Daikon no Nimono 大根の煮物 is an extremely simple dish that is a regular, traditional accompaniment in Japanese meals. Daikons 大根 are very nutritious. The taste takes a bit of getting used to for non-East Asians but once you eat it a couple of times, you can easily get hooked! I make this in winter, because daikon 大根 in traditional Chinese medicine aids blood flow in cold climates.
This particular recipe calls for the daikon 大根 to be slowly braised in stock.
Ingredients:
- 1 medium sized daikon (you don’t have to use all of it)
- 1 paper teabag
- 2 tbs Katsuobushi 鰹節
- 1 tps mirin
- 1 tps sake
- 2 slices of fresh ginger
- 1 tbs soy sauce
- Water
- Rice water
Serving: 2 persons (as accompaniment)
Instructions:
- Use half the daikon (keep the other half in the fridge). Peel the daikon and cut it into 4cm high slices. Trim the top and bottom edges (to prevent splitting during cooking), and cut a very shallow X incision on both sides if desired.
- Using the leftover water that you used to rinse rice, slowly simmer the daikon in a pot over 25 minutes on low heat. Rice water helps to get rid of the strong daikon smell that many non-East Asians do not like (but I do). Once the daikon becomes a little but translucent, it is ready.
- Drain the daikon, put them back into the pot and fill enough water to just submerge them. Put your Katsuobushi into the paper teabag together with two slices of fresh ginger. This will be your dashi (stock), so you can replace this if you already have dashi stock ready. Add in the filled teabag, mirin and sake into the pot, bring to boil then let it simmer on low heat for another 20 minutes. Once you can punch a hole very easily into the daikon with a toothpick, then it is ready. Discard the teabag.
- Add a tablespoon of soy sauce to the liquid to taste and let it colour a little the daikon pieces.
- Serve the daikon in a serving plate, add some of the liquid at the bottom then garnish with a bit of spring onions.
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