blake wrote:

> has anyone heard of this stuff?
>
> Conte's secret, if temperamental, ingredient is sake kasu, or the lees
> that remain after sake fermentation. A popular umami booster in Japan,
> kasu is still mostly unknown in the United States. Sold in blocks, the
> soft, crumbly sake looks like a cross between tofu and puff pastry dough
> and has an enticing, yeasty, fruity aroma. Mixed into marinades, it adds
> an indescribable oomph to meat and fish. "There are no good words for it.
> It's not like anything you've tasted before," says Conte.
>
> more at:
>
> <http://voices.washingtonpost.com/all-we-can-eat/chefs/kasu-the-next-it-ingredient.html?wpisrc=nl_buzz>


In its first incarnation in the 1980s, Cooks Illustrated did an article
about sake kasu, saying much the same things as the article you cite. The
only recipe I remember from the article was for salmon which was marinated
in sake kasu and then cooked in paper.

Bob