CONTENTS
Homy Japanese Food “NISHIME”
Source: kyounoryouri.jp/
Nishime is the very popular food among Japanese people. For example You can find Nishime in lunch box sold at convenience stores or lunch and dinners of Japanese family. Nishime is Oden-like food with various boiled vegetables and meats in a special soop of soy source and sweet Sake. It is very simple and easy to cook but every Japanese home has different tastes of Nishime.
When to eat NISHIME?
Originally, Nishime is served at Japanese home in various occasions such as New year, Obon holidays and seasonal festivals, but many Japanese people cook Nishime throughtout year. Cokking Nishime is the very convenient when you want to use needless vegetables in your refrigiorator. Typical ingredients include taro, kelp, fried tofu, konjak and the like. The ingredients of Nashime varies according to each house, but many people tend to add chicken in Kagoshima Prefecture, south of Kyushu Island.
Kagoshima’s NISHIME Part1 “KIKON”
Source: http://kagoshima-shoku.com/
Kikon is the kind of Nishime which uses chopped chicken containing bones. For your information, Kagoshima is famous for the production of strong big black chicken called “Kuro Satsuma Dori”.
Source: http://kagoshima-jidori.com/
KIKON literally means “chopping” in Kagoshima’s dialect. The soy flavored source permanates the bones of the chicken and the meat is very soft and has the wonderful texture in your month!
Kagoshima’s Nishime Part2 “Shunkan”
Source: http://kagoshima-shoku.com/
This Nishime has been for welcoming guests at home. Originally, Kagoshima’s Fuderal Lord SHIMAZU loved to eat this Nishime. Main ingredients are winter vegetables such as carrots, raddish and burdock. Big raddish SAKURAJIMA-Daikon” (following picture), which is the famous products in Kagoshima, is used as an ingredients.
Meats in this Nishime is usually pork. My father told me that his mother (my grandmother) used to use wild boar’s meat in his childhood. In the past, those meats are so precious and expensive and my father could not eat this kind of Nishime as frequently as we do.
Nishime my dinner tonight!
Fish and squid are put as ingredients. It is very very VERY delicious! My wife tells me that Nishime looks shiny and delicious if you put some cooking wine.
Videos of Nishime
My mother teaches me about a technique when she cooks Nishime.
When my mother cooks Nishime, she makes a small cuts in Konjak.
This technique turns ordinaly Konjak into cute ribbons.
My wife often cooks a very delicious Nishime for me.
