Taro stem ✦

Tige de taro

What it is

Records describe imogara-nawa: taro stems simmered in miso, twisted into rope and dried, so a samurai carried his cord and cut a length off to boil into soup. The stalk is a sponge, not a flavour - it holds far more liquid than the corm and gives back whatever it soaked in.

In the kitchen

Peel the stalk, soak it fifteen minutes in vinegared water to kill the itch, boil it, then squeeze it dry with both hands before it goes near the dashi - unsqueezed it collapses and clouds the broth. Dried zuiki wants half an hour of soaking before any of that.

Goes with

Kombu Katsuobushi (dried bonito) Soy sauce Hon-mirin Sesame Rice vinegar Silken tofu (kinugoshi) Ginger

Same species

Taro

In season alongside

Amethyst deceiver Roe deer Fallow deer Giant puffball Young wild boar Snail eggs

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