Tamagoyaki is a popular item on sushi menus, but it can be eaten hot or cold at any time of day, as part of a light breakfast, snack, lunch, or dinner.
Usukuchi soy sauce is lighter in color but still very salty and flavorful. It seasons the eggs well without turning them a muddy brown.
While homemade dashi is best, in a pinch hondashi (instant dashi) yields good results with almost no effort.
A modest amount of dashi makes for savory eggs without thinning out the mixture too much; with practice, you can increase the dashi volume to taste.
Flavored with dashi, mirin (sweet rice wine), and usukuchi (light) soy sauce, this tamagoyaki is delicate yet infused with rich and savory flavors. Making tamagoyaki requires a special rectangular pan so that the final rolled omelette has a uniform shape. We recommend starting with a smaller nonstick one, roughly five-by-seven inches; once you’ve mastered the rolling technique in that pan, you can try making larger ones if you want. This recipe and technique was taught to us by chef Daisuke Nakazawa of Sushi Nakazawa in New York city and Washington, DC.
