10 Recipes With Mitsuba: Get The Most Out Of The Herb
Mitsuba is a leafy green herb in the carrot family. It is also known as Japanese parsley, honeywort, and white chervil. The flavor is very similar to flat-leaf parsley: a fresh, clean, green, and slightly bitter taste, which is also reminiscent of celery.
There are many ways to use mitsuba, and the most common way is to use it as a garnish. Below are 10 of my favorite recipes with mitsuba.
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1. Kakiage
Kakiage is a type of tempura, in which the vegetables are mixed with the tempura batter and fried together as a fritter.
Mitsuba leaves can be finely chopped or sliced and mixed with tempura batter in a kakiage.
2. Tamagoyaki
Tamagoyaki is a rolled egg omelet, which is typically served in slices to show off the thin layers of egg.
Finely chopped mitsuba leaves, along with scallions are a common addition to the egg mix, or used as a filling between layers of barely set egg.
3. Chawanmushi
Chawanmushi is a savory custard made with eggs, soy sauce, and dashi stock, and steamed until smooth and silky.
Mitsuba is a popular addition to chawanmushi, usually added along with chives, scallions, mushrooms and chicken or shrimp.
4. Futomaki
Futomaki is a type of thick rolled sushi, with a variety of different fillings in a single roll. It is served sliced, to reveal the different colored fillings in the center of the roll.
It is very common to include a bright green filling for aesthetic purposes, and mitsuba is a popular choice.
5. Salsa verde
Salsa verde is an Italian green sauce made by finely chopping or blending a mixture of fresh green herbs together with olive oil, and sometimes other ingredients like lemons, shallots, or garlic.
It’s not a typical Japanese usage, but mitsuba is a herb that goes very well in a salsa verde, especially when combined with garlic and mint.
6. Oyakadon
Oyakadon is a type of donburi (rice bowl) made with chicken and egg in a sweet and salty sauce, served on top of rice. It is a classic Japanese comfort food.
Chopped mitsuba is used as a garnish to add green flavor and color, sprinkled over the oyakadon just beefore serving.
7. Miso soup
Wakame seaweed, scallions, and tofu are the non-negotiable additions to miso soup, but there are plenty of other ingredients that some people like to include as well.
Mitsuba is one such addition, usually added as a garnish at the end
8. Mitsuba and seaweed salad
One type of mitsuba (kiri-mitsuba) is cultivated for its long white stems as well as for the green leaves. This type of mitsuba is often used in salads.
The mitsuba stems are cut into short lengths, and mixed with nori seaweed and sesame seeds, along with the green mitsuba leaves as well.
9. Sawani-wan
Sawani-wan is a soup of julienned vegetables, and sometimes pork or chicken, served in a clear broth.
Mitsuba is very often added to sawani-wan, although only in the last few minutes of cooking time, as it becomes bitter if cooked for longer.
10. Steamed fish with mitsuba
There are multiple steamed fish dishes, such as Hasumushi, Kaburamushi, etc. that benefit from mitsuba as a garnish added just before serving.
Mitsuba adds a fresh, green, herbaceous flavor to these light and delicate dishes.
Do you cook with mitsuba as a herb or vegetable?
Mitsuba is used in cooking as a herb, most commonly as a garnish to add flavor to a dish just before serving. It should not be cooked with heat for more than a few minutes, otherwise it becomes unpleasantly bitter.
What flavors go well with mitsuba?
Like parsley, many flavors go well with mitsuba. It has a particular affinity with garlic, eggs, citrus fruits, and fish, but there are very few ingredients with which it clashes.
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Caroline first opened the doors to her own apartment in Berlin to guests, which was soon sold out. She then became the head chef of Muse Berlin, Prenzlauer Berg, for eight years, renowned for “international comfort food.”