biyuti

Gobo and Miso Takikomi Gohan

Takikomi Gohan is a Japanese rice dish typically seasoned with soy sauce. Although I've seen Takikomi Gohan on a menu at a high-end Japanese restaurant here in San Francisco Bay Area, most of you probably haven't heard of this dish.

Ingredients

  • 3 rice cooker cups uncooked Japanese short-grain rice
  • 1 gobo (burdock root)
  • 1 carrot
  • 2 pieces chikuwa (fish cake)
  • 4 Tbsp soy sauce
  • 3 Tbsp miso ((I use koji miso or awase miso; some brands of miso can be saltier than others so please adjust accordingly.))
  • 2 Tbsp mirin
  • 1 Tbsp sake
  • yuzu kosho (Japanese citrus chili paste) ((optional))
  • shredded nori seaweed (kizami nori) ((to garnish))

Instructions

  1. Gather all the ingredients. Rinse rice until water is almost clear. If you're not sure how to rinse the rice properly, click here. Drain well in a fine-mesh strainer, shaking off the water out. Transfer to the inner bowl of the rice cooker.
  2. Peel the gobo root and cut in half lengthwise and thinly slice diagonally.
  3. In a medium bowl, soak gobo in water for 15 minutes to prevent it from changing color. Change the water a few times and drain well.
  4. Peel the carrot and cut in half lengthwise and slice thinly.
  5. Cut chikuwa into thin pieces.
  6. In a small bowl, combine soy sauce, miso, mirin, and sake and mix well.
  7. Pour the seasonings into the rice cooker and mix well.
  8. Then add water up to 3-cup-line on the inner bowl.
  9. Add the gobo root, carrot, and chikuwa on top of the rice. Do not mix together with rice. Rice cooks evenly when it's not mixed with other ingredients.
  10. Place in the rice cooker and start cooking. If you have a “Mixed Rice” option, use it (See Notes below).
  11. When rice is done cooking, wait 10 minutes before you open the rice cooker. Mix well and serve Takikomi Gohan with Yuzu Kosho for spicy taste and garnish with shredded nori sheet.
  12. To Store
  13. You can keep the leftovers in an airtight container and store in the freezer for a month. I prefer freezing the cooked rice to refrigerating it. You can read more about it in this post.