Nitto Jyozo - Wadaman - Yugeta and more from ChefShop

This weekend we are welcoming the makers of the products here in the newsletter. Extra fun! Come and taste and learn about these really cool ingredients!

Nitto Jozo Mikawa Shojin Vegetarian Shirodashi is a plant-based Japanese soup seasoning (shirodashi) made in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. Founded in 1938, Nitto Jozo is an artisanal fermentation producer known for its carefully brewed tamari-style soy sauces and restrained, ingredient-driven approach to seasoning.

Their white tamari base is brewed from Japanese wheat, sea salt, and water in the Mikawa region of Aichi Prefecture. It is this light, softly fermented soy base that anchors the character of the shirodashi—delicate, savory, and quietly complex rather than bold or heavy.

“Shojin” (精進) refers to Japan’s Buddhist vegetarian culinary tradition, where cooking is rooted in plant-based clarity and restraint. In this version, umami is built without fish ingredients such as katsuobushi (dried bonito), instead drawing depth from shiitake mushroom, kombu (kelp), and dried daikon radish, with mirin and fermentation adding gentle sweetness and roundness.

Unlike Nitto Jozo’s standard shirodashi, which includes bonito-based dashi and added sugar, the vegetarian version relies entirely on plant-based umami sources and fermentation rather than fish-derived stock.

This can be used as a finishing seasoning or lightly diluted soup base. It is especially effective when added at the end of cooking to bring lift and umami to soups, noodle broths, dressings, marinades, and tamagoyaki (rolled omelets). A small amount can also enhance steamed or boiled vegetables.

Its pale color and restrained flavor make it well suited to Kyoto-style cooking and shojin cuisine, where clarity and subtlety are central. It is typically sold in a 400 ml bottle and should be refrigerated after opening.

Silky Japanese steamed egg custard seasoned entirely with Nitto Jozo Shojin Vegetarian Shirodashi — no separate dashi needed. Pale, delicate, and fully plant-forward.

This white tamari (shiro tamari) reflects this approach in one of its most delicate expressions.

Brewed using locally grown wheat, Japanese sea salt, mountain spring water, and koji, it is a pale, gently aromatic seasoning that sits outside the more common commercial soy sauce spectrum. Rather than intensity or weight, it leans toward clarity, balance, and the quiet layering that comes from slow fermentation.

The flavor is distinct from standard soy sauces: instead of depth through darkness and density, it offers a clean interplay of saltiness, soft sweetness, and umami. It works best as a finishing accent—something that lifts and sharpens rather than dominates a dish.

When this showed up and the chefs tried it they went all in! It is truly special!

If there is one thing Wadaman is known for, it is roasting sesame!

Rather than roasting sesame once, Wadaman slowly roasts the seeds three times — first at a low temperature, then hotter, before finishing again at a lower temperature. By carefully working with the sesame's own natural oils, the seeds become remarkably round, developing a crisp bite and an exceptionally deep, fragrant aroma.

Their sesame pastes receive the same patient treatment. Roasted seeds are ground slowly at low temperatures using traditional ceramic grinding stones, passing through the mill four or five times until the natural oil content produces a smooth, creamy paste without sacrificing the flavor developed during roasting.

Their Japanese-grown sesame is JAS Organic certified and produced without pesticides or chemical fertilizers.

When you taste this it is a revelation of what roasted, not toasted, sesame oil can be!

Wadaman's Dark Roasted Golden Sesame Oil comes from a sesame house with deep roots. Wadaman Co., Ltd. was founded in 1883 in Tenma, Osaka, a district where dried-food merchants had gathered since the Edo period, and it has spent more than 140 years doing essentially one thing: sesame.

It's now a fifth-generation family business, and the figure most associated with its reputation is Etsuji Wada, the fourth-generation owner, who has personally roasted the seeds for over 45 years and is widely regarded as one of Japan's finest sesame roasters.

