Roast Salt Pork Okowa with Root Vegetables and Yuzu

Recently I have made a lot of okowa because I got sick. I got a nasty cold (twice) for the first half of February and when I get sick, I get cookin, or at least eatin! I eat out or cook plenty of high calorie meals. Wagyu yakiniku is my favorite foodie cold remedy!

I happened to have several big chunks of fatty pork shoulder on hand because I had just finished making an epic batch of charcuterie with Brendon E. Also, I had also discovered a nikuman (meat-filled steamed ‘baozi’ bun) at FamilyMart this year that I liked a lot, it was filled with shio buta (salt pork). So, I salted up one of the pork shoulders and let it rest in the refrigerator for several days and then roasted it in the oven, until a lot of the fat had melted away. After it cooled I chopped it up into bit sized pieces for okowa. If you know Chinese cuisine, you can see this is heading in that direction.

Mochigome and Kome: Sticky glutinous rice compared to regular short-grain rice.

About Okowa (おこわ)
Okowa was originally casual expression used by women working in the Imperial Court. The proper name for the dish was kowameshi 強飯 (こわめし). Kowameshi literary means strong, hard (kowa) rice (meshi). This is because as the dish is made with mochigome it has a much more firm and chewy texture than normal white rice or takikomi-gohan.

Throughout history mochi rice was very precious and was only enjoyed on special occasions such as festival and new years. Even today mochi rice is far more expensive than regular rice.

As mochi rice has its own sweetness in Japanese cuisine a simple seasoning with some seasonal ingredients is favored. Popular ingredients for seasonal okowa recipes include chestnuts, mushrooms, sansai mountain vegetables, bamboo shoots, white meat fish. This is then cooked with a cooking sake, mirin (sweet cooking sake) and soy sauce. Properly okowa is steamed, however modern rice cookers can make it very well with the push of a button.

There is now an okowa specialty chain shop in many of the department store food courts that offers seasonal okowa steamed to perfection.

Some of the ingredients.

Hearty Mid-winter Fatty Pork and Root Vegetable Okowa
Okowa is usually not at all oily but I needed some cold fighting power from this so I put plenty of pork in. Japanese believe that it is very healthy to eat root vegetables in the winter, so I added a lot carrot and burdock root. The aburaage deep-fried tofu came from Otokomae Tofuten, it is very thick and has a rich tofu flavor. I made this dish 3 times over the last 10 days or so and I must say that I liked the oiliest, sweetest, stickiest and most caramelized version the best, which this slightly more healthy recipe is not.

Shio-buta Roast Salt Pork

Gobo Burdock Root: Washed and Unwashed

I garnished mine two different ways; one with chopped scallions and the other with julienned yuzu peel and a squeeze of yuzu juice. Yuzu was far better. If I were serving guests, I thought that I would make three versions and serve each guest all three in small portions. That would be very ‘Kyoto’, I thought. For the third garnish I thought that go with fine chopped pork that had been re-sauteed in oil with additional salt and then a squeeze of grated ginger through muslin over the rice. Or, perhaps long strips of paper thin sliced deep-fried gobo.

Roast Salt Pork Okowa with Root Vegetables and Scallions

Roast Salt Pork Okowa with Root Vegetables and Yuzu

Roast Salt Pork Okowa with Root Vegetables and Yuzu

Okowa Recipe: Hearty Mid-winter Fatty Pork and Root Vegetable Okowa
Shio Buta (Roast Salt Pork) I ground sea salt onto the fatty pork until it has well covered and then wrapped it in cellophane and let it rest in the refrigerator for about 2 days. Next I slowly roasted it in the oven for several hours until a lot of the fat has cooked off. My unscientific analysis is that all the salt runs off the surface with the melting fat. However, the roasted pork still comes out salty enough that you couldn’t really eat more than a few bites at a time and this makes it just right for flavoring the okowa.

