Kurumi Gobo with Edamame Paste

Quick answer

Total time: 43 min
Level: Medium
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients: 7

About this dish

Kurumi gobo is a local dish from Shigaraki in Koka City, Shiga.

Burdock is simmered in lightly salted water, while edamame is cooked until soft, peeled of its thin inner skins, and ground with sugar and salt into a thick paste. The 3cm burdock pieces are coated generously so the smooth bean paste meets the root's firm bite. The dish has long been offered and shared with saba sushi at the autumn festival of Sansho Shrine in Kamiasamiya, also called the Gombo or Burdock Festival. Families still prepare it when the festival returns each autumn, preserving its specific edamame dressing method.

Ingredients (4 servings)

Ingredient	Amount	Unit
edamame	200	g
burdock root	100	g
water for soaking burdock	500	ml
water for boiling	1500	ml
salt for boiling water	10	g
sugar	20	g
salt for edamame paste	2	g

Instructions

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

5 steps

1

Control

Scrape the skin thinly from 100g burdock and soak it in 500ml water for 5 minutes to reduce harshness.

Cut into 3cm lengths, then halve or quarter thick pieces lengthwise so they cook evenly.
2

Control

Bring 1500ml boiling water and 10g salt for the water to a boil.

Add the burdock and cook over medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes, until a skewer enters but the pieces still hold their shape, then lift them out.
3

Season

Add 200g edamame to the same salted water and cook for 5 to 7 minutes, until a bean crushes easily between the fingers.

Drain and cool, remove the beans, and peel away their thin inner skins.
4

Season

Combine the peeled edamame with 20g sugar and 2g salt for the paste.

Grind in a mortar for 4 minutes, until few large bean pieces remain and the thick paste falls slowly from a spoon.
5

Finish

Blot the cooked burdock dry and fold it into the edamame paste for 1 minute.

Once a thick green coating clings to every piece, serve immediately or let it cool to room temperature before serving.

Practical Cooking Checks

The cues that matter most while cooking.

Key technique: Burdock cut to 3cm and boiled until tender but intact
Finish cue: Blot the cooked burdock dry and fold it into the edamame paste for 1 minute.
Avoid this: Cook the edamame softer than usual and remove the thin inner skins so the paste is thick without tough flecks.
Substitution: Dry the surface of the boiled burdock before mixing so the edamame paste clings in a thick layer instead of sliding off.