{"id":571,"date":"2026-08-28T12:54:54","date_gmt":"2026-08-28T12:54:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/?p=571"},"modified":"2026-08-28T12:54:55","modified_gmt":"2026-08-28T12:54:55","slug":"mentsuyu-the-all-purpose-seasoning-every-japanese-kitchen-relies-on","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/index.php\/2026\/08\/28\/mentsuyu-the-all-purpose-seasoning-every-japanese-kitchen-relies-on\/","title":{"rendered":"Mentsuyu \u2014 The All-Purpose Seasoning Every Japanese Kitchen Relies On"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"#topic01\" title=\"\">What Is Mentsuyu?<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"#topic02\" title=\"\">Types of Mentsuyu<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"#topic03\" title=\"\">How to Use Mentsuyu<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"vk_block-margin-lg--margin-bottom\"><a href=\"#topic04\" title=\"\">You Can Even Make Mentsuyu from Scratch<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading vk_block-margin-0--margin-bottom\" id=\"topic01\">What Is Mentsuyu?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Do you know about <strong>mentsuyu<\/strong> (\u3081\u3093\u3064\u3086)? It might just be one of the most useful seasonings in Japanese cooking. In a single bottle, you get dashi, soy sauce, mirin, and sake all combined together. Honestly, with just this one seasoning, pretty much anyone can put together a proper Japanese meal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"vk_block-margin-lg--margin-bottom\">It's such a convenient shortcut that you'll find a bottle of mentsuyu in almost every Japanese household's pantry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading vk_block-margin-0--margin-bottom\" id=\"topic02\">Types of Mentsuyu<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Lots of different manufacturers make their own version of mentsuyu, and most of them are pretty affordable. Bottle sizes vary, but the one thing you really need to pay attention to is the <strong>concentration level<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Mentsuyu comes in a few different strengths:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Straight (ready to use, no dilution needed)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>2x concentrated<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>3x concentrated<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>4x concentrated (a newer option that's become more common in recent years)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Each type needs a different amount of water to dilute it properly. Most bottles will actually tell you the recommended dilution ratio right on the label \u2014 one ratio for dipping noodles, another for simmered dishes, and so on. It's worth checking before you start cooking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped vk_block-margin-lg--margin-bottom wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" data-id=\"602\" src=\"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/mentsuyu_2-1024x768.png\" alt=\"Mentsuyu\" class=\"wp-image-602\" srcset=\"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/mentsuyu_2-1024x768.png 1024w, https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/mentsuyu_2-300x225.png 300w, https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/mentsuyu_2-768x576.png 768w, https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/mentsuyu_2-1536x1152.png 1536w, https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/mentsuyu_2-2048x1536.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">2x concentrated mentsuyu<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading vk_block-margin-0--margin-bottom\" id=\"topic03\">How to Use Mentsuyu<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>This one seasoning goes a surprisingly long way. Here are some of the most common uses:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>As the dipping or soup base for somen, udon, and soba noodles<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>As a light, refreshing dipping sauce for tempura<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>As the seasoning for simmered dishes (nimono) \u2014 no other seasoning needed<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>In donburi dishes like tendon (tempura rice bowl) and oyakodon (chicken and egg rice bowl)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Poured straight over hiyayakko (cold tofu) \u2014 simple, but so good<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>And that's really just scratching the surface. I'll keep sharing simple Japanese recipes that use mentsuyu as I go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-2 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" data-id=\"603\" src=\"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/00_dipping-sauce-for-tempura-1024x576.png\" alt=\"00 dipping sauce for tempura\" class=\"wp-image-603\" srcset=\"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/00_dipping-sauce-for-tempura-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/00_dipping-sauce-for-tempura-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/00_dipping-sauce-for-tempura-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/00_dipping-sauce-for-tempura-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/00_dipping-sauce-for-tempura-320x180.png 320w, https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/00_dipping-sauce-for-tempura.png 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Dipping sauce for tempura<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" data-id=\"573\" src=\"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/11_its-done-1024x576.png\" alt=\"11 it's done\" class=\"wp-image-573\" srcset=\"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/11_its-done-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/11_its-done-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/11_its-done-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/11_its-done-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/11_its-done-320x180.png 320w, https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/11_its-done.png 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Nikujaga<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" data-id=\"565\" src=\"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/somen_02-1024x576.png\" alt=\"Somen\" class=\"wp-image-565\" srcset=\"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/somen_02-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/somen_02-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/somen_02-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/somen_02-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/somen_02-320x180.png 320w, https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/somen_02.png 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">somen tsuke<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"vk_block-margin-lg--margin-bottom\">In my last post, I made somen using this exact seasoning \u2014 you can find that recipe there, and I've also posted the video version on YouTube if you'd like to see it in action. And more recently, I used mentsuyu to make one of Japan's classic comfort foods, nikujaga (beef and potato stew) \u2014 that post is up now too, so please take a look.