Yakami Orchard Yuzu Marmalade
Juicy, flavorful and wonderfully textured Yakami Orchards Yuzu Marmalade is made with fresh, local yuzu from a collective of family farms in Japan’s Miyazaki prefecture. Balanced out with honey and sugar, this yuzu marmalade is bright, tart and warmly sweet with every bite. Just by opening a jar of Yakami Orchards’ product, you’ll be able to smell the bright and subtly floral aroma of yuzu. We love the plentiful chunks of yuzu rind, which are thinly sliced and add texture without making the marmalade clumpy. The yuzu pieces contribute a pop of piney bitterness that is a pleasant counterbalance for the overall sweet spread.
Namikura Kyoto-Style White Miso
Savory, sweet and flavor-dense, white miso is an absolutely essential pantry item. Winey-sweet, buttery and deeply rich, this organic version from Japanese family producer Namikura Miso Co. is more complex and less salty than other brands, which means it can be used more freely with soy sauce without dishes tasting overly seasoned.
Hanamaruki Foods Liquid Shio Koji
A traditional condiment made from fermented malted rice, shio koji is known in Japan for packing a punch of umami into everything from marinated meats to savory soups. All shio kojis aren’t created equal, though, for Hanamaruki Foods distills the powerful flavor properties of this essential Japanese ingredient into an easy-to-use liquid form—the only Liquid Shio Koji available on the market—to create the ultimate pantry secret weapon. We love the condiment’s clean, yet bold flavor: salty rounded out with a pronounced sweetness and burst of umami. It’s made by pressing shio koji in its original paste form and filtering until it yields the clear, golden-hued liquid. The product isn’t heat-treated, so its enzymes remain active and effective in rendering meat remarkably moist and juicy, balancing bitterness in veggies like eggplant and adding amino acids for a full-flavored finish to any dish to truly change the way you cook. Use as a marinade for meats and fish, drizzle into salad dressings and sauces to balance savory flavors, or incorporate into baked goods to add a layer of tantalizing complexity.
Namikura Red Miso
Red Miso is stronger, saltier and more assertively flavored than yellow or white miso due to its six-month aging process and has a higher proportion of soybeans for a richer taste. This particularly interesting version has sweet flavors reminiscent of sherry and milk chocolate that are perfect for pairing with red meat and other robust dishes.
Yakami Orchard Ginger Marmalade
These well-rounded preserves from Japan have a fresh, bright character, with ginger's sharp bite balanced by the rich honey used to make them. The strips of fresh ginger in the marmalade are ribbon-thin and tender, adding bursts of piquant spice and texture without being overwhelming.
Hotaru Foods Yuzu Mayonnaise
While most mayonnaise is made with vinegar, Hotaru Foods uses 100% yuzu juice as its acid of choice, which adds a bright, citrusy kick and subtle sweetness reminiscent of Kewpie mayonnaise, a Japanese favorite. We especially like to pair it with seafood, which doesn't need its usual squeeze of lemon thanks to the tart yuzu flavor.
Hasegawa Wood Core Soft Rubber Cutting Board
This cutting board is not only durable, but it also will prolong the life of you knife blade. The “pull and slice” technique is the common way to slice food in Japanese cooking, which can often lead to chipped edges if using a hard cutting board. But this one is coated in layers of soft plastic that provides much better protection for your knives and protection for your fingers, since it’s non-slip. Plus, the material has strong antimicrobial properties—one of the highest standards in Japan—so it won’t hold germs as much as a standard cutting board would between uses. It’s wood core keeps the cutting board from warping from use and high-temperature dishwashing. And since it’s not entirely made of wood, it much more light weight to use.
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