Dried Anchovies (Niboshi, iriko) 瀨戶內海小魚乾

煮干し(いりこ)  瀬戸内産

Iriko, also called niboshi in Japanese, are dried baby anchovies/sardines. They are used in making Japanese stock called Iriko Dashi or Niboshi Dashi or can be enjoyed as a snack. 

Niboshi are baby sardines that have been boiled once in salt water then dried. They vary in size from about 1.5″ to over 3″ long with the smaller ones having a milder flavor. Their bold, fishy flavor with the strong aroma is one of the key umami contributors to Japanese stocks (dashi). You can also find dried baby anchovies being used in similar manners in Korean, Chinese and South East Asian cooking. Please keep refrigerated

小魚乾是便宜又相當萬用的食材，除了能當作熱炒配菜之外，萃取出的小魚乾高湯更是麵食、醬汁的增鮮好幫手。已經過曬乾的小魚乾不用另外調味，也不必花時間費心熬煮，很輕易就能萃取出滋味風後的鮮美高湯。瀨戶內海水域的氣候溫暖洋流穩定，含有豐富的浮游生物，此處生長的鯷魚脂肪少、肉質細嫩，製成魚乾後香氣濃郁滋味鮮美，是非常好的高湯素材，被視為日本最上等絕品。