Zojirushi Blog

Celebrate the Holidays with Japanese Flavor

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Are you excited for the holidays? In addition to going all out with festive decorations, Japanese people love to celebrate this time of year with popular American foods seasoned with a Japanese twist. For those who want to add a twist to their holiday dinner, we’ll be sharing some of our favorite Japanese and American holiday recipes that are guaranteed to delight and impress – all of which can be made easily with the help of the new Micom Rice Cooker & Warmer NL-DCC10/18.

Introducing The Rice Cooker That Does It All

The newest addition to our rice cooker lineup is the Micom Rice Cooker & Warmer NL-DCC10/18. It comes in 5.5 or 10 cup capacities and in a beautiful Pearl Beige color. What’s unique about this appliance is that it is built with advanced micro computerized Fuzzy Logic technology, meaning that the rice cooker can automatically adjust cooking temperatures and cooking time to cook your rice (or cake!) perfectly every time.

It also includes a wide variety of settings which include: White, Long Grain White, Sushi, Congee, Brown, GABA Brown, Jasmine, Steel Cut Oatmeal, Quinoa, Quick White, and Cake.

Choose from convenient features like automatic keep warm, extended keep warm, reheat, and delay timer functions on the rice cooker’s easy-to-read LCD control panel, so you can cook your dishes whenever you please.

In addition, the appliance comes with an easy-to-clean detachable and washable inner lid, detachable power cord, and extra-large steam vent cap for high-powered cooking. The Menu

Now that we’re thoroughly acquainted with the Micom Rice Cooker & Warmer NL-DCC10/18, let’s get to cooking!

First Bite

If you’re hosting a holiday get-together, it’s important to make a great first impression. Not only are these dishes visually attractive, but they’re also easily shareable and super tasty.

 

 

  • Gomoku Sushi: This is a beautifully garnished rice bowl that features seasonal vegetables and seafood on top of sushi rice. Because it can be prepared in advance, it’s the perfect appetizer for events or large gatherings.

 

  • Prosciutto Rice Balls: These bite-size rice balls combine Japanese culinary techniques with Italian style. The prosciutto pairs perfectly with the rice, and the basil adds a fresh zing. Pro rice tip: Always rinse the rice before cooking, even brown rice. Milling leaves a lot of starch on the surface of the rice, and if not removed the rice becomes gummy. We recommend to rinse it 3 to 4 times to remove the excess starch. Remember to work quickly to prevent the rice from absorbing starchy water as much as possible. Watch this video to learn more.

Main Course:

Did you know that Christmas Eve and Christmas are widely celebrated with a bucket of KFC fried chicken in Japan? Because turkey is not readily available in the country, this craze has endured throughout the holidays for decades. Here are two dishes that you can make to celebrate just like the Japanese, with chicken as a star ingredient.

 

 

  • Karaage is Japanese-style fried chicken that is fried to crispy deliciousness in small, bite-sized pieces served with rice. It is sure to be a favorite during the holidays.

 

  • Curry Doria is a mix between a casserole and Japanese curry. Add generous amounts of mozzarella, and add your protein of choice to your liking (in this case, chicken!). Pro rice tip: Remember to use your measuring cup to measure out your rice and use the water measuring lines on the pan to measure the water. We cook and test tons and tons of rice every year, so our rice cookers can cook the best-tasting rice for you consistently. It’s scientific. It’s precise. Trust us, and use the rice measuring cup in conjunction with the water measure lines. It will yield a perfect result. Every. Single. Time.

A Sweet Ending

One of the biggest highlights of a Japanese Christmas is the decorative cakes that look like works of art — they are almost too pretty to eat! In Japan, people especially love enjoying strawberry shortcake on this holiday. Below are fruit-forward cake options that you can make straight out of your rice cooker.

 

  • Layered Trifle Tower: This fluffy sponge cake is layered beautifully with marsala sherry, raspberry jam, custard, and fruit. Serve in a clear vessel to show off the beautiful interior.

 

  • Whole Wheat Sponge Cake: This whole wheat cake only requires seven ingredients (plus the fruit) and is easily baked at the touch of a button. Top with whipped cream, enjoy, repeat.

 

 

How are you going to spend the holidays this year? Are you planning on trying any of these recipes or tips we shared today? Be sure to share your experience with us on social by tagging your photos on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram! #Zojirushi #ZoFan

 

Bert-san's Year in Review

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Wow! Did 2021 go by in the blink of an eye for you? It did for me; if it weren’t for this blog to keep me regularly contributing each month, I’d probably spin into a vacuum. What the heck did I do all year? Now that I think about it—a lot.

