Traditional Japanese Breakfast – Asa Gohan

A balanced Japanese breakfast built around steamed short-grain rice, salt-grilled salmon, tamagoyaki, miso soup and small fermented, pickled and seaweed accompaniments.

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Keyword: Breakfast, Japanese, Healthy

Category: Breakfast

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: Japanese

Prep Time: 30

Cook Time: 15

Marinate: 8

Total Time: 8 45

Servings: Servings

Calories: 533kcal

Author: MJF

Cost: £8.00

Equipment

1 Grill Tray, for salmon
1 Rice Cooker or Pot with a Tight Lid
1 Small Non-Stick Pan, for Tamagoyaki
1 Small Saucepan, for Dashi
1 Selection of Individual Dishes

Ingredients

Shiozake — Salt-Grilled Salmon

4 each Salmon Fillets skin on, approximately 120–140g each (4¼–5 oz each)
10 g Fine Sea Salt ⅓ oz
5 ml Sake 1 tsp

Tamagoyaki

6 each Large Eggs
45 ml Dashi 1½ fl oz
10 g Caster Sugar ⅓ oz
10 ml Light Soy Sauce 2 tsp
5 ml Mirin 1 tsp
Neutral Oil, for cooking

Gohan — Steamed Rice

300 g Japanese Short-Grain Rice 10½ oz
360 ml Water 12½ fl oz

Miso Shiru

800 ml Dashi 1 pint 8 fl oz
80 g Silken or Firm Tofu, cut into small cubes 2¾ oz
8 g Dried Wakame ¼ oz
60 g White or Awase Miso Paste 2 oz
20 g Spring Onion, finely sliced ¾ oz

Natto

4 40g Natto Portions 5½ oz total
20 ml Light Soy Sauce or Natto Seasoning ⅔ fl oz
10 g Spring Onion, finely sliced ⅓ oz
5 g Japanese Mustard, optional ⅙ oz

Tsukemono

80 g Japanese Pickled Daikon 2¾ oz
80 g Pickled Cucumber 2¾ oz
80 g Pickled Ginger or Mixed Japanese Pickles 2¾ oz

Nori

4 each Roasted Nori Sheets, cut into strips or rectangles

Okayu — Optional Alternative to Gohan

150 g Japanese Short-Grain Rice 5¼ oz
900 ml Water 1 pint 12 fl oz
4 each Umeboshi, optional
Fine Sea Salt, as required

Instructions

Prepare the Shiozake

Pat the salmon dry.
Rub evenly with the salt and sake and place on a tray, cover and refrigerate for 8-12 hours.
Remove from the refrigerator and pat dry again.
Preheat a grill or salamander to medium-high, and place the salmon skin-side up on a lightly oiled tray or grill rack.
Cook for approximately 5-7 minutes, depending on thickness, turning once if required, until the skin is lightly crisp and the salmon is just cooked through.
Keep warm.

Prepare the Gohan

Rinse the rice repeatedly in cold water until the water runs almost clear.
Drain and leave for 20-30 minutes, then place the rice and water in a saucepan with a tight-fitting lid.
Bring to the boil over medium heat, then reduce immediately to the lowest heat and cook for 12 minutes.
Remove from the heat and leave covered for 10 minutes, and fluff gently with a rice paddle.
Keep warm.

Prepare the Tamagoyaki

Whisk the eggs gently without incorporating excessive air.
Add the dashi, sugar, soy sauce and mirin, and strain if a particularly smooth texture is required.
Lightly oil a tamagoyaki pan or small non-stick frying pan and pour in a thin layer of egg mixture.
When almost set, roll the egg towards one end of the pan.
Re-oil the exposed surface lightly, and add another thin layer of egg mixture, lifting the cooked roll so the fresh egg flows underneath.
Roll again, then repeat until all the mixture has been used.
Remove from the pan and rest briefly.
Trim the edges and cut into neat portions.

Prepare the Miso Shiru

Heat the dashi gently and add the tofu and wakame and warm through.
Place the miso in a small bowl and add a little hot dashi and mix until smooth.
Return the loosened miso to the saucepan – Do not boil after adding the miso.
Add the spring onion immediately before serving.

Prepare the Natto

Place the natto in four small bowls.
Stir vigorously until the beans become glossy and stringy and add the soy sauce or natto seasoning.
Finish with spring onion and Japanese mustard if using.

Prepare the Tsukemono and Nori

Arrange the pickles in small individual dishes or in restrained mixed portions.
Cut the nori into strips or rectangles and keep dry until service.

Prepare the Okayu

If serving okayu instead of steamed rice, rinse the rice and place in a saucepan with the water.
Bring gently to the boil and reduce to very low heat and simmer partially covered for approximately 35-40 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the rice breaks down and the porridge is soft and fluid.
Season very lightly with salt and serve with umeboshi or another savoury accompaniment.

Notes

Shiozake is traditionally salted rather than marinated heavily. The restrained seasoning allows the natural flavour of the salmon to remain central.

Tamagoyaki should be tender and layered rather than browned heavily. The dashi keeps the texture moist and gives savoury depth.

The rice is the foundation of the meal and should be freshly cooked, glossy and softly separate.

Miso soup should never be boiled once the miso has been added, as prolonged boiling dulls its aroma and flavour.

Natto has a distinctive fermented aroma and sticky texture. Serve it separately so diners can combine it with rice according to preference. (This is a developed taste and quite shocking to Western palates).

Tsukemono provide acidity, salt and crunch and should be served in small quantities.

Nori should remain crisp until the moment it is eaten.

Okayu is best treated as an alternative to steamed rice rather than an additional starch.

The balance of the meal comes from combining rice, protein, broth, fermented foods, pickles, seaweed and egg, with contrasting temperatures, textures and levels of intensity.

Nutrition

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Traditional Japanese Breakfast – Asa Gohan