If you are a sushi lover, you must have heard of wasabi. It's this hot spice that I usually put between the fish and rice in sushi. Wasabi has a unique and fresh aroma as well as a taste that touches your senses.

Where does this hot, green paste come from? Why is it used for sushi? There are so many interesting facts about Wasabi that we will present to you today.

What is Wasabi?

Wasabi (山葵) is produced from the roots of Wasabia japonica - a plant known as "Japanese horseradish". This plant originates from Japan and is one of the spicy spices commonly used for sushi. To consume Wasabi, you must grate the rhizome with a metal or porcelain grater. Traditionally in Japan they use shark skin to grate the roots.

Grated Wasabi is allowed to sit for 1-2 minutes to develop its flavor. Freshly grated wasabi, however, will lose its aroma and hot, authentic taste in about 20 minutes. For this reason, traditional Japanese sushi restaurants prepare wasabi immediately before serving sushi.

Attention!
Sushi lovers know that when they order in a restaurant, they serve wasabi, which has a taste and aroma for a long time. Why do we write here that wasabi loses its flavor and aroma very quickly?

The answer to this question is easy!

90% of the paste served in Japan and abroad is actually fake! What we have tried most often is imitation wasabi, which has a different taste and aroma than real wasabi! This fake pasta that we are served most often contains starch, horseradish and mustard.

Interesting facts

Wasabi has been used in cooking and medicine in Japan for a long time, but it has become popular worldwide since 1980, when sushi became part of the menu in a number of countries.

Wasabi Japonica is a very tasty spice if it is cultivated in clean water
Cultivation of wasabi requires specific conditions, which limit the production of the plant to limited locations, even in Japan.

Wasabi is cultivated using two methods that differ depending on the area of cultivation - hydroponic and field cultivation. Regardless of the cultivation method, Wasabi Japonica must grow in fresh air at a certain temperature - 8-18C, in mountainous areas with an abundance of clean water. Wasabi does not tolerate direct sunlight and likes high humidity in summer.

It takes 1.5 to 3 years to harvest Wasabi Japonica. The crop of the plant is ready to harvest when the bright flowers reach 7-8 cm and have a nice cylindrical shape with a strong aroma.

Wasabi is picked by hand one by one, cleaned under running water, then the leaves and roots are separated. All root irregularities must be removed before the plant is offered on the market. Wasabi leaves and stems are also edible, making delicious salads.

Wasabi is a very rare and expensive spice
As we already understood, growing Wasabi is very difficult and requires a lot of time and effort. There are already plantations outside of Japan trying to help provide more wasabi, but the numbers are not yet sufficient to meet demand.

This makes real Wasabi (Wasabi Japnoica) extremely rare and expensive. Wasabi is one of the most expensive vegetables in the world, with its price reaching up to 250$ for 1 kg.

Adding real, grated wasabi to your sushi roll will add $3-$5 to your bill.

The price of this spice is the reason why not everyone has the opportunity to try real wasabi. There are only a few high-end restaurants in Japan that serve real wasabi.

Most wasabi paste is fake
As already mentioned, real wasabi is very expensive, that's why people just offer fake, much cheaper wasabi paste.

Most of the paste served in the world is an imitation of real wasabi and is made by mixing European horseradish, mustard and green food coloring. Some of the mixes offered include a food stabilizer that helps the fake paste take on the texture of real wasabi. You can find products that, among other ingredients, still include a small amount of grated wasabi.

The imitation ingredients are not randomly chosen - they have a similar chemical compound to real Wasabi. However, horseradish and mustard are plants in the Brassicaceae family, the same family as Wasabi Japonica.

Eating and buying imitation pasta is convenient, easy and reasonably priced. You should know, however, that this imitation paste has a very different taste than real wasabi.

We highly recommend you to compare the flavors of real and fake Wasabi, if you have the chance of course!

What does wasabi taste like?

We can define the taste of real Wasabi as sharp and hot. You will feel this taste first with your nose. Real Wasabi will impart a pleasant, mild and herbal taste with a natural sweetness, with absolutely no burning sensation. Real wasabi will surprise you with its milder and purer taste compared to imitation paste.

The taste of real wasabi will surprise anyone who does not live in Japan. Wasabi is really tasty, especially if it is added to the right food, for example sushi or sashimi.

Real Wasabi vs Fake Paste

We have already introduced you to the differences, let us below summarize and systematize the differences between real Wasabi and the pasta that we offer in restaurants and supermarkets.

Real Wasabi
- Aroma: more herbal and vegetal.
- Taste: first you feel the unique aroma with your nose, followed by sweetness and pleasant spiciness. It has an unexpectedly clean taste without burning.
- Consistency: granular structure.
- Color: natural, green color.

Fake Wasabi
- Aroma: strong, specific aroma.
- Taste: sharp taste with a longer burning effect.
- Consistency: pasty, thick consistency.
- Color: depending on the added ingredients, it varies from light to deep green.

Health Benefits:

Prevents food poisoning
Wasabi Japonica has the ability to stop the growth of bacteria in food. Some research shows that wasabi can directly reduce pathogenic bacteria that cause food poisoning when added to sushi or sashimi. Also, adding real wasabi to these Japanese foods greatly reduces the fishy smell.

The antimicrobial effect is due to isothiocyanate (ITC) - the main active compound contained in the plant.

Anti-Inflammatory Effect
Research states that one of the ITCs structure, the 6-(methylsulfinyl) hexyl isothio-cyanate (or simply called as 6-MITC) is responsible to reduce the production of inflammatory factors in our body. This compound influences the body’s immune and inflammation-related genes to activate their anti-inflammatory functions.

In short, wasabi also has the anti-inflammatory effect that protects our body from tissue injuries and pathogen invasions.

Real Wasabi Powder

Wasabi powder is prepared through special processing and drying techniques that preserve the taste qualities of the fresh product. The raw roots are deep frozen, then the moisture is removed by vacuum sublimation before grinding. Without this technology, it would be impossible for the authentic taste of Wasabi Japonica to reach consumers around the world. One of the great advantages of wasabi powder is its relatively long shelf life. If you store it in a dark and cool place, it will retain its qualities for a long time.

We offer you a product that has no analogue both on the Bulgarian market and on a large part of the world market. Wasabi powder is the real wasabi you've never tried, even if you're a huge sushi lover. This product is not manufactured and does not contain horseradish, mustard or chili, does not contain any coloring, flavoring or imitation ingredients.

Source: thejapanstore.us

Where to buy Real Wasabi?

You can find Real Wasabi - roots powder in "Zdravnitza".

You can place your order online. We deliver our products to products in Bulgaria, Europe, USA, Canada, Australia, Israel and Thailand.

You can also buy Wasabi on the local stores of "Zdravnitza":

Health store "Zdravnitza"
1000 Sofia, Bulgaria
23 Neofit Rilski str.

Health store "Zdravnitza"
1303 Sofia, Bulgaria
74 Odrin str.