Yamagata Dashi (The Ultimate Summer Vegetable Relish)

Twist off the eggplant stems. First slice them thinly, then cut the slices into sticks and chop crosswise into a fine mince. The finer the cut, the better it tastes.

Soak the chopped eggplant in water to remove the bitterness. Since this recipe is eaten raw, this step is essential. Eaten as is, the eggplant has a harsh bitterness, but soaking in water removes it.

Trim the ends off the cucumbers, cut them in half, then cut lengthwise and chop into a fine mince.

Roll up the shiso leaves and chop them all at once. A food processor works too, but chopping them too finely releases water and makes it mushy, so a coarser cut is recommended. Finely chop the myoga and ginger in the same way.

Drain the soaked eggplant in a colander, add a pinch of salt and mix, then squeeze firmly by hand to remove the water. Eggplant holds the most water, so without squeezing, the dashi will turn watery.

Bring a pot of water to a boil and add about 1% salt. Add the okra whole (without cutting) and boil for about 2 minutes, stirring as they float to the surface. Boiling them whole seals the stickiness inside.

Cool the boiled okra briefly in water, cut off the stem ends, and chop finely lengthwise, then crosswise. The stickiness won't come out unless chopped, so chop them well.

Trim and wash the zucchini, then chop it coarsely. Leaving some coarse pieces adds textural variety and tastes great. Combine all the chopped vegetables (eggplant, cucumber, okra, shiso, myoga, ginger, zucchini) in a bowl.

Add 15g of shio kombu and 2 teaspoons of hondashi and mix. The stickiness of the okra and kombu will develop throughout. Chopsticks get tiring, so put on gloves and mix by hand to bring out even more stickiness.

Taste, then add about 2 teaspoons of soy sauce to sharpen the flavor. Mix again and check the final taste. If adding zucchini, reducing the hondashi slightly gives just the right balance.

Pile it generously over freshly cooked rice. Or boil somen noodles, drain well, and toss them with plenty of the dashi. No mentsuyu needed.

If you like, mix in natto (with its sauce and mustard) and eat it that way. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days.