Even though we weren’t very sociable because of COVID, we did our share of hot pots at home just because it’s good for cold weather and we love it. There’s a Taiwanese hot pot restaurant near us that’s always crowded because people love to hang out, spend money and take pictures of what they eat. We’ve been there and it’s alright, but I prefer my hot pots to be simpler than the Taiwanese kind. Japanese nabe style hot pots let you taste all the ingredients without all the heat, in my opinion.

But being that we’re a Japanese/Korean household, and democratic, we can’t have one kind of cooking without the other. I like this army stew because it combines both Korean and Hawaiian cultures into one down-to-earth dish that isn’t just about pretty ingredients or food writers’ taste buds. I mean, the stars of this hot pot are hot dogs and SPAM®! Yeah, it’s basically glorified spicy instant ramen, but it’s good!

If you own a Zojirushi Electric Griddle, one of the most fun and worth it optional accessories you can buy for it is the Takoyaki Plate. Host a “tako-pa” or takoyaki party at your house and everybody can take turns rolling octopus dough balls in the plate. Super fun activity and you get to eat hot takoyaki right off the griddle.

What’s brilliant about this accessory is all the other creative things you can cook on it by rolling them into ball shapes. A search online was eye-opening, seeing all the appetizers and desserts people figured out how to make, like Nutella® Pancake Balls.

For college kids, classes were still taught online this spring, which meant our daughter was living with us at home. As much as I’m sure it frustrated her because she lost her independence, I loved having her around. I know we’re not going to have her that much longer if she moves out permanently one day, so I cherish these days until she graduates and moves on. We were still able to do the local things as a family though, like hike near our home near the bluffs of Palos Verdes. I feel lucky we live near the coast.

Oh by the way, if you never saw my recipe for Brandy Iced Tea, check it out in the post. This will be a treat, I promise. And don’t worry—it’s alcoholic, but not really, you know what I mean?

If you own the BIG Zojirushi Electric Griddle, you can spend all morning doing pancake art, like I did with mine on Japanese Children’s Day. I was so into creating the pancakes, I really didn’t get a chance to eat them; and I don’t have the little kids anymore who would have appreciated it. Too bad! If you do, try this and I guarantee they’ll love it. I’ve seen guys do this using food coloring in the batter, so they can really go all out with their “art”. But then they’re no longer pancakes, and who wants to eat them anymore?

This summer our local Korean restaurants still weren’t open completely, so we had to do Korean BBQ at home. Not quite the same, but not bad if you have the equipment to do it right. I mean, it’s still all-you-can-eat, right? I have a Zojirushi Electric Grill that did the job so well, that it satisfied our cravings until all the restaurants were able to open again.

This is my deliciously beautiful grilled corn, basted with soy sauce Japanese style, called Yaki Tomorokoshi. So good!

Also around this time we started having our squirrel problem. At first I thought the critter was kinda cute, trying to steal a whole peach through a hole he chewed in my screen.

But it got old really fast when he got so nervy he was regularly invading the house.

And even though I managed to trap one, I was never convinced I had caught the right one—the one that came into our house in the first place. So I kept setting the trap and kept on catching squirrels! Every time I caught one, the very next day I would see the first squirrel come right up to the screen again, ready to sneak in. Do you think he told his friends where the best food was?

My Zojirushi Electric Skillet, the one that I used to do hot pots this year, also comes with a shallower pan. This is what I used to make my Pepper Rice for National Rice Month. Of all my Zojirushi appliances, this is the one I use most often because it can cook almost anything—and the two pans make it even more useful. A couple weeks ago we went back to the restaurant that specializes in this, now that everything is back for dining again. They do theirs on personal cast iron skillets and serve them to you like that.

Aaand if you missed my latest review, I tested the Zojirushi NL-GAC10/18 Rice Cooker for its “umami”, “steam” and “sweet rice” settings, just to see how they would do with my limited cooking skills. My big takeaways? UMAMI really does exist, steaming in a rice cooker is brilliant if you can cook your rice at the same time, and for a medium price cooker, this model will do a great job.

So how was your year? Restaurants are opening, traffic is back with a vengeance and we’re gradually going back to work. Let’s go!!

 

 

Please note that these recipes were not tested by Zojirushi America.

All images by Bert Tanimoto ©2021

 

 

Tonjiru: Japanese Pork & Vegetable Miso Soup

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We all may be familiar with miso soup, but tonjiru is a classic type of miso soup that is widely popular in Japan during the colder months. This hearty home-cooked favorite features a savory, pork-infused broth complemented by seasonal vegetables and is perfect as a snack, appetizer, or main dish when paired with a bowl of rice. Not only is it incredibly easy to make, but it packs huge flavor and nutrients for anyone craving a comforting meal.

Where Does It Come From?

