Recipe
Adding Red Perilla to Umeboshi: Preparing and Pickling Shiso-Zuke
Add red perilla to salt-pickled ume to make red shiso-zuke umeboshi. This article covers the amount of red perilla, salt rubbing and blanching, using umezu to bring out the color, and the steps through to tsuyou-dashi.
Adding red perilla to salt-pickled ume creates red "shiso-zuke" umeboshi. The process of salt-pickling the ume is the same as the basic method using storage bags; red perilla is added after the umezu rises. To learn about the mechanism behind the red color, see Why is umeboshi red?.
Ingredients (for 2kg of ume)
- Salt-pickled ume: 2kg (salt is 20% of the ume's weight = 400g)
- Red perilla (leaves only): 200g
- Salt for rubbing red perilla: 40g
These are the quantities for the traditional Tamba household method introduced by Kyoto Prefecture. Using more red perilla results in a deeper color.
Process Before Pickling
- Salt-pickle the ume: Coat the ume with salt, place a weight on top, and wait for the umezu to rise.
- Prepare the red perilla: When red perilla becomes available, pick the leaves, wash them, and drain well.
- Salt rub: Coat the leaves with salt and rub thoroughly. When dark juice appears, squeeze it out and discard. The more you rub, the better the color will be.
- Bring out the color with umezu: Take a small amount of umezu from the salt-pickled ume and soak the rubbed red perilla in it. The reddish-purple leaves turn a vibrant red.
- Place on the ume: Spread the red perilla over the ume, cover the container, and store in a cool, dark place until tsuyou. The umezu will also turn red.
Tsuyou-dashi (Summer Drying)
During the summer tsuyou (the 18 days before Risshū, roughly July 20 to August 6), on a sunny day, arrange the ume and red perilla on a sieve and dry them. According to the Kyoto Prefecture method, this is repeated for three days and three nights.
After drying, return the ume and shiso to the original container, close the lid tightly, and store in a cool, dark place.
Leftover Red Perilla and Umezu
- Red perilla: The dried red perilla can be chopped finely and used, for example, as a topping for rice.
- Red umezu: The red-dyed umezu can be used for pickling vegetables or in vinegar dishes. → Vegetable Pickles Made with Umezu
Precautions
- Reducing the salt makes mold more likely to grow. It is safe to start with 20% salt relative to the ume's weight.
- Wash tools and containers thoroughly and dry them well before use.
The amount of salt corresponding to the quantity of ume is summarized in the Amounts Cheat Sheet, and the timing for ume work is outlined in the Annual "Ume Work" Calendar.