Gobo Burdock Root Burdock root must be well washed and then cut into strips or chunks, depending on how thick the actual root is. Next you need to perform the ‘aku-nuki’ to remove the bitterness. Normally you place the cut burdock root in water and allow to soak for 30 minutes or an hour and change the water several times. The water will turn brown and the burdock whiter. Traditionally aku-nuki is considered essential for any preparation of gobo. However, recently it has been revealed that the ‘aku’ in gobo is not aku at all but polyphenol and other desirable nutrients. Modern preparations of gobo call for soaking it in vinegar water for just several minutes to remove the dark color which will stain soups and rice dishes.

Gobo needs a good deal of heat and/or time cooking and the time required to cook rice doesn’t suffice. So, you can either cut your burdock paper thin or blanch it. This is a hearty recipe so I went with chunks of burdock and blanch them for a few minutes.

Mochigome Just mochigome can be used, however I made mine about 20% oshimugi (pressed barley), the same that is used in mugi-gohan. It is essential to first soak the mochi rice in hot water. I put my mochi rice into a metal bowl and poured on 60º C water and allow to soak for about an hour.

After soaking well, rinse the mochi rice with fresh water several times.

Caramelizers – Cooking Sake, Mirin and Soy Sauce Mochi rice has a natural sweetness but okowa gets sweeter thanks to these ingredients. A lot of chefs in Japan add and measure these ingredients with a ladle and that is what I did. My ratio is 3:2:1; 3 parts cooking sake, 2 parts mirin (sweet cooking sake) and 1 part Japanese shoyu soy sauce. One Japanese ladle full is about 35 ml, or 4 tablespoons. I think that you could even double the amount of sake and mirin from the above.

Ingredients

• 3 cups mochi rice (Japanese short grain glutinous rice)
• water
• 1 cup chopped fatty pork (salt roasted if possible)
• 1 cup chopped carrots
• 1 cup sliced gobo burdock root (blanched)
• 1/2 cup sliced shiitake mushrooms
• 1/2 cup sliced aburaage tofu (deep fried tofu)
• 90 ml cooking sake
• 60 ml mirin
• 30 ml shoyu soy sauce
• scallions and yuzu for garnish

Preparation
Rinse the rice well and add to rice cooker. Add desired amount of sake, mirin and shoyu then add required amount of water according to your rice cooker settings. I made mine with just the same amount of liquid as for regular white rice and it came out just fine.

Rinse gobo well and add all other ingredients to rice cooker. Stir the ingredients a bit to even out distribution then close the lid and start cooking.

Serve and garnish as you like.

Roast Salt Pork Okowa with Root Vegetables - Leftovers 24 hours later, wow! What a color.

Links and Reference
Just Bento has a good article on a more typical preparation of okowa here.

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Gohan Nabe: Earthenware Pot for Cooking Rice
Rice cooked in a gohan nabe is noticeably tastier than in an electric rice cooker. Of course electric rice cookers are the norm in modern Japan. But there is a lot interest in gohan nabe recently, especially among the younger generation. The gohan nabe is different from a regular donabe in that it has an inner and outer lid. Any donabe needs to be seasoned before its first use.

I have noticed from comments and search access keywords that there is a fair amount in interest in donabe and gohan nabe among foodies abroad now. We have a good discussion going on in our Kyoto Support forum about how to season a donabe.

I thought that it would be useful to make a demonstration video on how to season a donabe as well.

Video: How to Season a New Donabe

Steps to Season a Donabe
Seasoning is done by boiling cooked rice in the donabe until it becomes a thick porridge. This fills microscopic pores in the donabe and will help to prevent breakage and damage by heat.

• Fill the donabe to about 80% with water then add cooked rice.
• The amount of cooked rice should equal about 1/5 of the volume of water. A little more rice is said to be better than less.
• Simmer gently over until the rice forms a thick porridge. This took me about an hour. Be careful not to cook it down so much that it burns.
• Allow donabe and porridge to cool to room temperature and then discard. Don’t leave to porridge in for more than a few hours.
• Wash and wipe well. Allow to dry overnight before first use.

Donabe Maintenance

• All donabe accumulate hairline cracks with use.
• When not in use never cover a dobane if it is not completely dry inside.
• Avoid mold developing inside the donabe.

