I love real wasabi-it is a taste that is unique-it has a hot, pungent bite, that fades quickly. My question; can i grow wasabi in my garden? Where could I get the seeds?
I understand most of the wasabi served in japanese places isn’t the real thing-what is it?
Not unless you have lots of time and equipment. Seems genuine wasabi is a bitch to grow.
Most of the stuff served in Japanese restaurants is common horseradish, with a little food coloring, Chinese mustard and corn starch added. The real deal will appear as a shrunken green carrot, accompanied by a grater.
There was an article in Saveur Magazine a few years ago about an Oregon company which, at the time at least, was the only place outside of Japan that managed to cultivate wasabi. (Reading up on some of the linked articles, it seems there’s also wasabi growers in Vancouver and New Zealand). From what I remember of the article, wasabi is not at all easy to raise and researchers trying to grow it under a greenhouse setting started to think that it couldn’t be done.