Mirin (Sweet Rice Wine)

Mirin is a sweet rice wine with a lower alcohol content. It is used instead of sugar to prevent the food from tasting too sweet. Most Japanese dishes use sugar, but they are used just enough not to taste it in the food. The main purpose of sugar is to bind the flavors of the other seasonings and condiments, and not to give it a sweet taste. Mirin is used for this purpose, since it is not sweet as pure sugar, and also has a nice aroma. It is like a light syrup, and it should be used in small amounts.