Wasabi

Flavour and aroma

sharp, nose-clearing, sweet, green. Sharp and pungent in the nose, sweeter and greener than horseradish.

Heat

Medium

Forms

fresh, paste, powder

How to use it

• use raw

  Trim the top, then grate the stem end in small circles on a very fine grater (traditionally sharkskin) just before serving. Gather into a ball and leave 1–2 minutes for the heat to develop; use within about 15 minutes.

• soak

  Wasabi powder: mix with an equal volume of cold water, cover and leave for about 10 minutes before serving.

• With sushi and sashimi
• Stirred into soy sauce for dipping
• Soba noodle dipping sauce
• With grilled steak
• Dressings and mayonnaise

Identifying good quality

Fresh rhizomes are knobbly, green and 10–20 cm long with leaf scars. Freshly grated wasabi is pale green, slightly sweet and fades within minutes. For tubes and powders, read the ingredients: real wasabi is listed first in 'hon-wasabi' products.

• Not to be confused with Prepared horseradish: Horseradish is white, coarser and harsher; the same pungent compound (allyl isothiocyanate) gives both their bite.

Origin and history

Origin: Japan, along cool mountain streams (Eutrema japonicum).. Grown and used: Grown mainly in Shizuoka and Nagano prefectures of Japan, with smaller farms in Taiwan, China, New Zealand, the UK and North America..

Wasabi is native to Japan and has been eaten there for centuries; it became firmly linked with sushi in the Edo period. Because the plant is slow and difficult to grow, most products sold as wasabi, inside and outside Japan, are made mainly from horseradish and mustard.

Commonly told; not firmly documented