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We were given a gift of kumiage yuba from a yuba company up in Otsu recently and made donburi with it on Peko’s famous rice. Simply flavored with soy sauce and wasabi, this is veg, healthy, and not just tasty, but creamy tasty! Have you heard of yuba?

Yuba is made by simmering a large vat of tonyu 豆乳, or soy milk. As water evaporates, every minute or so, a film develops on the surface of the tonyu which is lifted off. This is yuba and it can be dried or eaten as is, fresh. If you like tofu and soy milk, you would surely love fresh yuba!

Yuba started out centuries ago as temple food in Kyoto but is now enjoyed by common people and is gaining popularity all over Japan because it is tasty and healthy.

Itadakimono: Kumiage Yuba

I had a chance to do a yuba making study/experience, called kengaku 見学, in Japanese at a shinise yuba company, Hiei Yuba in Otsu, Shiga Prefecture, on the southern shore of Lake Biwa. Otsu is just over the mountain from Kyoto, and though a rather small town compared to Kyoto, it has a history that is a bit longer than Kyoto. In fact, it was the capital of Japan, just briefly, even before Kyoto was. We’ve got an article simmering about yuba kengaku coming your way soon, but until then, please just feast your eyes on this.

One of our friends that works at Hiei Yuba came to Kyoto Takashimaya for a week to sell their yuba at a demise. We met for dinner in the evening and were given a package of fresh, kumiage yuba.

Kumiage Yuba

This is four or five ‘sheets’ of yuba swimming in soy milk.

Gokokumai Mugi Gohan: Ingredients

Peko’s Gokokumai Mugi Gohan Recipe

• Short grain rice 2 cups
• Oshi Mugi (rolled oats, for Japanese mugi-gohan) 1/2 cup
• Gokokumai (5 grains) 1 pack, about 25-30g
• Kombu (dried kelp)
• Salt and Sake to taste

Add the amount of water based on the instructions of your rice cooker.

Gokoku: Package

Five kinds of ‘bird seed’ added to your rice makes it much more flavorful and healthy.

Gokokumai Mugi Gohan: Just Done Cooking

Discard the kombu after cooking.

Gokokumai Mugi Gohan: Served

Five kinds of grain (gokoku), rolled oats (mugi) and Japanese short-grain rice: yum!

Making the Donburi
Making the donburi is really simple. Just serve rice in a large donburi bowl, place yuba on top and add wasabi and soy sauce. (I think) to be photogenic, we didn’t add any of the soy milk that can be seen in the photo in the plate above. Be sure to add it though, it will be more creamy.

Last step: Devour

Yuba Donburi: Served

Yuba Donburi – detail with Shoyu and Wasabi

Yuba Donburi: Looks Like this While Eating

Miwa didn’t want me to include this photo, but she’s not here now and this is what it looks like as you eat it.

You’ve got to try this dish! Simple and tasty home cooking with aozakana; just sardines, ginger and rice.

Iwashi (sardine); aozakana

Sardine is called iwashi in Japanese and iwashi is an aozakana (青魚), literally, ‘blue fish’. Blue refers to the color of the back of the fish. Aozakana are in season in autumn and winter in Japan and are rich, oily fish and therefore very tasty and nourishing.

Iwashi Gohan

Iwashi-gohan is very simple to prepare and so, so delicious! Iwashi, as it is an aozakana is big and heavy in flavor, a flavor that might not be for everyone. However, cooking it in rice with ginger and sake mellows out the intensity of the sardine flavor considerably. So, don’t be afraid to give this recipe a try.

Iwashi Gohan

Ingredients

• 6-10 whole sardines (depending on size)
• 2 – 2 1/2 cups short grain rice (mugi, rolled oats is a nice addition)
• fresh ginger julienned
• 5 tablespoons cooking sake
• 1 tablespoon mirin (optional)
• salt
• dried kombu (optional)
• scallion

Preparation

Iwashi
Cleaning the sardines simply involves cutting off the heads and tails, removing the entrails and optionally pulling out the backbone.

