Takikomi Gohan (flavoured vegetable rice)





Takikomi rice with mushrooms, carrots and soy flavouring

Many years ago Mrs Bando from Kashiwa city in Chiba prefecture, Japan gave me this recipe for takikomi gohan. I was living in Kashiwa at the time, and we were both members of an ITC club. The ladies would share a pot lunch after the monthly meetings and several of them were kind enough to give me recipes. Takikomi loosely translates as cooked together and gohan is rice. The rice and all other ingredients are cooked together the rice cooker, so that the flavours absorb into the rice as it cooks. Very easy and very wholesome, particularly if you use brown rice I did in the one pictured.

Serves 4

3 cups rice (white or brown)

3 cups water

1 piece fried tofu, agedofu, finely sliced (can be omitted) or try firm tofu instead
small handful dried shiitake mushrooms, pre-soaked
small handful shimeji mushrooms, divided (or brown mushrooms finely chopped)
1 carrot, cut into matchsticks
1 teaspoon dashi, granulated Japanese stock
2 tablespoons soy sauce
½ teaspoon salt

Place rice in rice cooker. Wash (rinse) rice as you usually would and add the water to the cooker. Then add the remaining ingredients, stir together, put lid on and cook as you usually would.

Japanese Seafood Omelette (Tamago Toji)

Serves 2

¼ cup water dried shiitake mushrooms, pre-soaked (or ½ cup fresh white mushrooms, sliced)
1 green onion negi, finely sliced on the diagonal
1 small can (170g) asari small shellfish/clams, drained (or use canned prawns or crabmeat)*
¼ cup water

¼ teaspoon dashi (granulated type)

3 teaspoons soy sauce
3 teaspoons mirin
3 teaspoons sake
4 eggs, lightly beaten

To serve:

green onion negi, sliced

snipped nori seaweed (take a small piece of nori and snip with kitchen scissors)

1. Reconstitute dried mushrooms by soaking in ½ cup water for at least ½ an hour. Drain and chop finely.

2.  Place the water, dashi, soy sauce, mirin and sake in a small frypan or saucepan. Bring to the boil and reduce to a simmer. Add the mushrooms, green onions (reserving a few to use when serving) and shellfish and simmer until just cooked.  Set aside.

3.  Heat a small frypan and lightly grease with butter or oil. Add half of the eggs, then immediately add half of the seafood mixture, stir through and cook, covered for a few minutes or until just set. Slide omelette directly onto serving plate, fold in the sides. *

4.       Serve topped with negi and snipped nori.

Note: If you don’t have sake, just use sugar or mirin instead, or omit.

*You can use any type of freshly cooked seafood, chopped finely, you will need about ½ cup. Australian Pipis would be ideal.

*I prefer to first slide it onto a piece of baking paper, fold it up, then slide it onto the serving plate.

#JapaneseSeafoodOmelette #JapaneseOmelette #SeafoodOmelette #EsayandRelaxedJapaneseFood

Japanese-Style Rice Omelette (Omuraisu)

Omuraisu

This is a great way to use up left over rice and makes for a filling breakfast. This is exactly as it is made in Japan and served in some cafes for breakfast. My husband used to make it for our kids and they always loved it. You can write their names with the tomato sauce.

The following quantities make one large omelette:

3 eggs

1 tablespoon water

1 tablespoon sunflower oil

½ to 1 cup cooked rice (hot/still warm, microwave to reheat if using left-overs)

tomato sauce (ketchup) to serve

1.       Whisk eggs together with the water, set aside

2.       Heat oil in frypan to medium high. Pour in eggs, cook until just set on top. Add rice arranging it down the centre of the omelette. Draw a squiggly line of tomato sauce across the rice. Using a spatula (or fish slice) lift one side of the omelette and fold it over the rice.

3.       Slide omelette onto serving plate, fold over the other side of the omelette. Draw a decorative squiggly line of tomato sauce across the omelette.

Variations: A little tomato sauce can be mixed into the rice to taste before cooking, so that it turns slightly pink, if preferred.  If you don’t like the tomato sauce idea, I suggest adding some chopped tomatoes, spinach and mushrooms to the rice.

