This satisfying dish, called Takikomi Gohan in Japanese, is popular and nutritious fare. The rice and assorted added ingredients, with their indiviual textures and tastes, are cooked together in seasoned dashi to yield a deeply flavorful meal-in-a-bowl.
Ingredients: (Serves 4-6)
- 440 g (16 oz/2 cups) Japanese short-grain rice
- 5 dried shiitake mushrooms
- 25 g (1 oz) abura-age (deep-fried tofu sheets)
- 100 g (3½ oz) konnyaku (yam cake), optional
- 1 small carrot, peeled
- 60 g (2 oz) bamboo shoots
- 500 g (1 lb 2 oz) boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces
- 500 ml (17 fl oz/2 cups) dashi II
- 80 ml (2½ fl oz/1⁄3 cup) shoyu (Japanese soy sauce)
- 2 tablespoons mirin
- 2 tablespoons mitsuba or flat-leaf (Italian) parsley, chopped, optional
Method:
Rinse the rice several times in cold water until the water runs clear, then soak in fresh water for 1 hour.
Meanwhile, soak the shiitake in 375 ml (13 oz/1½ cups) hot water for 30 minutes, then drain well, reserving the liquid. Discard the stems and thinly slice the caps.
Put the abura-age in a heatproof bowl and cover with boiling water for a few minutes. Drain and squeeze the sheets gently between paper towels to remove the excess oil.
Cut the konnyaku, carrot, bamboo shoots and abura-age into 3 cm x 5 mm (1¼ x ¼ inch) strips and put in a bowl with the shiitake. Add the chicken pieces to the bowl.
Combine the reserved mushroom liquid, dashi, shoyu, mirin and 1 teaspoon salt in a bowl, then pour the liquid over the chicken and vegetables and set aside for about 20 minutes.
Drain the rice and spread over the base of a large saucepan. Pour the chicken and vegetable mixture over the rice but do not stir. Sit the saucepan over high heat and bring to the boil, then cover, reduce the heat to low and cook for 15 minutes. Turn off the heat, leaving the pan on the stove, and leave to stand for 10 minutes before stirring to combine all the ingredients.
If using it, stir in the mitsuba and serve.
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