Senbei-jiru (Nanbu Cracker and Chicken Soup)

Quick answer

Total time: 60 min
Level: Medium
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients: 14

About this dish

Senbei-jiru is a regional soup from Hachinohe in Aomori.

Chicken breast and thigh simmer with burdock, carrot, thread konnyaku, freeze-dried tofu, and wheat gluten in a soy-seasoned broth, then soup-use Nanbu wheat crackers are broken in near the end. Nanbu senbei developed as a durable staple in the former Nanbu domain, where cold damage often made rice harvests unreliable. After the war, makers produced crackers that absorb broth yet keep a chewy center, making them especially useful in winter soups and hot pots. White miso rounds the chicken broth, while the crackers soften at the edges without dissolving.

Ingredients (4 servings)

Ingredient	Amount	Unit
soup-use Nanbu wheat crackers	8	pieces
green onions	1.5	stalks
chicken breast	200	g
chicken thigh	200	g
thread konnyaku	160	g
ita-fu wheat gluten	10	g
burdock root	100	g
freeze-dried tofu	1	piece
carrot	60	g
soy sauce	80	ml
sake	40	ml
white miso	20	g
salt	1	g
water	2000	ml

Instructions

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

6 steps

1

Prep

Warm 400ml of the 2000ml water and soak 1 freeze-dried tofu piece and 10g ita-fu separately for 10 minutes.

When soft, press out water between the palms, cut the tofu into 1cm strips, and cut the fu into 3cm lengths.
2

Prep

Cut 200g chicken breast and 200g chicken thigh into 3cm bites.

Slice 1.5 green onion stalks diagonally 1cm wide. Shave 100g burdock, soak in cold water for 5 minutes, and drain. Cut 60g carrot into sturdy 4cm strips.
3

Control

Parboil 160g thread konnyaku for 2 minutes to reduce its odor, then drain.

If the strands are very long, cut them into manageable 10cm lengths.
4

Control

Put the remaining 1600ml water and all chicken in a large pot and bring to a boil over high heat.

Skim foam thoroughly, lower to medium, and simmer for 10 minutes. Confirm the thickest chicken piece reaches at least 74°C.
5

Control

Add the burdock, carrot, thread konnyaku, freeze-dried tofu, and ita-fu and simmer for 8 minutes.

Add 80ml soy sauce and 40ml sake. Dissolve 20g white miso in a ladle of broth, return it to the pot, add 1g salt, and simmer 2 minutes.
6

Control

Break each of the 8 soup-use Nanbu crackers by hand into 4 pieces and add them to the pot.

Simmer for 5 to 7 minutes, until the edges absorb broth and soften while the centers remain chewy. Add the green onion, cook 1 minute more, and divide hot among four bowls.

Practical Cooking Checks

The cues that matter most while cooking.

Key technique: Rich broth from chicken breast and thigh
Finish cue: When soft, press out water between the palms, cut the tofu into 1cm strips, and cut the fu into 3cm lengths.
Storage and reheating: Chicken breast and thigh simmer with burdock, carrot, thread konnyaku, freeze-dried tofu, and wheat gluten in a soy-seasoned broth, then soup-use Nanbu wheat crackers are broken in near the end.