#omuraisu #JapaneseRiceOmelette

Gohan (Rice)

In Japan a bowl of rice is a beautiful thing, and it is. It is pure white and simply beautiful. To the Japanese it represents purity, beauty, perfection, goodness and so on. There is a whole rice culture in Japan as you’d expect from a country that has had rice as a staple for centuries. Japanese people will pay a premium price for good quality locally grown rice, and there are many varieties and qualities, fetching a range of prices.

I took these photos, last September and early October, before and after the rice harvest in Japan. Here the rice is grown on the flat areas in the valleys, flanked by the houses of farmers and steep, wooded mountains.

Green rice fields in Hiroshima prefecture Japan

The rice is starting to turn golden.



Rice fields ripe for harvesting turn golden and the heads droop with grain

Rice hanging up to dry after being harvested

 Rice is called gohan in Japanese which is also the word for meal, indicating its importance in the diet. Bread, pasta and noodles are popular but rice is still eaten 3 times a day by many people, at least sometimes. When rice is eaten on the side of a non-Japanese meal, as with curry and rice, it called raisu.
 

My rice bowl collection

In a classic washoku Japanese-style meal made up of 5 or perhaps more items (rice, soup, main, side dish of vegetables/salad/vinegared food and Japanese pickles), rice is served in a separate bowl. A rice bowl. Eating a little from this one then that as you go through the meal, not finishing one before you start on another. Japanese people do not like to blend a lot of flavours, they like clean tasting food and enjoying the different unique flavour of the different foods, hence the separate serving dishes.

Rice bowls are designed to be held in the hand, hence the size and shape. They held in the left hand up close to the mouth, and the chopsticks are held in the right hand while eating rice. Since the rice is naturally a little sticky, it is easy to pick up with chopsticks.

Rice bowls make a pretty sight draining on my sink.

The inside of rice bowls are usually slightly bluish, which makes the rice appear very white by comparison. The sizes and shapes of the rice bowls vary a little and there are seemingly endless decorative patterns. Blue and white is classic, as is the wave pattern and plum blossom motif.

The inside of the bowls
 

What rice to buy in Australia

In Australia the medium grain rice by SunRice is the same type of rice that is used in Japan. It is grown in Australia and available economically in 5 and 10kg bags. Sometimes imported rice from Japan is also available.

Cooking rice
To make rice use a rice cooker. They are great. I love the way that when the rice is done it sits there waiting for you to use it and keeping warm until you need it. So convenient! 
While many Australians now have rice cookers, many do not seem to know that you are supposed to rinse the rice. Japanese people rinse it at least 3 times. After measuring the required number of cups into a rice cooker fill with plenty of water, swish around and rinse. Pour of the excess water which will be milky looking. Repeat noticing that it looks clearer each time you rinse it. Then measure in the same amount of water in as you have rice. Note that the cups that come with rice cookers are usually 180ml size (6 fl oz)- as opposed to an Australian cup which is 250ml (8 fl oz), but it doesn’t matter so long as you use the same number of the same cups of water as rice.  Two cups of uncooked rice (the Japanese 180ml sort) yields 4 cups (of the same small cups) cooked rice, which is enough to serve 4 small bowls of rice. I suggest making 3 cups (the 180ml /6 fl oz ones) of rice to have enough for 4 generous servings. The uncooked rice doubles in volume when it cooks, as the water is absorbed into the rice and the rice swells.

You can alter the hardness and softness of the cooked rice by using slightly more or slightly less water when cooking it. One Japanese mother was telling me that half her family liked it one way and the rest the other.

Most Japanese families would put the rice cooker on in the morning and use it all day. The rice is then ready for each meal, to fill lunch boxes with, and for snacks for hungry kids just in from school. When I tell my students (teenagers) about this, they say they would love that.

