recipe

Summer meal in Yamagata! | "Dining with water" is the perfect place for the extreme heat and the lingering heat!

  • ikoke ikoke
  • Last updated: 2024.04.5

When it's hot, your appetite also decreases

Did you know there is a super easy meal that you can eat easily even on the hottest days?

It was also introduced on a certain TV program in the past... I remember it being introduced as something like "poor man's meal," which is a bit harsh to say

But! In fact, it was the ultimate meal. The dish introduced was "Mizukake Gohan," we will introduce "The Best Ultimate Mizukake Gohan!" , which will make you lose your appetite during the hot season

A truly poor man's meal!

Pure white rice with water? Ice! That's all there is

If you don't know how to make it, it might seem like the only thing you have to eat

Watered green vegetable rice
Watered green vegetable rice

But it's not because they're poor, it's because it makes sense as a way to eat during hot weather .

Furthermore, Yamagata Prefecture is blessed with delicious water and rice, and the high temperatures in the summers have made the custom of "water-soaked rice" a staple

It's a wonderfully luxurious meal

What is the origin of Mizukake Gohan? Is it a local dish from Yamagata?

Looking at the pictures will make you want to eat it again even if you just had a meal!

The origin of Mizukake Gohan is said to be that "in the old days, cooked rice would tend to stick to the pot, so it was a waste to throw the rice away, so people would add water and eat the rice along with the water."

This way of eating originated from the wisdom of not wasting even a single grain of rice

Ice tea rice
Ice tea rice

Originally, the cold rice left in the pot was eaten by pouring hot water over it in winter and cold water over it in summer, and even the rice that had stuck to it was eaten. Furthermore, it became the ultimate meal when appetites were low during the intense heat of summer, and people would wash the rice to remove the stickiness and eat it easily

As a way to eat rice that has stuck to the pot, this was a common practice in households all over the country

Yamagata Prefecture is located in the Tohoku region, and until a few years ago it recorded the highest temperatures in the country

How to make the ultimate water-soaked rice

The process of Mizukake Gohan is simply to pour water over the rice and then eat it. However, there are several steps involved in getting to that point

It's nothing special and can be done in no time, the only luxurious part is washing the freshly cooked rice .

How to make

  • Cook rice as usual
  • Scoop out the amount of freshly cooked rice you want to eat into a colander
  • Wash gently with running water (tap water is fine)
  • Finally, quickly dip the colander into a bowl filled with spring water and drain the water
  • Serve in a small bowl and pour over 2-3 ice cubes and spring water

*We also recommend topping it with pickles, shredded grilled salmon, sesame seeds, etc., as desired

Traditional Yamagata food to get through the summer

Yamagata dashi rice
photo by ikoke

A staple of summertime Yamagata, the accompaniment to rice "dashi," which .

Tohoku Rokken Trivia Media NEFT
Yamagata's dashi is a versatile, easy-to-use local dish that goes well with anything! [Yamagata Prefecture]
https://jp.neft.asia/archives/30093
It's no exaggeration to say that "dashi" is a staple summer local dish from Yamagata that has now become popular nationwide. I love it and eat it at least two or three times a summer! However, when I think back on it, I only knew it as a "mixed salad of finely chopped vegetables," and I didn't know the exact vegetables that go into it... So, this time, I'll take a closer look at what "dashi" is! What exactly is "dashi"? It's a "summer local dish that allows you to easily eat raw vegetables," popular mainly in the Murayama region of Yamagata Prefecture, where the summer heat is intensely hot and humid. When the heat makes you lose your appetite...
read more
Ingredients for Yamagata Dashi
photo by ikoke

Simply chop summer vegetables into small pieces, mix them together, and season with white dashi. The basic ingredients are cucumber and eggplant, and you can also add chopped mountain yam and okra, and chopped myoga and shiso leaves as condiments to add a refreshing flavor

For those who don't like seasonings or for children, cucumber and eggplant alone are delicious enough to encourage eating!
Adding yam or okra will give it a sticky texture.

some pickled eggplant, a favorite in the Okitama region, to accompany it !

Pickled whole eggplant
photo by ikoke

Everyone's Summer Meals

The different flavors and ingenuity of each family will whet your appetite!

pickled vegetables
photo by ikoke

It's also a good idea to make your pickled vegetables in a small, airtight glass container that can be stored in the refrigerator

The only variation in what to eat with rice with water on top is to add whatever you want to it!

summary

The ultimate summer staple in Yamagata is "water-soaked rice." It's easy, quick, and delicious! It's a quick and easy meal that won't make you feel tired even when you don't have much of an appetite

There are no special rules, but chop up cucumber and eggplant, and chop up other vegetables to your liking. You can also try it with pickles, grilled fish, and other delicious dishes!

Washing rice may seem like a luxurious way to eat, but it's the perfect way to eat rice during the summer when appetite tends to decrease, so be sure to give it a try!

Articles that may be related to this article

Other articles