Warishita
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Read for freeSukiyaki sauce, also known as warishita, is a Japanese sauce that defines the flavor of sukiyaki.
The main ingredients are sugar, Japanese soy sauce, mirin, and sake.
Although the recipe is simple and easy, this condiment leaves a big room to create different flavors between many sukiyaki dishes.
There are no actual rules on the proportion of each ingredient for warishita. Overall, the flavor of sukiyaki comes as a result of balancing sweetness and saltiness.
The sweetness comes from the sugar. Some people prefer using brown sugar while others prefer regular white sugar.
The sugar will get caramelized while cooking, enhancing its taste.
Japanese soy sauce (or shoyu) has a salty flavor. Sometimes, you don’t even need to add salt to the dish if you’re already using a generous amount of it.
Lastly, sake and mirin are what create the depth and complexity to the flavor. Mirin also adds sweetness to the flavor, while sake will add lightness to the sukiyaki stock.
Check out our new cookbook
Bitemybun's family recipes with complete meal planner and recipe guide.
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Read for freeJoost Nusselder, the founder of Bite My Bun is a content marketer, dad and loves trying out new food with Japanese food at the heart of his passion, and together with his team he's been creating in-depth blog articles since 2016 to help loyal readers with recipes and cooking tips.