What is umeboshi and recipe to make at home
Did you know that from a natural point of view, and also easily and simply, we can make delicious homemade seasonings and all-natural condiments with which to bring more flavor and aromas to our dishes and recipes ?. They are, in fact, much more nutritious and healthy options, which also provide us with incredible benefits and properties for the care and protection of our health.
A good example is the soy sauce, a tremendously popular and popular condiment that comes directly from Asian cuisines (specifically from Japanese cuisine), which is made from the fermentation of soybeans, wheat, water and salt. Another example is the tamari sauce, which stands out for being the most traditional and authentic soy sauce, when fermented directly from soybeans and does not include wheat.
However, if you read the two notes related to these two condiments it is quite likely that, if you want to make them at home, you have already noticed a small inconvenience: their fermentation time, which usually ranges between 6 to 12 months for the soy sauce, and between 18 to 24 months for tamari sauce. What makes us also look for other wonderful options such as natural dressings, as for example is the case of umeboshi.
What is umeboshi?
Although with the name of umeboshi it is popularly known as fermented plum dough unripe that is obtained from the fermentation with sea salt coming directly from Japan, the truth is that actually with this name we have a very specific variety of Japanese green plums, which are used precisely for its preparation. In fact, the word umeboshi literally means hydrated plum.
Of course, as with other Japanese condiments, patience is the main hallmark of their preparation. Why? Mainly because the minimum ideal fermentation is reached in two years, so the elaboration of this paste takes approximately this time.
Obviously, it is also possible to prepare it in less time but we would not find ourselves before a traditional umeboshi pasta.
How to make umeboshi pasta at home
To make umeboshi pasta at home you need Japanese green plums known by the name of ume, or also directly by the name of umeboshi. You can find them in Asian or Japanese food stores, but if you can not buy them you can opt for other varieties of green plums more common.
The traditional process is to let the fresh green plums dry on rice mats, leaving them exposed to the sun, and also outdoors during the night. In the morning the drops of dew are able to soften them, while the sun hardens them again. And so on, this process must be repeated for a few days.
The plums will be ready when we notice that they have become smaller and wrinkled. At this time they should be placed in barrels with sea salt and a weight on top, and leave them for at least 2 years so that their fermentation is the ideal, since thanks to the salt we will get the plums to ferment forming a juice in the bottom of the barrel . We can also add Shiso or Perilla leaves, useful to complete your mineral wealth.
If you do not want to wait any longer you can leave at least a few weeks or a few months, although obviously the result would not be the same.
Then the fermented plums can be crushed to obtain a homogeneous and smooth paste, or they can be consumed whole.
