Maria y Umami
Food, Styling & Photo: Oliver Schwarzwald
Tomato juice? Hai, onegaishimasu!
It is said that tomato juice only tastes good on an aeroplane, and this has actually been scientifically proven. At altitude, the flavour is less intense, which means that the disturbing properties of the juice fade into the background and sweet and fruity notes become more prominent. I can confirm this from my own experience. I was one of those juice guys on the plane... .
For this reason, a Bloody Mary was never my drink of choice. I didn't drink vodka on the plane and I didn't drink tomato juice on the ground. I also never understood the concept of counter-drinking, such as vodka with breakfast. However, if you're looking for a strong and alcohol-free version of a Bloody Mary, you'll find it here.
Firstly, non-alcoholic vodka makes little sense; instead we use a non-alcoholic mezcal. The smoky notes of the non-alcoholic alternatives have won me over, and I'll explain why here.
And now we're travelling from Mexico across the globe to Asia. In addition to the smoky flavours, this variant brings a wealth of Asian flavour components to the glass: spiciness from wasabi, seasoning from black vinegar and miso give this alcohol-free Bloody Mary that special umami note.
Give it a try. And if you're still looking for a recipe for the opened bottle of tomato juice, then please click here!
The drink:
Base Mix
90 ml Shiro Dashi
90 ml Chinese black vinegar
1/2 tablespoon shichimi togarashi
30 ml white miso
8 ml Sriracha
1/2 teaspoon kombu bouillon powder
Pinch or more of kona wasabi powder
Mix the shiro dashi and Chinese black vinegar well in a large bowl.
Add shichimi togarashi, white miso and sriracha and mix thoroughly until a homogeneous mixture is formed.
Add the kombu stock powder and kona wasabi powder and continue to stir well so that all the ingredients are completely dissolved.
Pour the mixture into a suitable bottle or container and chill in the fridge.
Maria y Umami
4 cl non-alcoholic mezcal
4 cl base mix see above
8 cl tomato juice
Pour all ingredients into a glass filled with ice and stir. Garnish with nori leaf and tomato.
