Bacon Dashi with Potatoes & Clams

Simplicity rules in Japanese cuisine. One of my favourite dishes—and one of the simplest—from the repertory is clams cooked in dashi. That’s it. The whole dish, the recipe: clams cooked in dashi. The clams steam open, releasing their essence; the smokiness of the dashi perfectly and politely complements the sweetness of the clams. So simple, so good. That was the first dish I ever made with our bacon dashi; this is a lightly souped-up version.