Introduction
Wasabi (Wasabia japonica; family Brassicaceae) is a very popular pungent spice other members of the Brassicaceae family are Kale and Chinese cabbage. In Japan and many Asian meals, wasabi can also be used as pickles because of its unique strong, and stimulating flavor with burning sensations. Wasabi paste of the root is used with raw fish (sashimi), sushi (sashimi with boiled rice cake), and noodles (soba). Moreover, wasabi leaves compounds are sour and salty in taste while the petiole had a high content of compounds associated with sweetness and bitterness (1). Wasabi benefits are good for the stomach, weight loss, prevents coughing and cold.
Common name
Sawa-wasabi, Japanese domestic horseradish
Geographical distribution
Wasabi is native to mountain river valleys in Japan and widely produced in China, Korea, New Zealand, and North America
The main constitutes of Wasabi
Wasabi contains a high amount of allyl isothiocyanates. Although 6-methylsulfinylhexyl isothiocyanate and 6- methylthiohexyl isothiocyanate are derivatives of allyl isothiocyanate.
Nutritional value of Wasabi
According to USDA wasabi contains several important nutrients such as protein, fat, crude fiber, calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, Vitamins A, B1, B2, B3, B6, C, and folate (2).
Compound |
Amounts/100 g. |
| Water | 69.11 g |
| Energy | 109 Kcal |
| Protein | 4.8 g |
| Total lipid (fat) | 0.63 g |
| Carbohydrate, by difference | 23.54 g |
| Fiber, total dietary | 7.8 g |
| Calcium | 128 mg |
| Iron, Fe | 1.03 mg |
| Magnesium | 69 mg |
| Phosphorus | 80 mg |
| Potassium | 598 mg |
| Sodium | 17 mg |
| Zinc | 1.62 mg |
| Copper | 0.15 mg |
| Manganese | 0.39 mg |
| Vitamin C | 41.9 mg |
| Thiamin | 0.13 mg |
| Riboflavin | 0.11 mg |
| Niacin | 0.74 mg |
| Pantothenic acid | 0.20mg |
| Vitamin B-6 | 0.27 mg |
| Folate, DFE | 18 µg |
| Vitamin A, RAE | 2 µg |
| Vitamin A | 35 IU |
Wasabi benefits
It exhibits pharmacological properties such as anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antiplatelet, and anticancer effects. Wasabi benefits are as follows
1. Wasabi is rich in nutrients
It contains high amounts of carbohydrates in the rhizome and amino acid composition like glutamic acid and aspartic acid. Wasabi leaves are rich in vitamin C and total phenolic contents and thus exhibit antioxidant capacity. Wasabi also contains omega (ω-3) fatty acid that is beneficial to vascular health (3).
2. Antiplatelet properties of wasabi
6-Methylsulfinylhexyl isothiocyanate obtained from wasabi is a potent inhibitor of human platelet aggregation thus preventing blood clot formation (4).
3. Antimicrobial properties
Roots stems, and leaves of wasabi have antibacterial property against different foodborne pathogens such as Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhimurium, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, and Helicobacter pylori because it contains allyl isothiocyanate which makes wasabi a promising natural edible antibacterial plant (5, 6).
4. Reduce acrylamide genotoxicity
Intake of wasabi roots and leaves prevents DNA damage due to the presence of allyl isothiocyanate thus inhibiting the formation and genotoxicity of acrylamide (7).
5. Anticancer properties of Wasabi
The root and leaves contain 6-methylsulfinylhexyl isothiocyanate which acts as a natural anti-cancer agent that inhibits cancer cell proliferation or cell growth and induces apoptotic cell death thus treating human breast, melanoma, leukemia, colon, lung, stomach, and pancreatic cancer cells (8, 9).
6. Anti-inflammatory properties
6-(methylsulfinyl)hexyl isothiocyanate found in wasabi inhibits several inflammatory factors such as nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and inflammatory cytokines thus preventing inflammation (10). One of the wasabi benefits is that it increases nerve growth factors and neurite outgrowth thus reducing neuroinflammation, protecting from neurodegeneration, and keeping the brain healthy (11).
7. Treat inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs)
Intake of wasabi prevents the development of colitis by inhibiting of bad signal pathway and recovering epithelial tight junctions thus used as a new functional food to prevent IBDs due to its anti-colitic effect (12).
8. Helps to lose weight
Daily intake of wasabi leaves may lower body weight, liver weight, and white adipose tissue due to the suppression of lipid accumulation. Moreover, wasabi consumption is helpful to decrease triglyceride synthesis and its accumulation in the liver thus treating obesity-related health problems, such as hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and metabolic syndrome (13, 14).
9. Anti-oxidant and anti-hypercholesterolemia properties
Wasabi leaves have strong scavenging activities that remove harmful radicals from the body and fight various diseases. It also helps to increase serum HDL-cholesterol levels and decrease serum LDL-cholesterol levels and liver xanthine oxidase (XO) activity. Therefore dietary intake of wasabi improves hypercholesterolemia through the modulation of HDL, LDL-cholesterol, and anti-oxidant system (15).
10. Healthy bones
Wasabi contains p-hydroxycinnamic acid (HCA) which increases bone formation and suppresses bone resorption thus preventing age-related bone loss and being useful for the treatment of osteoporosis (16).
Side effects of Wasabi
1. Avoid eating excess wasabi
Due to Allyl isothiocyanate in wasabi, it is advisable to eat wasabi in control as its strong flavor may cause heartburn or stomach discomfort.
Q&A
1. What wasabi made of?
Wasabi paste (Wasabia japonica; family Brassicaceae) is a very popular pungent spice or pickle used mainly in Japan. Wasabi is made of wasabi roots or rhizomes and used with raw fish (sashimi), sushi (sashimi with boiled rice cake), and noodles (soba).
2. How hot wasabi is?
Wasabi has a strong flavor and its hotness is more like hot mustard than capsaicin in chili pepper, in that it produces vapors that irritate the nasal passages more than the tongue.
3. What gives wasabi its unique pungent taste?
Allyl isothiocyanate (AITC) and several other isothiocyanates are known to be the pungent constituents, and among them, AITC is the main constituent of wasabi.
4. Why raw fish or sushi is eaten with wasabi?
The grated wasabi roots or rhizomes formed Allyl isothiocyanate. This Allyl isothiocyanate has a sterilizing effect thus it helps in preventing any kind of contamination of the raw fish.