Ways to flavour rice

Based on my experience in Japan years ago, I thought that the Japanese would never add anything to their rice except for sprinkling over some furikake (rice seasoning).  However on my visit to Japan a few years ago, many of the housewives that I know were adding little sachets of seeds and grains to the rice and water in the rice cooker before cooking it, and when the rice was done it had lots of interesting flavours and textures. Formerly this would have been considered like contamination. So things are changing.

Also in restaurants you were given a choice of which type of rice you wanted, for instance plain white rice or one with a flavouring. The flavourings varied from restaurant to restaurant, I remember one restaurant offered finely chopped aojiso (perilla leaves) mixed through the rice. Then a year later I visited Japan again and saw nothing but white rice. Admittedly I spent more time in the country than the city on the second trip, so I am not sure if the seeds and grains and other flavourings were just a passing fad or not. Brown rice is not as popular as white rice but is eaten in Japan.

I tried using 2 cups rice, with ½ cup oatmeal and ½ cup barley in the rice cooker, to 3 cups of water. The oats which were “quick oats” cooked well but the barely would have been better if pre-soaked. However, I didn’t really like it as I am used to savoury flavourings added to rice and sweet ones to oatmeal. I decided that I prefer my rice plain. You could experiment with quinoa and chia seeds too. Find what works for you.
Black roasted sesame seeds and white sesame seeds are used to sprinkle over cooked rice to add a touch of flavour. They are usually ingredients in furikake (rice seasonings, lit. “sprinkles”), together with bonito flakes, and finely chopped のりnori (seaweed sheets), dried egg and dried salmon.  


white and black roasted sesame seeds and furikake

Rice topped with white and black roasted sesame seeds and furikake

 Furikake "rice seasonings" (literally rice sprinkles), are also available in sachets like this at Asian food stores:

3 varieties of furikake; Seto-style, pickled plum and bonito mirin

When going into an Asian food store, it can be helpful to know a little bit of Japanese to read labels:

ごまgoma means sesame

くろkuro means black

しろshiro means white

ふりかけfurikake means rice seasonings (literally sprinkles)

ごましおgomashio means sesame and salt

An 梅干しorうめばしumeboshi, pickled plum is often added to the rice in bento boxes, looking like the Japanese flag. There are 2 basic types of pickled plums, small and hard or large and soft.



Foods that feature rice in Japan

Besides being served as a bowl of rice on its own, rice is used to make a variety of dishes. Here are some that I am familiar with:

Chahan (Japanese style fried-rice)  Chinese-food, including fried-rice is popular in Japan. There is the Japanese way of making of it though.

Domburi Rice is also the main ingredient in Domburi’s, which are a more casual style meal that you will find everywhere in Japan. Domburi is the name of the bowl and the food that is served in. It is larger than a rice bowl. 

A rice bowl on the left and domburi bowl on the right.

To make a domburi, fill the bowl with rice and top with a cooked topping. Domburi bowls are not held up to the mouth to eat. The impromptu domburi pictured below was simply made using some left-over grilled salmon, which I flaked, and broccolini, served with sesame seeds and soy sauce. Now that is wholesome, easy and relaxed!



An  impromptu domburi- salmon and broccolini 

Kareraisu (Japanese-style curry and rice)  Obviously of Indian origin, Kareraisu is very popular in Japan. The word raisu (rice) being used indicating a loan word. The Japanese style curry is generally mild in flavour and has a thick gravy like sauce. It is made by first stewing some meat and vegetables and then adding what looks like a solid block of chocolate, but is actually a curry roux. The roux dissolves easily as you stir it into the liquid of the stew, and hey presto, you have got your curry. It is served with beni shoga (red coloured ginger). It is served on a flat plate, the rice on one side and the curry on the other.

Mochi This is a special type of cooked rice which has been pounded and pounded until it forms a smooth dough. It is used as dumplings in soup, especially at New Year’s, and in many different traditional sweets, including sakura mochi during the cherry blossom season (sakura means cherry tree) and kashiwa mochi, which is wrapped in an oak leaf (Kashiwa means oak), for Children’s Day.  There are also dango which are dumplings made of rice flour, served on skewers and either sweet or savoury depending on the toppings and sauces.

