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Monday, October 11, 2010

Chestnut Rice - My Version Of The Kurigohan

Chestnut Rice 6

Chestnut Rice 4

Chestnut 2

In perennial sunny Singapore,we don't get to witness the wonders of changing seasons. We miss out the thrills of watching leaves budding from bare branches, the harvesting of raspberries followed by strawberries and blueberries(not sure if I get the sequence right)in spring, the abundance of stone fruits and grapes in summer and the dawning of figs,chestnuts and clementines in winter... As I do get to travel quite extensively for work all over Asia, I have become quite accustomed to ask my colleagues 'what is in season now?'. As such, I have programmed at the back of my mind... to look out for Alfonso Mangoes in India in April- May, Strawberries in Japan/Korea in January, Peaches and grapes in Japan/Korea in August.

Then of course, we are lucky to be in the 'middle' of the globe - hence when the northern hemisphere starts to bundle up for winter, Australia and New Zealand wake up to pour in their vibrant spring/summer crop for us to enjoy... So now, it is Strawberries bumper time, thanks to imports from Australia!

It was more than a week ago before I left for Sydney that I spotted these plump and beautiful chestnuts from Japan. They have been left in the fridge all this while and I knew that I cannot afford to dither any longer, lest they all start to perish away. I chose to use them for a basic dish that I felt would least alter the taste of the chestnuts. Kurigohan or Chestnut rice is a simple Japanese rice dish that is simply seasoned and cooked with chestnut. I had wanted this to be a simple one pot dish for dinner and decided to add a little more flavour to it by mixing in some deep fried silver fish.

Chestnut rice 2
My Japanese friends would probably reprimand me for contaminating the simple sweet taste of the Kurigohan with shots of strong flavour from the silver fish but for my Singaporean taste buds, the combination worked out well and I thoroughly enjoyed my dinner...

Chestnut

(Roasting chestnuts though, was not fun. I did not know when to take the chestnut out of the oven and once it was out, I burnt my fingers trying to peel off the shell.... I would just use ready cooked chestnuts when I cook this next time...)

Chestnut Rice 6(250)

Recipe :

Silver Fish 100g (Deep fried in oil until golden brown.Drain)
Chestnut 300g
Japanese short grain rice 320g(I used short-grained brown rice)
Short grain glutinous rice 150g (soaked in water overnight)
Dark Soy Sauce 2 Tbsp
Salt 1/2 tsp
Mirin 2 Tbsp

Dashi Stock 500ml

Preparation :

1. Use a knife, etch a cross on the flat portion of the chestnut.Roast chestnut in oven at 220C for 20 mins with etched face up. When roasted, the etched lines will split and 'flower'.

Peel off the shell while the chestnuts are still hot.

2. Wash short grained rice and glutinous rice over running water. Place rice in a rice cooker. Add dashi,soya sauce,salt and mirin. Add roasted chestnut and cook in rice cooker until done.

3. Before serving, sprinkle with sesame seeds (typically, black sesame seeds are used, I used white sesame seeds).

4. Serve with a spoonful of crispy silver fish.

33 comments:

ICook4Fun said...

I love chestnuts but never thought of cooking it with rice. I will normally roast it or boil it till soft. Cooking it with rice is a great idea Shirley. Thanks for sharing it.

Zurin said...

What lovely delectable photos Shirley. I LOVE chestnuts and could eat bags of them in one go. I never knew you cld cook a chestnut rice. It has to be good. It looks tempting. What do you think I cld replace mirin with?

grub said...

yum i love chestnuts in my rice, zong zi and in mum's braised chicken and chestnut pot :D

can't believe you could find chestnuts! they're under hibernation again in Melbourne.

Noob Cook said...

lucky of you to have a job that allows you to travel all over the globe! Love the touch of deep fried silver fish in your chestnut rice, really appeal to my sg taste buds too ;)

Shirley @ Kokken69 said...

Hi Zurin! If you can't find Mirin, try adding some cheap sake.It just won't be as sweet as Mirin.

Shirley @ Kokken69 said...

@Grub - Chestnut season is in.. lots from China now :)

La Table De Nana said...

What warm earthy colors! Looks like fall to me..Just saw Anthony Bourdain in Singapore..:)
The show that is..

WendyinKK said...