Tonjiru (豚汁) comes from traditional Chinese characters that mean “pork” and “soup.” Sometimes, it can be read as “butajiru,” but the Japanese kanji characters are the same. Tonjiru was created sometime in the Meiji era (late 1800s) and has been a traditional winter dish ever since. This soup was meant to feed many mouths, and because meat was not as readily available as it is today, the soup that we enjoy today has a much higher pork to vegetable ratio than before. This soup is preferred not only for its flavor but because of its high-fat content, which keeps the soup warmer for longer.

How to Enjoy Tonjiru

Here are some of the tastiest ways to prepare tonjiru right at home.

Pork

  • Marble-rich cuts of pork like pork belly or shoulder are most commonly used for this dish. Thinner cuts will cook faster, but thicker cuts may add more depth and flavor. The choice is up to you!
  • Brown the pork first to add more flavor to the soup base. Fry evenly on both sides until the meat turns brown. Some even like to char the pork before adding it to the soup.

Vegetables & Add-ons

  • After browning the pork, “sweat” your vegetables in the same pan to release their flavors and aromas. Use seasonal vegetables that are available to you, such as mushrooms, carrots, and onions. The more veggies, the better!
  • Japanese people like to add local ingredients like daikon, shimeji mushrooms, taro, burdock, konnyaku, and Asian chives (nira).
  • You can also add in ingredients like tofu or noodles for a heartier meal.

Soup

  • The pork will add plenty of flavor to the soup, but traditional recipes use less pork and more miso. Add small increments of yellow miso to your water base, and taste as you go. To preserve the miso’s full flavor, add the miso in at last before the water gets to a boil.
  • You can also use dashi to add more flavor and umami.

Garnish

  • Finish off the dish with finely chopped scallions or togarashi (Japanese chili flakes).
  • Serve with a steaming bowl of rice and enjoy!

Now that you know all the key points on how to make the tastiest tonjiru, try making it at home with our very own Total Tonjiru Soup recipe.

Have you ever tried tonjiru? How do you like to prepare it at home? Let us know by tagging Zojirushi on your photos with #zojirushi on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram!

Mom’s Home Cooking: ポテトサラダ (Japanese Potato Salad)

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When you think of Japan, you may not think of side dishes like potato salad at first. But, Japanese Potato Salad, or “potesara,” has actually been around in Japanese cuisine for over 100 years! During the Meiji restoration, Western dishes began widely influencing Japanese cuisine, and Japan’s colorful potesara is thought to have originated sometime during that period. Today, this dish is widely enjoyed across the country as a delicious side to lunch and dinner all year round. Take a look for yourself, and consider making this dish as a fun and flavorful addition to any of your holiday meals.

Origins

Like many storied dishes, the exact origin of this dish can be disputed, but Japanese people believe that this dish was influenced by the Russian Olivier salad, which was first made by a Belgian chef in Russia. Sources date the first version of this Japanese take on the Olivier salad back to 1896, and the dish has evolved to its current colorful version over the years.

Star Ingredients

There are a few reasons why Japanese potato salad is so distinct from its Western counterparts. First, it is almost completely mashed, so it has a smoother consistency and texture. Second, some of the ingredients are uniquely Japanese, which lend to its great flavor. Last but not least, this dish features an array of colorful vegetables and deli meat, which makes you able to spot this dish from a mile away. Here are some of the most notable star ingredients:

  • Kewpie Mayonnaise: This crowd pleaser may be eye-catching for its bright colors, but is largely celebrated due to its rich, tangy flavor. This is accomplished through ingredients like Japanese mayo, such as the Kewpie brand, which is higher in vinegar and tangier in flavor.
  • Vegetables: Japanese people get very creative with their potato salads, and these versions tend to be very healthy due to the generous amounts of nutritious vegetables they add in. Popular veggies include carrots, peas, cucumber, onion, and broccoli, though you can really add in whatever you like!

  • Japanese mustard: Karashi mustard is a hot Japanese mustard made from a mixture of mustard seeds and horseradish. It is very spicy and comes in both powder and paste forms.

 

 

Make the Best Japanese Potato Salad

Thinking about whipping up this dish for your next dinner party, or just for yourself? Here are some tips to make sure your potato salad comes out delicious:

  • Make sure not to overcook the potatoes. You want to let the potatoes boil in water, and then at a simmer. Overcooking will result in a texture that falls apart instead of staying creamy.
  • Remove excess moisture from ingredients. This extra step will make sure that your salad does not get too watery and will also mellow out the spices from ingredients such as onions.
  • Salt your vegetables. Adding a pinch of salt to your carrots or cucumbers will keep them crunchy, which will balance the smooth texture from the potatoes.
  • Get creative with your garnishes. Finish off your dish with some fresh cracked pepper, sesame, or even parmesan cheese if you want to make the dish look and taste extra appetizing.
  • Chill before serving. Chilling your salad will give your salad time to settle, and absorb all of the yummy flavors you just incorporated. Chill at least one hour before serving in an airtight container.