Ochazuke (Green tea rice) 


Ochazuke rice ready for the ocha and kelp stock to be poured over it. 

Ocha means green tea, and zuke to pour over. I guess its origins were a way of heating up left over gone cold rice- just tip some hot tea over it.  Ochazuke is a very traditional old-style way to eat rice. As with all good Japanese food it is wonderful in its simplicity. This dish once was rarely seen in restaurants as it is so homey, however it seems to be making a comeback. To make ochazuke place some rice in a bowl, sprinkle over snipped nori and sesame seeds. Pour 1 cup boiling hot water over one teaspoon powdered kelp stock (こんぶ だし kombu dashi) and a green tea tea bag in a teapot or jug, allow to steep. Pour the stock and tea over the rice and eat it.


A green tea tea bag and powedered kelp stock



 

Packaged kelp stock and green tea (ocha)



 



 

 



Omuraisu (Japanese style rice omelettes) Omuraisu is rice wrapped in an omelette served for breakfast. A western and Japanese fusion recipe, hence the anglicized word for rice, raisu. Omu is short for omelette.

Onigiri (rice balls) Rice balls are a good way to use up left-over rice. Balls of rice are squeezed together with 2 hands and fashioned into triangle shapes. There are many variations that use various fillings and furikake (rice seasoning) to give the rice flavour. They are popular as snacks and in lunch boxes. I plan to add a rice ball recipe to this blog in May.

Sushi rice Sushi rice is rice that has been sweetened and vinegared. It is the essential ingredient in sushi, anything made with it is sushi by definition. Gomoku sushi is another type of sushi rice that you add finely chopped vegetables to before cooking the rice in the rice cooker. For recipes see my sushi rolls recipe, chirashizushi recipe for Girl's Day, and gomoku sushi recipe to come.
Takikomi Gohan Vegetables, tofu and flavourings are added to the rice cooker along with the rice and cooked together. The flavours soak into the rice as it cooks. Somewhat like fried rice but no fat and no eggs and ham. Healthy and easy!

I plan to add blog posts with recipes from everyday Japan cooking, using rice, that I think Australian home cooks might like to try.

There is so much to say about rice!
 

 #CookingWithRiceInJapan #Rice #Domburi #RiceBalls  #RiceToppings  #RiceBowls #Furikake #SushiRice #RiceSeasonings #HowToMakeRice #EasyandRelaxedJapaneseFood #DeborahNelson

 



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 




 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Easy Sushi Rolls (Norimaki)



Easy sushi rolls served on classically Japanese looking blue and white plates. The plate on the left is from Royal Doulton's Pacific range and on the right is from Australia's David Jones' Kasbah range.

Sushi rolls are great to eat at home, for picnics, party platters, for taking a packed lunch with you anywhere. These are the same sushi rolls that were pictured in my last blog post, Cherry Blossom Picnic.

Nori means seaweed (the dried type that comes in sheets), maki means roll in Japanese.

 

These sushi rolls have salmon, egg and cucumber in them, which together make a lovely combination of spring-like colours. Purchased norimaki often have raw fish in them, which can be problematic for the home cook in Australia. For fish to be served raw it must be very fresh. I like to use smoked salmon, which I love, instead of raw fish. To make the rolls, sushi rice is rolled up in nori sheets together with one or more fillings. These are futomaki (thick rolls) which use a full sheet of nori for each one. By using only a half sheet of nori you can make thin rolls.

You will need:

a bamboo sushi mat
1 quantity sushi rice (see below)
6 sheets of nori
a few slices of Tasmanian salmon, torn into strips
2 eggs
pinch salt
½ small cucumber, cut into strips

to serve: pickled ginger (amazu shoga) and soy sauce

1.       Make sushi rice, set aside.

2.       Make thin egg omelettes. Whisking together the eggs and add 2 teaspoons water and a pinch of salt. Heat a large frypan to medium hot, lightly grease and pour egg mixture in all at once, after a minute turn down heat, and allow the egg to just set. Remove from heat and roll up omelette and transfer to a chopping board to cool.