Those chestnuts in packs are somehow moist and sweet. Wonder if they'll work.
But freshly roasted chestnuts are easily available at major shopping centers in KL, but not near where I am. :(
I am interested to try this out, with silver fish of course and shallot crisp too.. not forgetting green onions... oh, I think I'm planning on adulterating it too much, Haha!

Pei-Lin said...

LOL! I love chestnuts, too! But the thought of working with raw chestnuts -- with shells on, puts me off. I still have two packets of peeled and cooked chestnuts with me.

This is an interesting dish. I suppose the idea of using crispy silver fish sounds delectable. They aren't ikan bilis, right?

Shirley @ Kokken69 said...

Wendy, i think the ones in the packet would work. You do it up any way you like...i worried about messing up the tAste but then I recall rice dumplings..so it should work..

Shirley @ Kokken69 said...

Pei Lin, no they are not ikan bilis..they are silver fish or white baits... The small white fish...

Maria @ Scandi Foodie said...

This sounds so delicious! Ooh I can't wait to visit Japan in December!

Prerna@IndianSimmer said...

Wish I got to travel all over and my job pay for all that!
This recipe looks so easy to put together and photographs are gorgeous!

Joanne said...

It really does seem like you are in the perfect location, produce-wise! I love the subtle sweetness of these chestnuts and the way you've prepared them sounds absolutely lovely.

tigerfish said...

I like chestnuts but not sure why I nvr cooked with them before :O ...love them in canned pig trotters, rice dumplings and roasted - pasar malam style! heh heh...

Zoe said...

Great job Shirley. The Chestnut rice looks yummy. Will bookmark this until the chestnut season is back. Thanks for sharing :D

Unknown said...

Looks very yummy, Shirley. Thank you for sharing. This looks like the yam/pumpkin rice. Can I have some? Hehe

Lisa Ho said...

your photos makes me want to dive in and savour some... yum... :)

I'm going to link your blog to mine now... easy for me to keep coming back... :)

penny aka jeroxie said...

I will sometimes have this in my claypot rice. So YUM!

TasteHongKong said...

I always like to top a bowl of gohan with sakura shrimps and plenty of green onions. I love your idea of adding chestnuts too, they are in season now : ).

Anh said...

so lovely! I have tasted the chestnut rice before and loved its simplicity. But I also like your version :)

Yummy Bakes said...

This looks interesting - chestnut rice. Looks very delicious.

Unknown said...

Hi,

The rice looks amazing...love you cup cakes too!!

Dr.Sameena@

www.myeasytocookrecipes.blogspot.com

Sasa said...

Kurigohan, natsukashii! You've inspired me, I love chestnuts and my boyfriend's dad grows them.

Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella said...

Oh of course! You'd have the best of both worlds wouldn't you! How fantastic for you! And great recipe for chestnuts too Shirley :)

Edith said...

I love chestnuts!!! but never tasted this before. Perhaps one day ....

Xiaolu @ 6 Bittersweets said...

Love your backdrops. I've heard of chestnut rice before and am always fascinated since I love eating roasted chestnuts plain. Looks truly delicious.

Clare @ Mrs Multitasker said...

Looks so wonderful shirley! And love the pictures of the chestnuts. You're so good with coming up with these unique beautiful dishes!

Tatieva said...

Lovely...
Plaisir tout simple des châtaignes, merveilleux fruits de la forêt et de l'automne mêlé au riz... Un plat qui tient chaud au corps et tellement délicieux !
Thank u,
Tatieva

Passionate About Baking said...

Shirley,
Your kurigohan looks really good. I don't recall having this rice when I was in Japan. Whatever it is, anything that is Japan-related, is nice for me. Just by looking at the pictures, I really would drool... It's so yummy. I like your idea of adding fried silver fish. It's one of my favourite condiments to add to food!

Trissa said...

Interesting recipe Shirley. I've got a pack of peeled chestnuts just waiting to be used!

Jo said...

I honestly have not had chestnut in a rice dish before. But if the pictures say this much, i wouldn't mind giving this a try soon. And heh I like the silver fish addition too .. this is Singapore right!

Quay Po Cooks said...

Oh I love the idea of cooking chestnuts with rice! Usually they are used in Chinese "Jung". I like this recipe and can't wait to try it!

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