Asparagus, shiitake mushrooms, crab and kimizu

1. Make the shiitake dashi the day before. Put the shiitake in a medium pan, cover with 1 litre cold water and leave to soak for 6-8 hours (or overnight).

2. To make the tsukudani, transfer the soaked shiitake and about 100-200ml of the liquid to a small pan (reserve the remaining soaking liquid). Add the soy, mirin and sugar, set over a medium heat and simmer until reduced by half. Leave to cool and set aside until ready to serve.

3 Meanwhile, finish the dashi. Add the soy sauce and mirin to the reserved soaking liquid and bring to the boil. In another pan, simmer the asparagus for 3 minutes. Drain and refresh in ice-cold water. Once cool, put in a heatproof container and pour over the boiling-hot dashi. Allow to cool, then chill for 4 hours.

4. For the kimizu, put all the ingredients in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of gently simmering water. Use a balloon whisk to whisk continuously until the consistency of mayonnaise (or slightly lighter – it will thicken a little). Sit the bowl in ice-cold water; whisk until cool.

5. To serve, drain the shiitake and the asparagus (discard the liquid). Serve with the fl aked crab and kimizu.