Takikomi Gohan

— Infusing rice with seasonal flavor

White, steaming hot, sticky rice is a symbol of Japanese food. Rice is the most important element of Japanese cuisine but there is another style of rice, cooked with an easy method for infusing rice with seasonal ingredients, called takikomi (literally, “simmering inside”) gohan.

While walking through the streets of Kyoto’s neighborhoods, you might occasionally catch the delicious aroma of rice being cooked in this way. Earthy and rich — due to the base of dashi (kombu (kelp) & katsuobushi (bonito flakes) and simmered vegetables, fish, meat or mushrooms — it is enough to make your mouth water and push aside the shop’s noren (curtain) to take a peek.

At Kyoto’s many fine restaurants, chefs often serve not just plain rice but takikomi gohan (rice) of some kind. They feature the best seasonal ingredients and serve it at the end of the meal, with pickles and soup, as is the custom for plain rice. However, since takikomi gohan is, in a way, a mixture of rice and soup, the latter is occasionally omitted.

While takikomi gohan is made by cooking the rice with stock and ingredients, maze gohan is made by adding cooked ingredients separately, after the rice is finished. This is good for edamame (soybeans) or peas, which should not be cooked too long in order to retain their bright color and texture.

But by simmering the ingredients with the rice, all the various components combine to become something else: warm, comforting and slightly oldfashioned — yet, exceedingly simple. Takikomi gohan is not creamy like Italian risotto, and is closer in spirit to some of the simpler recipes for Spanish paella. However, takikomi gohan is much easier to prepare than either form of its foreign cousins.

With autumn’s cool nights, mushrooms are the perfect choice. Here we use maitake or dancing mushrooms, perfect for their rich, intense flavor and soft texture. They are so flavorful, in fact, that little is needed in the way of seasonings. Why not try a recipe yourself?

Maitake Takikomi Gohan (Serves 6)

< Ingredients

・3 cups white Japanese rice

・3.5 cups dashi

・1 package of maitake or shiitake mushrooms

・2 tbs soy sauce

・1 tsp salt

・2 tbs sugar

・2 tbs sake

・kinome for garnish

1) Gently break apart the maitake mushrooms into pieces. Cut any long mushrooms in half. If using shiitake mushrooms, cut them into strips.

2) Wash the rice well in several changes of water, until the water is almost clear. This removes excess starch. Add the rice, dashi and the remaining simmering ingredients to a rice cooker or large pot with a heavy lid. Add the chopped mushrooms.

3) If using a pot (or traditional ceramic donabe, as pictured here), bring to a rapid boil over high heat for about 10 minutes. Then, lower the heat to simmer for approximately 20 minutes. Turn the heat off, but keep the lid on to continue steaming until dinner is ready to be served.

4) Serve in individual bowls, topped with a fragrant sprig of kinome (a small leaf of Japanese sansho pepper plant). If using a donabe, bring it to the table so people can easily have seconds!

For a more substantial meal, you can add sautéed diced chicken. The variations are endless and can feature seasonal vegetables such as bamboo shoots in the spring and chestnuts in the fall.