Wadaman sources sesame from some of the world's finest growing regions. Since 2010, it has also been working to revive sesame cultivation in Japan, partnering with more than 200 contracted farmers while cultivating its own organic fields in Nara Prefecture. That's remarkable in a country that imports nearly all of the sesame it consumes.

The seeds undergo repeated washing, cleaning and sorting before roasting. Roasters adjust temperatures in single-degree increments until the seeds reach their optimum, then cameras and laser sorters remove any that fail inspection.

The roasting technique itself is the signature. Wadaman uses a triple-roasting process — low temperature, then high, then low again — producing plump, evenly roasted seeds with a delicate, nuanced flavor.

For the oil, Wadaman keeps the process deliberately restrained. Only the first pressing is used, requiring about 5 kg of sesame seeds to produce a single litre of oil. The result is a bright, clear oil that's subtle rather than overpowering. "Golden" refers to the sesame variety itself, and the only ingredient is golden sesame seeds.

Rich in flavor yet surprisingly delicate, it shines as a finishing oil over blanched vegetables, light broths, steamed dumplings, cold noodle salads, or thick-cut steaks and pork chops. It also adds depth to marinades and stir-fries.

Perfect way to celebrate this very special oil!

What sets this rayu apart is its simplicity and balance. It's made with only two ingredients, organic sesame oil and organic chili peppers, delivering clean, balanced heat with a nutty aroma.

While the flavor of most rayu is dominated by spiciness, Wadaman's strikes a balance between rich sesame flavor and the bold heat from the chili peppers. The result is a golden red condiment packed with deep, but not overwhelming, heat.

Rayu is a Japanese chili oil, adapted from the Chinese la-yu tradition. Traditional rayu is mostly smooth oil with minimal solids — sesame oil infused with dried chili, sometimes garlic and ginger — and it functions more as a seasoning than a topping.

Add a splash to add a kick to ramen, eggs, roasted veggies, and dumpling sauce. It also works well drizzled over noodles, tofu, or stir-fries.

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These are the best. Somehow they are the perfect combination of roasting and salt. If I could I would eat them by the bagful!

The nose tells you wonderful things. Toasted black sesame has a distinct - and to me, a distinctly different - aroma from white sesame.

I love both!

This is just right, perfect really; salted and toasted sesame seeds are the bomb (that is so 80's.)

To the mouth, the tongue first gets this wonderful, pleasant salty hit, and then the toasted sesame comes thru in the bite. It's good!

Three types of cheese, sour cream and egg yolks make it ridiculously rich and delicious.

Yugeta Cherry Smoked Shoyu is a naturally brewed Japanese soy sauce that's been smoked over sakura (cherry blossom) wood, giving it a deep, woodsy smokiness on top of the usual savory umami.

It's made by Yugeta Shoyu, a family-run brewery operating since 1923 in Tawame, Saitama Prefecture, just outside Tokyo, now led by fourth-generation craftsman Yohichi Yugeta.

The shoyu is fermented and aged for about a year in open pinewood vats, some of which have been used since the late 1800s, using Japanese-grown soybeans, wheat, and natural sea salt.

This is a special finishing sauce. When you tasting it, the smoke flavor is intense!

The smokiness is very forward, so you only need a few drops to announce its flavor in a dish.

It shines as a dipping sauce or a final drizzle over food. It works beautifully drizzled over grilled vegetables, seafood, meats, cheeses, or even fresh fruit for a wonderful smoky layer. Consider a couple drops on a soft-boiled or fried egg, over sashimi or grilled fish, on roasted mushrooms or charred vegetables, swirled into a dipping sauce for dumplings or tempura, over avocado toast, or even a drop or two on a good cheese.

What if soy sauce could be deeper… richer… rounder—without being saltier?

Yugeta Double Brewed Soy Sauce is exactly that.

To make it, Yugeta-san first brews a traditional batch with Japanese-grown soybeans, wheat, sea salt, water, and koji.

