Yoshihiro Murata — Scientific Dashi and Global Washoku (村田吉弘)

Kyoto, Japan — Kikunoi has operated for over a century; Yoshihiro Murata represents the third generation. His international advocacy work began in the 1990s and culminated in the 2013 UNESCO inscription of washoku.

Yoshihiro Murata of Kikunoi, Kyoto (three Michelin stars), is Japan's foremost ambassador of washoku internationally and a leading force in its 2013 UNESCO recognition as Intangible Cultural Heritage. Where other kaiseki masters guard their traditions within Japan, Murata has lectured globally, co-authored research with food scientists, collaborated with Ferran Adrià, and written extensively about dashi science. His landmark work is demonstrating that umami (glutamate-inosinate synergy) is the scientific foundation of Japanese cuisine — not a mysterious tradition but a reproducible, teachable chemistry.

Murata's flavour philosophy centres on dashi's umami foundation — every dish at Kikunoi is designed to maximise the glutamate-inosinate synergy that Japanese cuisine discovered empirically over centuries. His contribution is making this synergy legible and reproducible, so other cuisines can understand why Japanese food achieves its characteristic depth with so few ingredients.