Changing up our routine of white rice I like to make takikomigohan. Rice steamed with toppings that are mixed into the rice after it has cooked. Some of my favorite takikomigohan are made with grilled fish like salmon or tai (sea bream). The salmon takikomigohan is especially nice when topped with ikura. Most important is to grill the fish before adding it to the rice pot to rid it of its fishiness.
Julienne the fillings. Here I have used (clockwise from top left) gobo (burdock root), abura-age (deep-fried tofu), konnyaku, carrots, and rehydrated hoshi shiitake (dried shiitake).
Here is the master recipe I use for rice, from Iron Chef Kimio Nonaga of Nihonbashi Yukari. Most important here is his technique for rinsing and measuring the rice to determine the amount of liquid needed.
3 cups of rice
100 ml soy sauce
50 ml mirin
1 tsp. salt
water (as needed by using Chef Nonaga's recipe)
After rinsing the rice add to your rice pot. Top with julienned fillings. Add liquid and salt. Cook rice as usual. Stir up the rice pot after cooking to incorporate the fillings.
Key point here is that the amount of liquid remains the same as if you are making white rice. Just substitute some soy sauce and mirin. I also sometimes like to add a splash of sake. Another option is to add some sugar. Just be careful as the rice pot may scorch so monitor the heat carefully.
Takikomigohan is a free for all. Many different ingredients can be used including chicken, hijiki, kiriboshi daikon (dried daikon strips), mushrooms like maitake or shimeji, kombu, and much more.
