What Sake Does Behind Closed Doors

Translated, the Japanese term “umami,” refers to the fifth sense of taste, but the most powerfully accurate definition comes from Master Sake Sommelier, Miwa Wang: “Ooh yummy.” This sensei of sake schooled us on all things rice liquor in a recent interview. Next, she slid open the shoji and let us dive in to her recipe vault. We ducked out with these:

A splash of sake in pasta sauce? Yes, please.

Sake Mushroom Sauté

Sauté shiitake mushrooms in soy sauce, junmai sake, a spoonful of sugar and sesame oil. The sake creates a viscosity in the sauce that is similar to a French-style sauce reduction.

King Crab Leg Pasta

1. Chop shallots, garlic and an onion.
2. Sauté in olive oil over medium heat until softened.
3. Deglaze the pan with a large pour of sake, then add tomatoes and simmer.
4. Crack open a couple of fresh king crab legs.
5. Add chunks of crab meat to the sauce until heated all the way through.
6. Serve over linguini pasta.

Manila Clams, Sake-Style

1. Use Manila clams instead of mussels in this recipe.

Koshu Desserts

Note: Koshu is a term for aged sake which typically distills three, five or eight years and features complex layers of whisky-like characteristics that complement desserts very well.

1. Drizzle aged sake over vanilla ice cream for a japanese twist on dessert.
2. Sip aged sake while eating flan, caramels or chocolates.
3. Kick back with aged sake while puffing a cigar.

When pairing foods with sake, you don’t want their flavors to overpower the sake or vice versa. The bites and sip should enhance and balance each other (we know you’re thinking “duh” but hey, it’s a lesson worth repeating).

We’re drowning nearly every sauce in sake, which seems wrong, but it’s been interesting. Let’s just say, it’s the new white wine in our cooking.