Karashi Renkon (Mustard Miso Lotus Root)
Quick answer
- Total time
- 485 min
- Level
- Hard
- Servings
- 8 servings
- Ingredients
- 7
About this dish
Karashi renkon is a whole fried lotus root from Kumamoto Prefecture, eaten as an everyday side dish, with sake, and in New Year osechi.
Read more
The lotus roots are scrubbed, boiled for 10 to 13 minutes until still firm, and cooled. A pungent paste of barley miso and mustard powder is pushed through every channel by standing and turning each root in the paste until it rises from all the holes. Excess paste is removed, and the filled roots stand upright for 6 to 7 hours. A stiff yellow batter is made from flour, water, and edible turmeric. After the lotus root surface is wiped dry, each piece is coated and fried whole, slowly, with the oil held at 180°C or lower. Once the coating is firm and yellow, the roots are cooled and cut into 5 to 10 mm slices, revealing the mustard miso in every hole.
Instructions
Read the steps as a cooking flow: prep, heat, seasoning, doneness control, and finish.
- 1Step
Scrub the lotus roots clean with a metal scrubber or firm brush, removing soil from the skin while keeping the roots and their internal channels intact.
- 2Control
Bring enough water to cover the lotus roots to a boil in a large pot.
Boil the roots for 10 to 13 minutes so they remain firm, then drain them in a colander and cool completely.
- 3Prep
Combine the barley miso and mustard powder in a large bowl.
Mix thoroughly until no pockets of dry mustard remain and the filling is uniform.
- 4Step
Stand a cooled lotus root upright in the mustard miso.
Press and rotate it against the paste until filling rises through every hole, then scrape away the excess from the outside. Repeat with the remaining roots.
- 5Control
Stand the filled roots upright in a colander without letting them touch and cover them.
Refrigerate for 6 to 7 hours so the mustard miso settles inside the channels.
- 6Heat
Just before frying, mix the flour with the edible turmeric and add 350 ml water to form a stiff yellow batter.
Wipe each lotus root clean and dry with a cloth or paper, removing surface moisture and any leaked miso.
- 7Heat
Fill a deep, stable pot no more than halfway with the frying oil and heat it to 180°C.
Insert a long bamboo skewer slightly above the center of a root, coat the root in batter, and lower it slowly into the oil. Do not crowd the pot, and fry patiently without allowing the oil to exceed 180°C, until the coating is firm and yellow.
- 8Prep
Drain the fried roots on a rack and let them cool completely so the mustard miso inside is stable.
Cut crosswise into 5 to 10 mm rounds and arrange them with the filled pattern visible.
Practical Cooking Checks
The cues that matter most while cooking.
- Key technique
- Barley miso and mustard powder are packed through every lotus root channel.
- Finish cue
- Insert a long bamboo skewer slightly above the center of a root, coat the root in batter, and lower it slowly into the oil.
- Avoid this
- Do not crowd the pot, and fry patiently without allowing the oil to exceed 180°C, until the coating is firm and yellow.
- Storage and reheating
- Boil the roots for 10 to 13 minutes so they remain firm, then drain them in a colander and cool completely.
Cooking decision evidence
Calculated Charim data and applicable official food safety guidance.
This recipe
485min, 7 ingredients
Category median
30min, 8 ingredients
Based on 162 recipes
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