3.     Arrange nori on bamboo mat, spread rice along one end. Using spatula make a groove along the length of the rice. Place fillings in the groove. Using bamboo mat for support, firmly roll up the sushi. Just before you finish rolling wet the last 1-2cm (½ in), then continue to roll up firmly. The water helps seal the roll.

Assembling the sushi roll on the bamboo mat

4.       Remove from mat and cut roll in half. Place the two pieces side by side and cutting two at a time cut the roll into slices. You can get 6 or 8 slices from one sushi roll, depending how thinly you cut them.

5.       Repeat with remaining ingredients. Makes 6 rolls, which yield 36 to 48 pieces.

6.       Serve with the pickled ginger and soy sauce.

Sushi rice

3 cups uncooked rice

3 cups water

100ml (3 fl oz) rice wine or white vinegar

3 tablespoons of sugar

1 teaspoon salt

1.       Place rice and plenty of water in rice cooker, rinse rice several times, then add the 3 cups of water. Cook in rice cooker. Alternatively cook by absorption method on stove top or in microwave.

2.       Mix together the salt, sugar and vinegar and leave to dissolve together while cooking the rice.  I find this is easiest to do in a measuring jug, then it is ready to pour in step 3.

3.       When rice is cooked and still hot, transfer it to a large bowl and pour the vinegar mixture over the rice. Stir in the vinegar mixture as you fan the rice. Have someone fan for you with a hand held fan or stand in front of an electric fan if that is easier. The goal is to encourage the excess liquid to evaporate off the rice as the flavours soak in. It is important to do this when the rice is still quite hot.

Perhaps you are wondering if it is correct in Japan to eat norimaki with fingers or chopsticks- either is fine.

Variations: Use drained canned tuna fish and Kewpie mayonnaise mixed together, and cucumber for good, quick, easy, kid-friendly, economical, and you probably have the ingredients in your pantry and fridge already sushi rolls. Fancy variations are endless, look at the selection in shops and search the internet and cookbooks for ideas.

#SushiRolls #Norimaki  #EasyAndRelaxedJapaneseFood
 

 

 

 

 

Cherry Blossom Picnic

 

It is springtime in Japan, so time to pack up a bento (boxed meal), wrap it in a furoshiki (wrapping cloth) and take it with you on a picnic. Cherry blossom picnics are held wherever the blossoms bloom all over Japan. The picnics known as Ohanami (literally- looking at flowers), have a long history in Japan.

The food does not have to be elaborate. Sushi rolls (norimaki) and rice balls (onigiri), are perfect for packing up easily and taking outside. I remember going on a picnic under the cherry trees with a Japanese family when my children were small. I brought along a homemade banana cake and my Japanese friends brought a range of really delicious onigiri (rice balls), which had been pressed in furikake (rice seasonings), among other things. At the end of the picnic there were left overs. My friends said, “I’m taking home the banana cake”, I said, “I’m having the onigiri”. We laughed, packed up and went home.

Well, it isn’t spring in Australia now, but in our mostly mild climate the weather is also always suitable for picnicking. For me it is one of the simple pleasures of life. It is always good to get outside and enjoy fresh air and being in nature.

Search the internet for images of sakura (Japanese cherry blossoms), obento, bento, bento boxes, furoshiki and Japanese wrapping cloth for more information and perhaps some inspiration.

Sushi rolls in an obento box

I will introduce an easy recipe for norimaki sushi (sushi rolls) in my next blog post. But, hey if you don’t feel like cooking or don’t have time, pick some norimaki up from a shop and take it to the park. My family did that recently in Brisbane and we sat by the river as we ate our sushi.

Japanese people do not usually take pretty little plates to picnics, they are generally more practical than that, they just serve the food straight from the bento box. I couldn’t resist putting these pretty pink dishes in my pink picnic photo on my ombre pink furoshiki (wrapping cloth) complete with pink paper wrapped chopsticks.

#SushiRolls #Norimaki #CherryBlossomPicnic #EasyAndRelaxedJapaneseFood