Iwashi flesh, especially the belly skin is very soft so gutting the fish is best done by cutting off the bottom 1/4 of the belly on a cutting board. Most of the guts come out with the belly skin. Simply wash out the rest under running water. A gentle pull on the backbone will remove most of it. You can leave it in or take it out.

After cleaning the iwashi place in salt water for several hours. This removes some of the fishiness. If you can get really fresh, sushi quality iwashi, you can probably skip this. Rinse well before adding to the rice.

Rice
Use short grain rice if at all possible. Wash the rice thoroughly, until the poured off water is fairly clear. If you are adding mugi (rolled oats) add it after washing the rice. Now in Japan there is ‘washless’ rice (無洗米), but I am assuming that is not common in the English speaking lands. The amount of water needed will depend on your cooking method. The best is an electric rice cooker. Electric rice cookers have markings inside to denote the amount of water needed for various kinds of rice and rice/grain mixtures. If you are cooking rice in a pan on the stove, see the instructions on the rice bag as cooking requirements may vary depending on rice grain size and dryness.

Cooking
Pour clean, fresh water on the rice, add cooking sake if you have it. Next, add the sardines and julienned ginger. Adding a bit of mirin, salt and dried kombu will enhance the flavor of the finished rice. Cover and cook.

Serving
After the iwashi-gohan has finished cooking, remove the kombu and turnover several times with a rice paddle or similar large serving spoon and re-cover for several minutes.

Serve in a large bowl and garnish with chopped scallions.

You may wish to add a small amount of shoyu but it should be sufficiently flavorful.

Iwashi Gohan Ingredients

Cleaned Sardines

Iwashi Gohan Ready to Cook

Kombu and ginger is added and it is ready to cook!

Iwashi Gohan Done

Note the measuring marks on the inside of the rice cooker that denote the appropriate amount of water for various kinds of rice.

Iwashi Gohan Served

Iwashi Gohan Served – detail

Buri-zanmai Series (Part 3): Winter is the time for buri, or yellowtail. The meat is laden with oil and rich flavor. Here we make a quick and simple rice dish, Buri Sashimi and Shiso Donburi.

Buri Sashimi and Shiso Donburi:
Donburi is a popular ‘rice bowl’ dish in Japan. Here we make a decidedly nouveau, winter-themed donburi. Just fresh buri sashimi, finely chopped shiso leaves, shoyu, wasabi and a squeeze of sudachi all on a bed of warm rice makes this a quick and healthy meal!

Ingredients:

• buri (yellowtail) sashimi
• shiso leaf (10-15 per serving)
• shoyu
• wasabi
• sudachi

＊As with all home cooking recipes here on KyotoFoodie, we trust that our readers are fellow foodies and will be able to ‘wing’ the recipe and even alter and improve it.

Rice: Cook as usual for white rice. For a serving of two, use about one and a half cups of rice. Try to use Japanese-style short grain rice, ‘California rice’ is just fine.

Add dried kombu or sake for additional flavor.

We like mugi-gohan for this dish too. Add half a cup of pressed oats (oshi-mugi) if you like.

Preparation:
Preparation for this dish is quite simple. While the rice is cooking, the other ingredients can easily be prepared.

Shiso: Wash the shiso leaves and chop finely.
Wasabi and Shoyu: Grind fresh wasabi root if available. If not, use preserved wasabi paste. Mix wasabi paste with shoyu.
Sudachi: If fresh sudachi is available, simply cut in half and remove seeds.

Serve: Serve the rice in a large ‘donburi‘ style bowl and allow to cool somewhat for 1 to 2 minutes. Place the chopped shiso atop the rice. On the bed of shiso, place the sliced buri sashimi. Spoon on about 2 tablespoons of wasabi-shoyu over to the sashimi. Next squeeze on half a sudachi. If not obtainable, lime or lemon is a fine substitute. Bottled sudachi juice is also fine.

Enjoy!

Buri Sashimi and Shiso Donburi — Served

Buri Sashimi and Shiso Donburi — chopping Shiso