered with kombu, katsuobushi, scallions, ginger and garlic. Use it as the base for ramen broth, or spoon it over other dishes for extra depth.
Ingredients
Ingredients for classic shoyu tare:
- 100 ml good-quality soy sauce (shoyu)
- 50 ml mirin
- 50 ml sake
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 piece kombu
- 1 handful katsuobushi (bonito flakes)
- 2 scallions
- 1 piece ginger
- 2 garlic cloves
Instructions
Soak the kombu
- Start by soaking the kombu in a small bowl of water. Leave it for about 30 minutes so it softens and releases its flavor. This step gives the tare a gentle taste of the sea and umami.
Reduce the sake
- Pour the sake into a small pot and heat it over medium heat. Once it starts to simmer, let it bubble gently for about 2 minutes. This cooks off some of the alcohol and softens its harsh edge, so the sweeter notes of the sake come through.
Combine the ingredients
- Add the mirin, soy sauce and sugar to the reduced sake. Stir over low heat until the sugar dissolves completely. These ingredients form the base of your tare, with sweetness, saltiness and depth in balance.
Add the aromatics
- Add the soaked kombu (with its soaking water), the katsuobushi, chopped scallions, sliced ginger and garlic cloves to the pot. These aromatics give the tare much of its depth.
Simmer gently
- Let the mixture simmer gently over very low heat for about 20 to 30 minutes. Keep it from boiling hard so you preserve the delicate flavors and don't over-reduce the sauce.
Strain
- Take the pot off the heat and let the tare cool a little. Strain it through a fine sieve or a clean cloth to remove the solids. Press the solids lightly as you strain to squeeze out all the liquid and flavor.
Cool and store
- Let the strained tare cool completely, then pour it into a clean glass container with a lid and refrigerate. It keeps for up to two weeks.
Reviews
No reviews yet. Did you cook this recipe? Tell us how it turned out.
Anzeige
More recipes: Japanese recipes · Sauces and basics · All Asian recipes