If you think you like wasabi, you better know that that green paste that usually accompanies sushi in restaurants and takeaways is not real wasabi. It is a preparation based on horseradish — in some cases, artificially flavored and colored.
Substitution is common because authentic wasabi, very different, has always been an expensive item, rare worldwide, and not produced in Brazil. But now it is.
In Pilar do Sul, in the interior of São Paulo, agronomist Vinícius Shizuo Abuno, 26, from Minato Wasabi, cultivates eutreme japonicum and already manages to produce around four kilos per month, which are quickly depleted.
The plant takes an average of a year and a half to grow and produce, and it has heart-shaped leaves. The rhizome is the noble part, a stem that develops under the ground and reaches commercial size with about 20 centimeters in length, two centimeters in diameter and weight between 50 and 60 grams.
A customer since the first harvest, just over two years ago, chef Tsuyoshi Murakami treats wasabi as a delicacy, as it is done in Japan: at the Murakami restaurant, in Jardim Paulista, the stem can be grated directly over sushi or sashimi, at the counter , in front of the customer.
The billing system is similar to that of expensive Italian truffles: the customer sets the amount to taste and pays R$80 for ten grams. That’s right: at the tip of the pencil, it’s R$ 8 thousand a kilo.
“The color is lighter and the spiciness is more or less evident depending on the fat content of the protein. The secret is to add the right amount for each dish. Generally, the Japanese or more curious people order it”, says Murakami.
Telma Shiraishi, from Aizomê, is also a loyal customer of Abuno. In the two units of the restaurant, one of them inside the Japan House, the portion already grated, with five grams, costs R$ 40. In delivery, it is possible to buy the whole stalk with 12 grams, to be grated at home, for R$ 125 .
Growers of flowers, vegetables and seedlings, the Abuno started experimenting with wasabi about eight years ago, after a trip to Japan, where they tasted the authentic version.
“We always focused on niche products. My father saw that Japanese cuisine was expanding rapidly in São Paulo, but nobody had a successful production here”, says the agronomist.
From the first germinated seeds, Abuno multiplied the seedlings until he got his first harvest in October 2019 — just half a kilo. Murakami bought the entire lot and all subsequent ones for two years.
It’s not an easy culture. According to the producer, the plant produces an autoimmune substance that harms its own development and, therefore, grows better under the action of cold, clean running water. “Cultivated in water, it has a stronger, sweeter flavor with floral notes. I find it tastier than wasabi grown directly in the ground”, he explains.
Despite the steep price, Abuno bets on demand and plans to reach a production of 50 kilos per month, within a year and a half. “We are researching techniques to increase plant productivity and reduce costs. The size of the market is still unknown, but I know I don’t want to refuse orders, as I do now.”
It may be that, in some time, Minato Wasabi will have a competitor. After several failed attempts, agronomist Rodrigo Veraldi Ismael, from Viveiro Frutopia, in São Bento do Sapucaí (SP), managed to grow the first seedlings and estimates that the first harvest will take between 18 and 24 months.
“I’m going to grow it in pots, in greenhouses, as some producers in the United States and England do. My seedlings are already vigorous, giving flowers”, he celebrates.
I am currently a news writer for News Bulletin247 where I mostly cover sports news. I have always been interested in writing and it is something I am very passionate about. In my spare time, I enjoy reading and spending time with my family and friends.
