What is Sake?
In Japan, sake means “liquor,” but to the rest of the world, it’s become synonymous with an alcoholic beverage brewed from rice. It’s known as nihonshu (日本酒) in Japan, and it’s made through the parallel fermentation of rice using koji and yeast. The koji breaks down the starch in the rice into simple sugars, which are turned into alcohol by yeast. Koji also contains enzymes that break down the protein in rice into amino acids. This gives sake the taste of umami, which makes it a flavorful beverage to consume with a meal. It can also be added to food as a natural MSG and has long been used in Japanese dishes to add this crave-worthy taste.
Why Cook with Sake?
Umami - Due to the protein content of rice, rice wine naturally contains amino acids like glutamate, aspartate, and proline, which create the taste of umami in food and give Japanese recipes their distinctive flavor. Since grapes contain little protein, wine does not have the same flavor-enhancing effect. This makes white wine unsuitable for substitution. Flavor - Sake has a mild fruity flavor that compliments a wide variety of ingredients without overpowering them. This makes it a natural fit for delicate Japanese cuisine, but it can also be used as a seasoning to enhance the taste of Western dishes as well. Low acidity - Unlike wine, sake is not very acidic, so it won’t make foods you cook with it taste sour. No alcohol - Ethanol (the alcohol in sake) has a boiling temperature of 78.37°C. Since this is significantly lower than the boiling point of water (100°C), the alcohol content burns off in the cooking process.
Are Sake and Mirin the Same?
Both sake and mirin are Japanese rice wines and play vital roles in Japanese cooking, but they are not directly interchangeable. Real mirin, like sake, is brewed from rice, which means it’s also rich in umami-producing amino acids. Good mirin tends to be dark amber and has a much sweeter taste than sake. The sweetness of mirin is a natural result of fermentation, and there should be no added sugar. Unfortunately, the type of rice wine sold as mirin outside of Japan has not gone through the brewing process and is just alcohol mixed with sweeteners and flavor enhancers. This is why I recommend substituting an equal amount of sake with ½ the amount of sugar (i.e. 2 tablespoons of sake and 1 tablespoon of sugar) if you can’t find real mirin.
Is There a Difference Between Sake for Cooking and Drinking Sake?
The rabbit hole of sake is deep; there are whole books on the subject. When choosing the best sake for cooking, there’s just one important thing to remember: the polish ratio (a.k.a. mill ratio). When making premium sake, the protein-rich outer layers of rice are polished away to leave the starch-rich core, which gives a delicate flavor. This results in a more fragrant beverage; however, it comes at the expense of umami (which comes from the protein in the rice). Since the goal of using sake in cooking is to add umami to your food, you want to use sake made from rice that’s been polished as little as possible. The polish ratio is expressed as a percentage of the remaining rice. So, for example, sake made from highly polished rice may have a ratio of 23%, which means it’s been milled down to 23% of its original weight. This type of sake will not only come with a higher price tag, but it’s also not great for cooking because expensive sake has a lower concentration of amino acids.
What Kind of Sake Should I Use for Cooking?
Good sake for cooking is one with a higher number for the polish ratio (a.k.a. “cheap sake”). Futsu-shu and Junmai-shu typically have a polish ratio above 70% (higher rice remaining), so these inexpensive bottles are good categories of sake for cooking. American-brewed Sho Chiku Bai and Japanese sake brand Hakutsuru make relatively affordable sake in these categories.
What Sake Should I Avoid?
One thing I implore you to avoid is using “cooking sake.” Like “cooking wine” these products have often had a large amount of sodium added to them to make them undrinkable. Using this salty sake in recipes that call for sake will most likely make the finished dish inedible.
Will Flavored or Sparkling Sake Work?
Recently, sake breweries have started producing carbonated “sparkling sake” and flavored sake. Both categories of beverages are often sweetened, which makes them unsuitable for cooking.
What Can I Use Instead of Sake?
Sake is added to Japanese recipes for three reasons: as a liquid, for flavor, and umami. Although there is no good substitute for sake in cooking, you can replace it with an equal amount of water and a pinch of MSG or a stock such as vegetable or chicken broth. Avoid rice wine vinegar, regular wine, or fruit juice as substitutes, as these are all too acidic and do not have the high amino acid content that creates the taste of umami.
How Do I Use Sake in Cooking?
Sake is a versatile ingredient that can be used as a liquid in almost any dish to add more umami and flavor. Try substituting it in place of wine, broth, or water in your favorite recipe. If you need some ideas, here are just a few of my recipes that use it: Marinades - When used as a marinade, rice wine imparts umami to the food you soak in it, and it can also help neutralize gamey odors from meat or seafood. It’s a great addition to marinade recipes for Shogayaki and Karaage, but it can also be used to marinate things such as boiled eggs to make Ajitsuke Tamago (Ramen Egg). Braising liquid - In the West, braising is usually done with stock or wine, but in Japan, rice wine or dashi are the preferred liquids. Nimono, Kakuni, and Umeboshi Chicken Wings are just a few of my recipes that feature sake as a braising liquid. Soups and stews - While most Japanese soups are made with a base of dashi stock, sake is often added to boost umami in soups and stews. My Tonjiru and Chicken Udon feature meat-based stocks, but adding rice wine contributes glutamate, which creates synergistic umami with the meat’s nucleic acids. Mentsuyu is the base for many Japanese noodle soups, and a splash of sake makes the umami from the dashi pop. Sauces - We can’t talk about sake’s role in food without discussing one of the most famous Japanese sauces: Teriyaki Sauce. With just three basic ingredients, sake is what between sweet soy sauce and my homemade teriyaki sauce. It’s what makes Teriyaki Chicken such a stand-out dish and imparts a distinctive Japanese taste. Give it a try, and you’ll definitely taste the difference. I also like to add rice wine to my Tebasaki Sauce, as well as my dipping sauces for cold noodles such as somen or soba. Stir-fries - Sake or mirin also work great for stir-fries when you just need a little extra liquid that can also boost the flavors of dishes, like my Okinawa Taco Rice, Beef Yaki Udon, and Orange Chicken.
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