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.
In Japan, depending on season, we add different kinds of vegetable, meat, and mushrooms so you enjoy the food each season offers and get extra nutrition instead of just plain white rice. People are always creative in regards to the ingredients they put in.
Today I added leftover fish cake called Chikuwa and Gobo root. I also added miso this time because both ingredients go really well with miso flavor. If you are tired of just plain rice, I hope you will add this recipe to your repertoire.
Ingredients:
- 3 cups of uncooked rice (Please use rice cooker’s cup)
- 1 gobo root
- 1 carrot
- 2 pieces of Chikuwa
- 4 Tbsp. soy sauce
- 4 Tbsp. Miso (I use Awase Miso)*
- 2 Tbsp. Mirin
- 1 Tbsp. sake
- Yuzu Kosho (optional)
- Shredded nori sheet for garnish
Instructions:
- Rinse rice until water is almost clear (See How To Make Rice). Drain well in a fine mesh sieve and leave it for at least 30 minutes. Place rice in the rice cooker.
- Peel the gobo root and cut in half lengthwise and thinly slice diagonally.
- In a medium bowl, soak gobo root in water or vinegar water (2 cups water + 1 tsp. vinegar) for 15 minutes to prevent from changing color and drain well.
- Peel the carrot and cut in half lengthwise and slice thinly.
- Cut chikuwa into thin pieces.
- In a small bowl, combine soy sauce, Miso, Mirin, and sake and mix well.
- Pour the seasonings into the rice cooker and mix well.
- Then add water up to “3”, the specified level marked in the inner bowl.
- Add the gobo root, carrot, and chikuwa on top of the rice.
- Set rice cooker menu to “Mixed” and start cooking.
- 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.
Notes
* Some brands of miso can be saltier than others so please adjust accordingly.
Itadakimasu!
Hi, I'm Nami. Thanks for stopping by Just One Cookbook. You can read little bit more about me 
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I love rice and I always need more ways to make it
this looks and sounds perfect!!! Thanks Nami for another awesome recipe 
Hi Suzana – Thanks! I have many Takikomi Gohan (mixed rice) recipes…
I love flavoured rice. I don’t think I can find gobo but I guess the ingredients are variable. I like the seasonings. Must be a bit sweet from the mirin. Yum!
Hi Adora’s Box! Yes, mirin (sweet) gives nice balance to the rice as soy sauce and miso is salty seasonings. Thanks for coming by!
Nami this is great! I’ve never tried making a flavored rice IN the rice cooker. So easy- brilliant! I might try this with some ****ake and bamboo shoots (my favorites).
Hi Lindsey! Haha it’s actually very common for us to use a rice cooker to make a flavored rice. Most Takikomi Gohan is cooked this way. To me, it’s a great way to feed kids additional veggies… and when they are in it, they don’t separate veggies from rice (maybe too lazy).
Flavored rice is the best!
Hi Sandra! Yes, I love all kinds actually… I should cook another one soon.
My kids love TakikomiGohan. I will be adding lots of mushrooms ; )
Hi Mika-san! Yeah different kinds of mushrooms is good one. I should cook one with Hijiki soon.
Soy sauce and rice are match made in heaven! I just love the way you added all those ingredients..sounds even more tasty!
Thanks so much for impressing me with one more amazing recipe!!!
Hi Sandra! I’m happy to know I can “impress” someone like you…really?!?! Haha. More Takikomi Gohan recipes will come in the future as I cook this often. Hopefully MUCH BETTER picture. This one is horrible!
Another wonderful post! I have never heard of this but it sounds so yummy. I love learning all these new Japanese dishes I have never seen before!
Hi Beth! I’m glad you are enjoying viewing my Japanese home cooking.
Yum! This looks like a perfect side dish!
Thank you Kath! And it’s easy if you have a rice cooker (and I know you do.
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My rice cooker isnt this big. How would you make this recipe by using a NABE (on the Stove)…. thank you for your time.
Hi lele! You can reduce the portion according to your rice cooker, or you can use regular pot to cook this rice over the stove.
1) wash rice and soak in water for 30-60 minutes. Drain.
2) prepare same volume of water as (soaked, not dried) rice. If the rice is 1 cup of rice, you need 1 cup water. However, for Takikomi Gohan, you have seasonings, so put the seasonings first, then add water till you have 1 cup.
3) Start cooking on high heat. When boiling (you near noise of boiling), cook 2 minutes over high.
4) Reduce heat to medium and cook for 3 minutes.
5) Reduce heat to low and cook for 5-7 minutes. Check quickly if there is any water left. If it is, cook a little longer.
6) Turn off the heat and keep it cover for 15 minutes.
Hope this helps.
arigatou gozaimashita. I cant wait to make it.
Hi Nami, I made this over the weekend and it was definitely a nice change to plain rice! I really liked the balance of salty, sweet and even slightly bitter from the burdock. And, I can’t possible complain about the extra nutrition
. Thanks!
Hi Janice!
Thank you so much for trying this recipe. I’ve been planning to update the horrible picture but I haven’t had the chance to replace it.
I appreciate your time to write me your feedback, and thank you so much!!!
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