[1] A bottle of Yondu seasoning concentrate (photo © Yondu | Serpio).

[2] Pasta and other sauces will taste better. Spaghetti With King Trumpet & Maitake Mushrooms (photo © Yondu).

[3] Splash some Yondu into a stir-fry to heighten the flavors (photo © Yondu).

[4] Three-minute vegetable soup with Yondu. The recipe is below (photo © Yondu).

Some home cooks have kitchen secrets for enhancing the flavor of cooked foods.

For my mother’s generation, it was MSG, created in Japan in 1908 by a biochemist who was trying to duplicate the umami taste of kombu, a seaweed used as a base for many Japanese soups.

He found that MSG balanced, blended, and rounded the perception of other flavors in the food.

When it became broadly used in the U.S. in the 1960s, MSG was found to add more flavor than the time-honored bouillon cube or broth.

But it affected some people negatively. Its use became controversial.

So many people returned to the bouillon cube and broth; and over time, other alternatives entered the flavoring mainstream.

Today, many kitchens add flavor with fish sauce, flavor bases, miso, oyster sauce, soy sauce, tamari, umami powders, and lesser-known flavor sauces like coconut aminos and liquid aminos.
 
 
2020: YONDU SEASONING

A favorite new discovery, Yondu* is a versatile savory seasoning from Korea that brings out the inherent flavor of your ingredients.

It’s a premium plant-based seasoning concentrate that’s an all-purpose, instant flavor booster.

It enhances the flavors of each individual ingredient in your dish, while balancing the overall taste with delicate flavor.

We love it!

Yondu provides natural umami flavor by slowly fermenting and simmering its ingredients:

 
The company uses the term “vegetable essence” to describe its product, but we’re not sure how that translates to most people.

Even though one of the meanings of essence is “an extract or concentrate obtained from a particular plant or other matter and used for flavoring or scent,” we don’t think it’s a common use in the U.S. for food.

The magical combination of ingredients delivers layers of flavors that we just can’t get from the herbs and spices on our shelf.
 
 
YONDU USES

Even if you don’t use flavor bases, your eyes will be opened when you add a couple of teaspoons of Yondu to your cooking. It instantly seasons:

 
And when we have no fresh herbs in the fridge, we toss in a splash of Yondu.

For a low-calorie pick-me-up, microwave a cup of water with some Yondu for a terrific broth that tastes like it’s been simmered for hours (and in fact, it has been so simmered).

You may find yourself buying bottles as stocking stuffers for friends who cook or are dieters.

Check out more about Yondu on the company website, Yondu.us.
 
 
RECIPE #1: 3-MINUTE VEGETABLE SOUP

Water + Yondu = delicious vegetable broth (photo #4). Make this 3-minute soup: You’ll have a major “aha!”
moment.
 
Ingredients Per Serving

 
Preparation

1. BOIL for 3 minutes, then add 1 tablespoon Yondu. That’s it!
 
 
RECIPE #2: YONDU VINAIGRETTE

Ingredients Proportion

 
Preparation

1. WHISK vigorously to combine.
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*Yondu Vegetable Essence has no relation to Yondu, the Marvel Comics character.