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katsuobushi
Katsuobushi: Dancing Japanese Fish Flakes
posted by John Spacey, March 27, 2014
Katsuobushi are flakes of dried, fermented, smoked skipjack tuna that are used as a topping for numerous dishes.
Katsuobushi has a strong umami taste. Japan has something of a umami obsession. As a result, katsuobushi is an important topping and ingredient for a variety of Japanese foods. Katsuobushi melts with heat. As it melts it dances and wriggles around in a dramatic fashion that is surprisingly fun to watch.Katsuobushi foods include:Dashi is a clear soup with an umami taste. It's often made with katsuobushi. Dashi is an extremely common ingredient in Japanese cuisine — it's right up there with rice, soy sauce, miso and tofu.
Savory Japanese pancakes that evolved as a way to use up leftovers. Katsuobushi is a topping for okonomiyaki along with nori, mayonnaise, okonomiyaki sauce and pickled ginger (beni shoga). 
3. Takoyaki
A ball-shaped Japanese snack with a piece of octopus in the center. Katsuobushi is a takoyaki topping.4. Okinawa Soba
Okinawa Soba is a noodle dish resembling ramen noodles. Katsuobushi is used in its broth to achieve a umami flavor.
Katsuobushi is a popular filling for onigiri.
6. Chilled Tofu
Chilled tofu topped with katsuobushi, nori, ginger and soy sauce.
7. Furikake
Katsuobushi flakes are commonly used to flavor rice. Tiny flakes of katsuobushi may also be used in a rice seasoning known as furikake.
8. Zarusoba
Cold soba (Japanese buckwheat noodles) topped with nori and katsuobushi.
Katsuobushi Wood
Katsuobushi is traditionally produced according to a long, intricate process that results in a wood-like piece of dried fish.
Skipjack fillets are smoked for up to a month. Bonito is occationally used as a less expensive substitute. The fillets are smoked for 5-8 hours a day and left to dry the rest of the time. They begin to harden and a tar forms on the surface. A grinder is used to remove the tar.After the smoking process, the fillets are sprayed with mold (Aspergillus Glaucus) and sun dried. The mold ferments and further dries the fish.The result is a hard wood-like preserved fish that's less than 1/3 of its original size. 
The katsuobushi is then shaved fresh before use.
Most people opt for factory produced packets of shaved katsuobushi.
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