Nametake: A Jar of Soy Sauce Simmered Enoki Mushrooms

When it comes to mushrooms of Japanese origin, Shiitake (椎茸) is famous and widely enjoyed in many countries.

Another example of the cultivated mushrooms representing Japan is Enoki (えのき), whose wild form is known as Winter Mushroom in English.

Enoki is a thin and long white mushroom commonly used in Japanese cuisine, especially as an ingredient for miso soup and Nabemono (鍋物: hot pots).

Nametake (なめ茸)

In Japan, Enoki mushrooms are not only sold fresh in plastic packages, but they also come in processed form.

And what I introduce here, Nametake (なめ茸), is the representative.

Nametake is soy sauce simmered Enoki mushrooms and usually comes in a glass jar.

It was developed around 1958 or 1959 by Nishiki (錦) (Google Map), a Ryotei restaurant located in Arashiyama, Kyoto, and afterward became popular.

Where to Buy

And today, Nametake is available in most supermarkets and grocery stores around the country.

It is inexpensive, as shown that I bought this one for about 100 yen (about 1 USD).

Ingredients 

Next, let’s see the ingredients.

The list on the side of the jar says this Nametake mainly consists of Enoki mushrooms, sugar, starch syrup, soy sauce, salt, Kombu seaweed extract, bonito extract, chicken bouillon, yeast extract, and agar.

Taste

As mentioned above, Nametake is made from Enoki mushrooms simmered down in a soy sauce-based sweet sauce, and it is sweetish.

When you put it in the mouth, a faint aroma of soy sauce and a satisfying umami taste spread.

Uses

We like to eat these mushrooms with a warm bowl of white rice.

Also, Nametake goes perfectly with Daikon Oroshi (大根おろし) grated radish and boiled Wakame.

(Reference Page: Wikipedia ナメタケ )