Iwate Kenchin-jiru

Quick answer

Total time: 115 min
Level: Hard
Servings: 6 servings
Ingredients: 21

About this dish

Iwate kenchin-jiru is a substantial soup in which firm cotton tofu is roughly crushed and fried in generous oil until most of its cloudy moisture cooks away.

Daikon, carrot, burdock, konjac, preserved mountain vegetables, fried tofu, and bamboo shoot are then fried with it before a kombu, dried-sardine, and bonito broth is added. Unlike versions elsewhere, the northern Iwate style contains no meat and emphasizes tofu cooked into loose, crumbly pieces. It was prepared at the end of autumn farm work and for New Year, especially in large batches during the Little New Year period so women could rest and reheat it. An overnight rest lets the soy-seasoned broth penetrate the many vegetables more deeply.

Ingredients (6 servings)

Ingredient	Amount	Unit
daikon	150	g
carrot	50	g
burdock root	50	g
water for vegetable preparation	1500	ml
firm cotton tofu	600	g
aburaage fried tofu	20	g
block konjac	50	g
rehydrated dried zenmai	200	g
desalted preserved warabi	100	g
desalted preserved butterbur	100	g
boiled hime bamboo shoots	50	g
scallion	20	g
cooking oil	8	tbsp
water for dashi	1500	ml
kombu	20	g
dried sardines	20	g
bonito flakes	20	g
light soy sauce	7	tbsp
sake	2	tbsp
mirin	2	tbsp
salt	1	g

Instructions

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

6 steps

1

Finish

Soak 20g kombu in 1500ml dashi water for 60 minutes.

Add 20g dried sardines and simmer over medium heat for 20 minutes, then add 20g bonito flakes. Remove just before boiling, strain finely, and reserve 1100ml dashi.
2

Heat

Peel 150g daikon and 50g carrot and cut into 2 to 3mm quarter-rounds.

Boil 1000ml preparation water and blanch the daikon for 3 minutes. Scrape 50g burdock, shave it thinly, soak in the remaining 500ml preparation water for 10 minutes, and drain.
3

Season

Cut 200g rehydrated zenmai, 100g desalted warabi, 100g desalted butterbur, and 50g hime bamboo shoots into 1cm lengths.

Dice 50g block konjac and 20g aburaage, after rinsing the aburaage with hot water, into 1cm pieces. Finely chop 20g scallion.
4

Control

Press 600g firm cotton tofu for 20 minutes.

Heat 8 tablespoons cooking oil in a large pot over medium heat, crumble in the tofu by hand, and fry for 7 minutes. Continue when it resembles loose crumbles and only a thin film of cloudy moisture remains.
5

Control

Add the daikon, carrot, burdock, zenmai, warabi, butterbur, bamboo shoots, konjac, and aburaage to the tofu.

Fry over medium heat for 5 minutes, until every ingredient is lightly coated with oil and little moisture remains on the pot bottom.
6

Control

Pour in the 1100ml dashi and bring to a boil.

Add 6 tablespoons light soy sauce, 2 tablespoons sake, 2 tablespoons mirin, and 1g salt; simmer over medium heat for 30 minutes. When daikon and burdock cut easily with chopsticks, adjust with the remaining 1 tablespoon soy sauce, add scallion, and cook 1 minute.

Practical Cooking Checks

The cues that matter most while cooking.

Key technique: Firm tofu fried into crumbles with no meat
Finish cue: Pour in the 1100ml dashi and bring to a boil.
Storage and reheating: It was prepared at the end of autumn farm work and for New Year, especially in large batches during the Little New Year period so women could rest and reheat it.