Easy and Delicious Soul Food: Salmon Chazuke
cha-zu-ke: cooked rice with green tea poured on it, usually with savory toppings.
jisho.org Japanese Dictionary
With a strong windstorm hitting Western Washington this weekend, I thought it’d be good to make something warm and hearty. Enter Salmon Chazuke — a dish as comforting as it is easy.
Ingredients
For 1 serving
1x Chazuke Packet (Amazon Link)
1/4 lb Salmon Fillet
1 Cup rice
Salt
~1/2 oz water
Green Tea (bag or loose leaf)
- The chazuke packet is mainly a combination of seaweed, bubu-arare (small rice cracker-like balls) and dashi (fish based bullion used in miso soup).
- Costco has some amazing imported green tea bags that are perfect for this dish. Look for a green Kirkland Signature box with “ITO EN” branding on the side.
Cooking Instructions
Start the rice about half an hour before the other ingredients.
Season the salmon with salt and fry on medium heat skin-side-down for about 3–4 minutes. Start boiling the hot water now so that the tea is done when the salmon is. Start steeping the tea right after the water is finished & at the appropriate temperature. Once the skin side is finished, flip over & peel the skin off.
When mostly cooked, pull apart into small pieces. Be sure to remove the small fish bones. Continue cooking while adding salt — add more than you usually would because sitting in the broth will suck the salt away from the salmon.
By now, you should have the salmon, rice and green tea ready. Find a soup bowl and fill with a good amount of rice.
Throw the salmon pieces over the rice. Open the chazuke packet and shake evenly over the salmon.
Pour the green tea over all the ingredients until the bowl is about half-full. Be sure to pour evenly to dissolve all of the small dashi granules.
That’s it! Grab a spoon and enjoy.