Then he starts again—but instead of using salt and water for the second fermentation, he uses the first batch of soy sauce.

The result? A soy sauce that’s more viscous, more layered, and surprisingly less sharp in salinity. Think depth without harshness. Umami without overwhelm.

It’s beautiful as a finishing dip for sashimi or dumplings, brushed onto grilled meats, or drizzled over roasted vegetables. But here’s where it gets interesting: it also works in dessert. A few drops over vanilla ice cream creates a salty-caramel effect that’s complex, savory, and completely addictive.

Yugeta Yuzu Ponzu is a citrus-forward Japanese ponzu sauce made by Yugeta Shoyu, a soy sauce brewery operating since 1923 in the village of Tawame in Saitama Prefecture, just outside Tokyo.

The company is now run by a fourth-generation shoyu maker, Yohichi Yugeta, and still brews its soy sauce naturally using Japanese-grown soybeans and wheat, slowly aged in wooden cedar vats.

What sets this particular ponzu apart is that it's made with yuzu alone. Most ponzu sauces blend several Japanese citrus fruits, such as sudachi, daidai, kabosu, or lemon, but Yugeta's uses only yuzu, which gives it a distinctively bright, tart, and floral character.

The sauce is built on Yugeta's own traditionally brewed soy sauce blended with yuzu juice, mirin, dashi, salt, and sugar, with the umami rounded out by katsuobushi (skipjack/bonito) and kombu (kelp).

The full ingredient list is soy sauce, yuzu juice, a secondary sauce component (soy sauce, sugar, mirin, skipjack tuna, dried shiitake, kelp), mirin, salt, and sugar. It contains soy, wheat, and fish, so it's not vegan or gluten-free.

It's a versatile condiment. It works well as a dipping sauce for shabu-shabu, hot pot, sushi, sashimi, gyoza, and grilled meats or fish, and it also shines whisked into salad dressings, drizzled over steamed vegetables, stirred into mayonnaise or aioli, or used to finish noodles, seafood, or cold tofu.

A little goes a long way, and you'll want to refrigerate it after opening.

In Italian, agrodolce means "sour and sweet," and this nuanced vinegar beautifully expresses both. Albert and Kim Katz have long been fascinated with the idea of marrying the sweetness and complexity of wine grapes that have been left on the vine to concentrate the flavors and natural sugars, with the bright and crisp acidity of authentic Orleans Method vinegar.

The versatility of this elixir will expand your repertoire!

For a simple salad dressing, add just a drizzle of olive oil, along with salt and pepper. You'll need less oil with the balanced acidity in AgroDolce than in your regular dressing recipe.

Packed with capsicum sweet peppers and mixed with Hawkshead's own blend of roasted spices and herbs, these peppers are a fantastic burst of flavors. If you love peppers, you'll love this pickle!

Open the jar and the color of turmeric dominates the scene. You can see little bits of peppers, ginger seeds and spices. Dip your spoon in cautiously and the aromas escape the surface. Get close with your nose to get a good whiff. It's a super blend of all the spices and the pepper together.

Recipe ideas for this sweet red pepper relish include stuffing a teaspoon in a chicken breast before roasting, or stirring through some mashed potatoes for serving with an Indian curry. Sweet Pepper Pickle paired with goat cheese, makes a great quiche filling.

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Key Lime Cake Recipe

— Chef Johnny, a ChefShop Reader

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ChefShop Grande Brut contains 22% to 24% cocoa butter. That is significantly higher than most cocoa powders on the market, and it is one of the main reasons we chose it. That extra cocoa butter is not a minor detail. It changes how the cocoa tastes, how it blends, and what your finished desserts actually feel like.

Most people focus on cocoa percentage (and with cocoa powder it is always 100% as it has no sugar) and overlook fat content entirely. It is the balance between cocoa mass and cocoa butter that matters. Cocoa butter is the natural fat in the cacao bean, and it shapes everything about how cocoa performs in a recipe.
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