Maehara Katakuriko is a fine Japanese potato starch from Hokkaido potatoes, for crisp karaage coatings and clear, glossy sauces.
Crisp coatings and glossy sauces start with Maehara Katakuriko potato starch. The ingredient list is a single item: potato starch from Hokkaido, Japan, and it contains no gluten. It comes in a 1 kg bag. Japanese kitchens dust marinated chicken with it before frying karaage for a light, crackly crust, and use it the same way for tatsuta-age fish. Slaked with cold water, it thickens soups, stir-fry sauces and ankake gravies without clouding or changing their colour. Pastry sections dust mochi and warabi-style sweets with it so they do not stick. Always mix the starch with cold liquid first, add it to the hot pan and simmer briefly; long boiling can thin the sauce again. Keep the bag closed away from direct sun, heat and humidity, as starch takes up moisture and odours.