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading vk_block-margin-0--margin-bottom\" id=\"topic04\">You Can Even Make Mentsuyu from Scratch<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Here's something fun \u2014 you can actually make your own mentsuyu at home. I covered this in Japanese on my other channel a while back. If you already have dashi, mirin, sake, and soy sauce on hand, I really recommend giving it a try. It's simpler than you might expect, and there's something satisfying about making this everyday staple yourself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio vk_block-margin-md--margin-bottom\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"\u300c\u3081\u3093\u3064\u3086\u300d\u306e\u7c21\u5358\u306a\u4f5c\u308a\u65b9\u3002\u7518\u3044\u3081\u3093\u3064\u3086\u304c\u82e6\u624b\u306a\u4eba\u5411\u3051\u3002\" width=\"1140\" height=\"641\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/kkovyr-GwF8?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-wp-embed is-provider-a-japanese-life wp-block-embed-a-japanese-life\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"blog-card\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"blog-card-body-outer\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"blog-card-body\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h5 class=\"blog-card-title\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/index.php\/2026\/08\/15\/somen-the-noodle-you-eat-at-home-not-at-a-restaurant\/\">Somen \u2014 The Noodle You Eat at Home, Not at a Restaurant<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h5>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"blog-card-text\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tWhen people think of Japanese noodles, ramen is usually the first thing that comes to mind \u2014 it&#039;s famous worldwide, and for good reason. But did you know there\u2026\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"blog-card-site-title\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/cropped-Gemini_Generated_Image_1n1shu1n1shu1n1s-32x32.png\" width=\"16\" height=\"16\" alt=\"\" >\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tA Japanese Life\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"blog-card-image-outer\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/index.php\/2026\/08\/15\/somen-the-noodle-you-eat-at-home-not-at-a-restaurant\/\" class=\"blog-card-image-frame\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"blog-card-image-src\" src=\"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/somen_02-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-wp-embed is-provider-a-japanese-life wp-block-embed-a-japanese-life\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"blog-card\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"blog-card-body-outer\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"blog-card-body\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h5 class=\"blog-card-title\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/index.php\/2026\/08\/21\/nikujaga-japanese-beef-and-potato-stew\/\">Easy Nikujaga Recipe: Shortcut Japanese Beef and Potato Stew (With Mentsuyu)<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h5>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"blog-card-text\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tA classic Japanese comfort food \u2014 tender beef and vegetables simmered in a savoury-sweet broth. This shortcut version uses just one seasoning: mentsuyu. Nikuja\u2026\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"blog-card-site-title\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/cropped-Gemini_Generated_Image_1n1shu1n1shu1n1s-32x32.png\" width=\"16\" height=\"16\" alt=\"\" >\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tA Japanese Life\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"blog-card-image-outer\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/index.php\/2026\/08\/21\/nikujaga-japanese-beef-and-potato-stew\/\" class=\"blog-card-image-frame\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"blog-card-image-src\" src=\"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/11_its-done-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\n<\/div><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What Is Mentsuyu? Do you know about mentsuyu (\u3081\u3093\u3064\u3086)? It might just be one of the most useful seasonings in Japanese cooking. In a single bottle, you get dashi, soy sauce, mirin, and sake all combined together. Honestly, with just this one seasoning, pretty much anyone can put together a proper Japanese meal. It's such [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":560,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"slim_seo":{"title":"Mentsuyu \u2014 The All-Purpose Seasoning Every Japanese Kitchen Relies On - A Japanese Life","description":"What Is Mentsuyu? Do you know about mentsuyu (\u3081\u3093\u3064\u3086)? It might just be one of the most useful seasonings in Japanese cooking. In a single bottle, you get dashi,"},"sns_share_botton_hide":"","vkExUnit_sns_title":"","_vk_print_noindex":"","sitemap_hide":"","_veu_custom_css":"","veu_display_promotion_alert":"","vkexunit_cta_each_option":"","_lightning_design_setting":[],"_slim_seo_primary_term_category":5,"_slim_seo_primary_term_post_tag":31,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[31,33],"class_list":["post-571","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-food-cooking","tag-mentsuyu","tag-nikujaga"],"veu_head_title_object":{"title":"","add_site_title":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/571","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=571"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/571\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":615,"href":"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/571\/revisions\/615"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/560"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=571"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=571"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.bita-d.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=571"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}