Let us know if you tried to make this dish at home, or have your own secret recipe by tagging Zojirushi on your photos with #zojirushi on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram!

Bert-san's Take–Umami Rice Cooker

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Aren’t you curious? Can a rice cooker bring out umami in rice? I wanted to know more, yes I did, so I took the Zojirushi NL-GAC10/18 for a workout and tried not to get overly ambitious while testing some of its features. Our family cooker is the IH (induction heating) model so it’s in a higher price range, but I was surprised to see how well this cooker did, especially with that umami setting.

Bear in mind the umami setting takes over an hour to cook rice, so time your dinner accordingly. Believe me, it’ll be worth the wait. I was using the bigger 10-cup version, so the first thing I wanted to try was the minimum amount of rice. Can it still cook rice perfectly with only 2 cups? Yes it did, and it did it well.

The rice really was “sweeter” and cooked with perfect texture through each grain. Not soft-mushy, not hard with too much bite, but firm and still fluffy. Umami is hard to describe, but it brought out a certain flavor to the rice that you can taste. If you buy good quality rice, this is the way to cook it!

I’m assuming the extra time on this setting is to allow the raw grain to soak up the water longer, and after it’s done, to allow for extra steaming. The other thing I tried was to cook a larger amount of rice (5 cups) to make sure the results were the same. Again, it cooked consistently all the way to the bottom of the cooking pan. If you’re one of those people who believe rice is tasteless and has to be drizzled with soy sauce, try making a tasty entree and eat it with good, plain white rice. Give your taste buds some credit, man.

Another unique feature of this rice cooker is the steam setting and the steaming basket that comes with it. My larger 10-cup was ideal for this because the basket is large enough for almost any meal. It can be used as a “set it and forget it” stand alone steamer, but lazy me—I thought, what’s the point unless I can make rice at the same time? So my genius move was to cook fish using foil, which takes longer and can be steamed on the same timeline as a pot of rice.

My black cod (a meatier thicker fish is better; at least an inch thick) goes into the foil, elevated off the bottom with scallions.

Here’s proof I did both at the same time. I made 2 cups of rice on the “Quick” setting, which took about 30 minutes. The fish in a foil packet takes longer than when it’s open-faced, so I’m calculating that the 30 minutes is about right to cook both without over-steaming the fish.

Whoa! Better than I thought! The fish looked tender.

Since this is Chinese style, I made the sauce with soy sauce, sugar, oil, ginger and green onions. I heated it on the stove until boiling and poured it on my fish like a chef. Ha!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FwJ_kJd4W8Y
(I think it was supposed to sizzle, but mine was a little lame.)

But it still came out pretty tasty and it was so dang easy! Plus I had the rice already cooked to eat it with—that’s an A+ way to use this rice cooker in my mind.

My last test was the Sweet/Sushi rice setting that I thought sounded interesting. I made a traditional Japanese dessert called ohagi, also known as botamochi depending on the season. If you live near an Asian market, you might be able to find sweet rice (mochigome) and canned adzuki bean paste (or you can make it from scratch if you want). Wash the rice good and fill the water to the “Sweet” line on the cooking pan; choose the Sweet/Sushi menu and let the rice cooker do the rest.

Once the mochi rice is cooked, you need to mash it up just enough to still see shapes of the rice grains. I used the bottom of a mug as a masher and it worked fine.

See? Looks like mochi, right?

You can make 2 kinds of ohagi easily. Prepare some adzuki bean paste balls using a cookie dropper and get your kinako ready. Kinako is finely powdered soy bean flour that you mix with sugar to create Japanese style desserts.

Now all you’re doing is molding them into balls with the adzuki. If you use plastic wrap it isn’t that hard. For the ones coated with adzuki on the outside, just get a bit of rice and drop it into the middle and form into balls. The plastic wrap will keep your hands from getting sticky. For the kinako kind, you just do the opposite, then roll the rice ball on a bed of kinako powder.

Boom! You’re done. Mine aren’t very cute—I’m sure you can do better. But if you love mochi, this goes great with green tea!


There are a lot more menu settings on this rice cooker that I didn’t try, so maybe someone else can try those. Good luck if you do!

 

 

Products used in this post: Umami® Micom Rice Cooker & Warmer NL-GAC10/18

Please note that these recipes were not tested by Zojirushi America.

All images by Bert Tanimoto ©2021

 

 

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