When a recipe needs some “seasoning, umami, flavor”, what’s near your cooktop? Salt, soy sauce? Maybe, but If you’re a trendsetting American chef, you reach for the fish sauce. Whether called nuoc man -Vietnamese for fish sauce- or nam pla (Thai translation), fish sauce is extracted from salted and fermented fish (think anchovies) and has…
Resolution–simply saying the word out loud instills a tinge of anxiety in most Americans. A call to action, the word “resolution” means a chance to act with determination. To make your mind up. Once and for all. And you get a whole year to do it. A year. 365 days. 8760 hours. Even subtract the…
A new year…it represents freshness, the opportunity for change, the anticipation of something new. Being foodies who also work in the food industry, the beginning of a new year signifies many things but nothing more exciting than what’s trending on menus, television, in grocery markets and on the streets. We here at Nikken Foods spend…
At Nikken, we like the holidays as much as the next foodie. Especially Thanksgiving because when you are a food ingredient company what is better than a holiday that had its origins honoring a historic dinner? There are no gifts to be bought, just the glorious planning and researching on what to serve and how…
We spend a lot of time on our blog talking about food. By now you probably know that we deeply care about food, ingredients, recipes and how to make everything taste better. As passionate as we are about food, we are going to take a lunch break from all that and focus on something vital…
Did you know that 75% of women and 95% of men in the US exceed the recommended daily tolerable upper intake of sodium1? Shocking, yes. Surprising? Not really when you stop to think about the speed at which our society moves which directly corresponds to the amount of fast food, convenience food and snacks that…
Everybody’s talking about fermentation – from rock-star chefs to home cooks. In fact, Chicago-based Chef Rick Bayless predicts “fermentation is going to be very in-demand in 2013. This pickling cooking technique delivers sour flavors that demonstrate an evolution of the American taste. Do-it-yourself sauerkraut and kimchi make for delicious toppings for tacos or even burgers1.” …
Noodles and I go way back. From the first time I had a bowl covered with my mom’s rich, meaty tomato sauce, I was smitten. I can eat them anyway shape or form and have. Back in college at Mizzou, ramen noodles always accompanied my late night study sessions. Inexpensive, filling and immensely satisfying, ramen…
Perhaps my favorite weekend ritual is my Saturday morning walk, a joy that living in my small town provides. While on my walk, I connect to my town as well as my past. I can easily view the passage of time: the once small trees from years ago are now dropping limbs larger than their…
