Fungi, both moulds and mushrooms, are along with certain seaweeds, cf. Chap. 8 , the few exceptions of untreated non-animal-based foods (excepting ripe fruits, cf. Sect. 1.1 ) that have a significant umami potential and even can contribute to umami synergy. In Chap. 6 we described how the kōji culture is a powerful means to release the umami potential of beans. Macroscopic fungi like mushrooms constitute an important element in traditional Japanese cuisine. Shiitake is the king of synergetic umami since when dried, cf. Sect. 10.1 below, it is the basis for vegan dashi, cf. Sect. 5.2 . A wide range of other mushrooms enter Japanese cuisine, e.g., matsutake, maitake, enoki, hiratake, nameko, and shemeji (Hachisu, 2012).