《Interview with Katsuo Dashi Professional, Uneno, about the True Role of Dashi》

Katsuo dashi as a foundation of Japanese food culture

Uneno purchases only the finest quality bonito of each production area from carefully selected, reliable manufacturers, and delivers katsuobushi nationwide, which can be used to make various types of dashi.
A cross section of karebushi (high grade katsuobushi), which has been aged with minimum water content, shines like a jewel packed with deliciousness.
Karebushi with umami concentrated at the core during the aging and drying processes is steamed at the optimum temperature so that uniformly delicious katsuobushi flakes can be shaved.
The steel blades are indispensable and valuable for Uneno’s katsuobushi shaver that produces flavorful dashi, and have been carefully used for 100 years. President Motofusa Uneno talked about the reasons why the company continues to use the shaver that is cumbersome and labor-intensive compared with the currently mainstream ceramic ones, as well as the true role of dashi as an essential item of Japanese food culture.