One of the most convenient ways to make delicious dashi for your miso soup and other Japanese dishes is with a dashi packet (だしパック). These little pouches work just like tea bags; you simply bring it to a boil in water, let the flavor steep and infuse, and you’ll have flavorful soup stock in 5 minutes! They are reasonably affordable and save so much time in the kitchen.
In this post, I will share my favorite dashi packet and how to use it.
The Dashi Packet I Love
After trying a handful of brands, I believe Kayanoya Dashi packets have the best flavor among them.
This dashi packet includes flying fish (Yakiago, Tobiuo), bonito flakes (katsuobushi), Pacific round herring (Urume Iwashi), kelp (Ma Kombu; see different types of kombu in this post), and sea salt.
One bag of Kayanoya Dashi contains 30 packets ($3.81/oz). If you make miso soup with a dashi packet, you can make roughly 60 miso soup bowls. By the way, it is cheaper than a carton of chicken stock!
Kayanoya Dashi is available in the U.S. and you can purchase their dashi on Amazon or from your local Japanese grocery stores (I get mine from Nijiya). Kayanoya also carries different types of dashi, including low-sodium dashi and vegetable dashi.
Kayanoya says on their website: Our products contain no additives including artificial flavors and preservatives. Chemically-made MSG (sodium glutamate) is not added to the product during the manufacturing process, but we have not tested whether naturally-derived MSG is mixed in, so we do not advertise our products as “no MSG”. In addition, powder floats in the air during manufacturing and packaging processes, and naturally-derived MSG can generate. Therefore, we cannot guarantee that naturally-derived MSG is not mixed in.
Other Dashi Packets
Dashi packets are more easily accessible these days. You can get a few different brands of dashi packets on Amazon.
- Yamasan Japanese Umami Dashi Soup Stock Mix (15 packets; $4.29/oz)
- HYOSHIRO Original Dashi Stock (30 packets; $3.68/oz)
- Maekawa Natural Soup Stock Packet (28 packets; $0.60/oz)
- Yamaki Dashi Packet (no longer available on Amazon; April 2024)—I used to use this brand when Kayanoya Dashi wasn’t available in my local Japanese grocery stores.
Recipes Using Dashi
The majority of Japanese recipes require dashi to add authentic umami-rich savory flavors and here are some examples.
- Miso Soup
- Beef Udon
- Oyakodon (Chicken and Egg Rice Bowl)
- Tamagoyaki (Rolled Omelette)
- Shrimp Tempura
The Ultimate Dashi Guide
Dashi plays an important role as a flavor enhancer in Japanese cooking, so food is not seasoned with too much salt, fat, or sugar. Rich in minerals and other vitamins, dashi is considered a healthy ingredient in our daily diet.
In Japanese cooking, there are six different types of dashi, including vegetarian and vegan dashi (*).
- Awase Dashi – a stock made from a combination of dried kelp + bonito flakes
- Kombu Dashi * – a stock made from dried kelp
- Katsuo Dashi – a stock made from dried bonito flakes
- Iriko Dashi – a stock made from dried anchovies/sardines
- Shiitake Dashi * – a stock made from dried shiitake mushrooms
- Vegan Dashi * – a stock made from dried shiitake mushrooms and kombu
If you are new to different types of dashi, check out my Ultimate Dashi Guide.
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How to Make Japanese Soup Stock with Dashi Packet
Ingredients
- 2 cups water
- 1 dashi packet (9 g)
Instructions
- To a medium saucepan, add 2 cups water and 1 dashi packet. DO NOT OPEN the dashi packet; use it similar to a tea bag to steep flavor into the stock.
- Turn on the stove to medium heat and bring it to a boil. Once boiling, shake the bag a few times to release more flavor from the bag. Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer for 2–3 minutes.
- Discard the packet. The dashi is ready to use.
To Store
- You can keep the dashi in the refrigerator for up to 3–4 days. I don‘t recommend to freeze dashi made with dashi packet.
Did you make this recipe?
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Editor’s Note: This post was originally published on June 7, 2016. The original video was replaced with the new video using updated clips on April 26, 2024.