Basic Japanese Broth-Like Sauce with Mirin, Soy Sauce, and Sake

This sauce, actually a cross between sauce and soup, is fundamental to Japanese cooking. It can be subtly varied to taste or to go with particular ingredients by adding more or less of the three primary ingredients: soy sauce, mirin, and sake. In addition to these ingredients, the sauce is infused with extra bonito flakes to give it a more pronounced smokiness. Finely chopped scallions are added at the end for color and additional flavor.