Rice Medium

Gonjuu (Pork Belly and Fried Tofu Rice Ball)

Quick answer

Total time: 80 min
Level: Medium
Servings: 20 servings
Ingredients: 9

About this dish

Gonjuu is a large rice ball long eaten in Tateyama City, Chiba Prefecture.

Five cups of rice are cooked while pork belly is cut into 1 cm cubes and fried tofu is trimmed and chopped. Two-thirds of lightly toasted, crumbled bonito flakes are simmered with the pork, tofu, sugar, soy sauce, sake, and water. Mirin is added at the end, after the pork is fully cooked and the sweet savory liquid has soaked into the pieces. The hot rice is spread in a wide mixing tub and combined evenly with the cooked filling and its reduced liquid. The reserved bonito flakes are mixed through last, and the batch is shaped firmly into twenty generous rice balls. Their one-handed form reflects how gonjuu has been served to mikoshi carriers at Tateyama's autumn Yawatanmachi festival, though it is also eaten at home throughout the year.

Ingredients (20 servings)

Ingredient	Amount	Unit
rice	5	cup
pork belly	400	g
fried tofu sheets	5	sheet
bonito flakes	50	g
sugar	3	tbsp
soy sauce	150	ml
mirin	50	ml
sake	100	ml
water	250	ml

Instructions

Read the steps as a cooking flow: prep, heat, seasoning, doneness control, and finish.

6 steps

1

Heat

Rinse the rice and cook it with the usual amount of water until tender but distinct.

Keep the cooked rice warm until the filling is ready to be mixed in.
2

Finish

Lightly dry-toast the bonito flakes in a pan over low heat, then rub them into small pieces.

Reserve one-third of the flakes to mix in at the end.
3

Prep

Quickly pour hot water over the fried tofu sheets to remove surface oil, trim the edges, and chop them.

Cut the pork belly into cubes about 1 cm wide.
4

Control

Put the pork, fried tofu, two-thirds of the bonito flakes, sugar, soy sauce, sake, and 250 ml water in a pot.

Simmer over medium heat, stirring, until the pork is fully cooked and the liquid has reduced around the pieces. Add the mirin and bring it back to a brief simmer.
5

Control

Transfer the warm rice to a wide mixing tub or large bowl.

Add the cooked filling and its remaining reduced liquid, then fold with a rice paddle until the pieces are evenly distributed without crushing the grains.
6

Finish

Add the reserved bonito flakes and fold once more.

When the rice is cool enough to handle, divide it into twenty portions and shape each into a generous, firm rice ball that can be held in one hand.

Practical Cooking Checks

The cues that matter most while cooking.

Key technique: One-centimeter pork belly cubes and fried tofu simmer in bonito soy seasoning.
Finish cue: Simmer over medium heat, stirring, until the pork is fully cooked and the liquid has reduced around the pieces.
Avoid this: Cook the pork completely before mixing it into the rice, and do not leave the finished rice balls in a warm place for an extended period.