What is sake lees?

Sake lees are a by-product of sake brewing, the residue left over after squeezing the mash made from fermented rice and koji. Even though it's just lees, it's packed with nutrients, including dietary fiber, glucose, essential amino acids, and vitamins. Of course, it still retains the flavor and aroma of sake.

Generally, the lees sold in stores are pressed through a press, but if you come across them, you should definitely try ginjo lees. They are pressed only gently in a bag, resulting in a paste-like texture with a rich aroma, and are delicious even when eaten as is.

Pay attention to the amazing health benefits!

In fact, sake lees are becoming a hot topic as a food ingredient that contains many ingredients that are beneficial for your health.

First of all, it has a diet effect. Along with being rich in dietary fiber, a certain substance inhibits the action of the digestive enzyme amylase, slowing down the absorption of starch and making it harder to gain weight. Also, a protein called resistance protein is not digested in the stomach, but absorbs and excretes excess fat in the intestines, which is said to help prevent obesity and lower LDL cholesterol.

It also contains many other ingredients that are said to be effective in preventing high blood pressure, amnesia, cancer, and antioxidants. Of course, ingesting it as food probably won't have much of an effect, but some of these ingredients are used as prescription drugs in the West, and research into them is currently underway.

Easy to make sake lees dishes

Here are some easy and delicious recipes for sake lees dishes.
If the sake lees are hard, tear them apart and microwave them for about 30 seconds to make them easier to use.

●Kasujiru (soup made from sake lees)
It is made in the same way as miso soup, with plenty of salmon heads (or yellowtail or pork) and root vegetables such as daikon radish and carrots. The seafood and vegetables give it all its flavor, so you can omit the stock. Once the ingredients are cooked, add the dissolved sake lees and add miso or salt to taste. It's a winter dish that will warm you up.

Fish pickled in sake lees
Add miso and mirin (or sugar + sake) to the sake lees and mix well to make the lees bed. Marinate slices of white fish such as salmon, yellowtail, sea bream, and Spanish mackerel in the lees and leave in the refrigerator overnight, then wipe off the lees and grill. Be careful as it burns easily. It's fine to leave it in for 3-4 days, so if you have some raw fish that you didn't eat, just put it in and you'll be safe. The lees bed can be reused several times.

Sake lees cream stew
Fry chicken, potatoes, onions, and carrots in a pot, then add the same amount of water and consommé as the milk. When the ingredients are cooked, add sake lees and mix well. When it thickens, add salt and pepper to taste. It goes surprisingly well with milk, so adding sake lees to a gratin sauce will make it delicious.

●Add it to these dishes too.

・Add a little to the hot pot soup → Kasujiru-style hot pot
・Add a little to instant ramen → Sake lees ramen
・Add a little to curry → Sake lees curry
・Add a little miso and mayonnaise to make a vegetable dip

Eat and reduce food waste

A lot of sake lees are produced during the sake manufacturing process. Some are used for pickles and livestock feed, but the rest is disposed of as industrial waste. Furthermore, since a large amount of energy is required to dry it in order to turn it into feed, distributing it as food as much as possible is eco-friendly. Sake lees dishes are healthy and above all delicious. Of course, they go perfectly with sake. Let's eat more sake lees to reduce food waste!

Writer/Sake Master Eriko Fujita
Expand your world to a sake specialty store in Osaka and encounter a variety of sake and sake breweries. Favorite sakes are Akishika, Ohgi, and others.
Other than drinking, my hobbies include collecting minerals and raising swallowtail butterflies.