Читать книгу YO Sushi: The Japanese Cookbook - Kimiko Barber - Страница 12

Sake is Japan’s traditional alcoholic drink and it has a long and intriguing history. It is distilled from steamed and fermented rice, is clear in appearance and has as many as 400 flavour components. Sake is assessed according to five basic qualities: dryness, sweetness, bitterness, acidity and astringency, or tartness. There are thousands of sake brewers across Japan and each manufacturer has its own unique combination of those five qualities. The brand of sake you choose is a matter of personal preference.

Although in recent years beer and wine have become the Japanese nation’s favourite drinks, sake’s cultural and culinary importance remains unchallenged. In the kitchen, sake performs many functions. It adds flavour and depth to dishes, is used as a cooking liquor and as a base for marinades and preserves, and to neutralise the strong smell of fish and meat. Table-quality dry sake is the most versatile – avoid ‘cooking sake’, which often has a strong artificial smell and is usually of an inferior grade that contains additives. Store sake tightly capped in a cool, dark kitchen cupboard and use within eight weeks of opening.