Is ALL Wasabi searing hot?????

[cdrn1]

I live in a small town...we have 5 pizza places, 2 McD's, and little else.
I have had wasabi peas (searing fire-like orbs)
and Sushi with wasabi (pretty darn hot).
Does wasabi=heat?
thx.

 

[Krissalee]

Wasabi is hot. If you have it with sushi, you can control the heat by just adding a little wasabi to the soy sauce, and dipping the sushi in the sauce.

I have often had wasabi glazed fish dishes at restaurants, and it is often a milder heat, as the wasabi is mixed with other marinades.

Most of the wasabi that tends to be served in the average US restaurants tends to be a stronger, more concentrated version. I have had fresh grated wasabi twice (once at the F&W Sushi, Sake and Sashimi event, and once in NYC restaurant Megu). It seems to have less heat, is fresher, and it is recommended to add the wasabi directly to the fish, then dip in plain soy sauce. I learned that fresh wasabi is very expensive, and the use of it here in the US is fairly limited.

 

[ZuZugal]

In my experience Wasabi is very hot....and I love it. It's kind of an acquired taste, but now I don't like my California rolls without it!

 

[Hootch]

Wasabi is hot. If you have it with sushi, you can control the heat by just adding a little wasabi to the soy sauce, and dipping the sushi in the sauce.

I have often had wasabi glazed fish dishes at restaurants, and it is often a milder heat, as the wasabi is mixed with other marinades.

Most of the wasabi that tends to be served in the average US restaurants tends to be a stronger, more concentrated version. I have had fresh grated wasabi twice (once at the F&W Sushi, Sake and Sashimi event, and once in NYC restaurant Megu). It seems to have less heat, is fresher, and it is recommended to add the wasabi directly to the fish, then dip in plain soy sauce. I learned that fresh wasabi is very expensive, and the use of it here in the US is fairly limited.

wasabi served in the US is not true wasabi. It's a mixture of hot mustard, horderadish, corn starch and food coloring. As noted above, the real stuff is hot but is much softer than what is passed as wasabi in the US.

 

[Krissalee]

wasabi served in the US is not true wasabi. It's a mixture of hot mustard, horderadish, corn starch and food coloring. As noted above, the real stuff is hot but is much softer than what is passed as wasabi in the US.

I never realized that! I just assumed that they used real wasbi, and used additives to increase the heat and decrease the cost. I guess that is why at sushi places, they will often call it "Japanese hot mustard."

You never know what you are going to learn on the DIS!

 

[scrump]

I live in a small town...we have 5 pizza places, 2 McD's, and little else.
I have had wasabi peas (searing fire-like orbs)
and Sushi with wasabi (pretty darn hot).
Does wasabi=heat?
thx.

If you think you might not like it, and you are ordering in a restaurant, you can always request no wasabi. I have done this my entire life, and I don't think I've missed out on the sushi experience.

 

[lynninpa]

Truly "Americanized" Wasabi is not hot at all-and seems to be popping up more and more. When asked about the wasabi at various local restaurants, I find it more and more mixed with mayo, sour cream, etc. I'd say just order it "on the side" and take it from there.

 

[Colleen27]

I live in a small town...we have 5 pizza places, 2 McD's, and little else.
I have had wasabi peas (searing fire-like orbs)
and Sushi with wasabi (pretty darn hot).
Does wasabi=heat?
thx.

It really depends on the type of wasabi and how it is used. I like the hot flavor of wasabi on sushi, but I've also had more subtle dishes that included wasabi. A Disney example - the shimp & scallops dish at Kona Cafe has a wasabi cream drizzle on the scallops that isn't hot in the least. I'd actually have liked a bit more of a kick in it, but it had a good flavor without being hot.

 

[corgi_monster]

I'm not too sure what Americanized wasabi is so I can't comment on that.

I'm Japanese and we buy something called wasabi paste, which is the green mush that you'll see in a sushi bar. It is HOT HOT HOT, but it's a different kind of heat. You have to try it to really understand.

When we were little kids, we used to swallow a teaspoon of wasabi paste anytime we were really sick and congested. If you took a teaspoon at 6am, you would still have a clear nose at 11pm that night! Of course, it HURT everytime you took a breath through your nose.

I can eat wasabi peas like candy, but just a dab of wasabi paste mixed into a tablespoon of shoyu is more than enough for me, thank you!

 

[pta-mom]

I'm not too sure what Americanized wasabi is so I can't comment on that.

I'm Japanese and we buy something called wasabi paste, which is the green mush that you'll see in a sushi bar. It is HOT HOT HOT, but it's a different kind of heat. You have to try it to really understand.

When we were little kids, we used to swallow a teaspoon of wasabi paste anytime we were really sick and congested. If you took a teaspoon at 6am, you would still have a clear nose at 11pm that night! Of course, it HURT everytime you took a breath through your nose.

I can eat wasabi peas like candy, but just a dab of wasabi paste mixed into a tablespoon of shoyu is more than enough for me, thank you!

Wow!! A teaspoon of wasabi paste???? That would hurt big time!!

I love wasabi....I love to eat it on my sushi along with some soya sauce but it really does open up the nasal passages for sure. And I too can eat wasabi peas (very tasty) & here in Canada they even have a new thing called PC Wasabi chips...yum!! It's not as hot as eating a teaspoon of wasabi paste but it does provide a bit of a kick!

 

[Hootch]

the best growing methods for wasabi were closely held secrets. I know normally the higher quality wasabi is grown in running streams. There are "farms" in the Pacific Northwest that are experimenting with what they claim to be Japanese growing methods and produce what can be called Americanized wasabi.

 

[DarthKTrava]

I've had wasabi at various Chinese restaurants with my sushi. Sometimes it's mild, sometimes, it'll make my eyes water due to the heat. I can usually handle fairly hot foods. And only use a small bit with the sushi.

Now some Chinese hot mustard I had one time.... clogged sinues to clear sinuses in under a minute.