Chef Takumi
Ago Dashi (あごだし, grilled flying fish stock)
Ago dashi is quiet luxury: roasted flying fish, konbu, and patient water. Steep it slowly and you get a clear stock that tastes sweet, clean, and full without heaviness.
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Mitarashi Tare (みたらしのたれ, sweet soy glaze for dango)
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Mitarashi tare is a small sauce with one job: cling to grilled rice dumplings in a clear soy-brown gloss, sweet first, salty after, never heavy.
Sauces & Condiments
Japanese
Make Ahead
Comfort Food
Special Occasion
5 min
Active Time
5 min cook•10 min total
YieldAbout 2/3 cup, enough for 12 to 16 dango
This sauce looks like ceremony and behaves like arithmetic. Soy sauce, sugar, mirin, water, and a little kuzu. The difficulty people imagine is not there. What matters is the thickness, because mitarashi tare must coat a grilled dango without turning into glue.
The one detail that decides it is the starch. Kuzu, the powdered root starch we use for a clean, supple set, must be dissolved cold before it meets heat. Add it dry to a hot pan and it clumps like a nervous student. Stir it in cold, then warm it gently, and the sauce turns glassy as the starch swells evenly.
This is a tare, a glaze, not a heavy syrup. Let the soy keep its edge and the sugar round it, then stop cooking as soon as the sauce leaves a clear line on the back of a spoon. Brush it over grilled dango while both are warm. The rice dumplings give you smoke and chew; the tare gives shine, salt, and sweetness. Nothing hidden, only balance.
Mitarashi dango is closely associated with Shimogamo Shrine in Kyoto, where the name mitarashi refers to the shrine's purification water, the Mitarashi pond. The skewered dumplings are traditionally linked to the shrine's summer rites, and one common explanation says their round shapes recall bubbles rising from that water. The sweet soy glaze became the form most widely recognized at stalls and sweet shops, especially as grilled dango spread as everyday festival food.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
water
Quantity
1/2 cup
sugar
Quantity
3 tablespoons
soy sauce
Quantity
2 tablespoons
mirin
Quantity
1 tablespoon
kuzu starch
Quantity
2 teaspoons
finely crushed
cold water
Quantity
1 tablespoon
for dissolving the kuzu
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| water | 1/2 cup |
| sugar | 3 tablespoons |
| soy sauce | 2 tablespoons |
| mirin | 1 tablespoon |
| kuzu starchfinely crushed | 2 teaspoons |
| cold waterfor dissolving the kuzu | 1 tablespoon |
Equipment Needed
- •Small saucepan
- •Small bowl for dissolving kuzu
- •Bamboo pastry brush or small spoon
Instructions
- 1
Crush the kuzu
Break the kuzu into a fine powder with the back of a spoon, then stir it with 1 tablespoon cold water until smooth. Kuzu dissolves cleanly when cold; if it meets heat in dry grains, it forms stubborn lumps before the sauce has a chance to become glossy.
Potato starch can thicken the sauce, but kuzu gives the more supple gloss. Use the stand-in if you must, and know what it changes. - 2
Warm the base
Combine the 1/2 cup water, sugar, soy sauce, and mirin in a small saucepan. Warm over medium heat, stirring until the sugar disappears completely. Don't boil it hard. A fierce boil dulls the soy's clean edge and reduces the sauce before the starch has done its work.
- 3
Thicken the tare
Stir the kuzu slurry once more, because starch settles quickly, then pour it into the warm sauce while stirring. Keep the heat moderate and stir for 1 to 2 minutes, until the sauce turns clear, glossy, and lightly thickened.
Stop when the tare coats the back of a spoon and a finger drawn through it leaves a clean line. Thicker than that, and it sits on the dango instead of embracing it. - 4
Brush and serve
Use the tare warm, brushing it over grilled dango just before serving. The warm glaze clings to the toasted surface and settles into the small charred spots. If it cools and tightens, warm it gently with a spoonful of water and stir until it loosens again.
Chef Tips
- •Use real brewed soy sauce, not a harsh chemical soy. In a sauce this plain, the soy has nowhere to hide, which is exactly why it must be good.
- •Kuzu is the honmono thickener here: clear, elastic, and quiet. Cornstarch works in a practical kitchen, but it gives a cloudier, shorter texture.
- •Make the tare slightly looser than you think. It thickens as it cools, and dango needs a glaze that flows before it clings.
Advance Preparation
- •Mitarashi tare can be made two days ahead and refrigerated in a covered jar.
- •Rewarm gently over low heat before using. Add water a teaspoon at a time if it has tightened, stirring until the gloss returns.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 13g)
Calories
15 calories
Total Fat
0 g
Saturated Fat
0 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
0 g
Cholesterol
0 mg
Sodium
130 mg
Total Carbohydrates
4 g
Dietary Fiber
0 g
Sugars
3 g
Protein
0 g
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