Ochazuke is a traditional Japanese rice dish with rice and hot green tea. "Ocha" (お茶) means tea, and "zuke" (漬け) means submerged. Therefore, the dish perfectly embodies the ochazuke meaning of 'rice submerged in tea'.
This dish will fill you up whenever you get those midnight hunger pangs. Plus, it doesn't require you to mess up the kitchen in the middle of the night. It is really easy to make, regardless of whether you want it plain or with toppings.
Having tea as your rice broth might seem odd, but we can guarantee that this tea-infused dish will change your mind. Think of it as porridge, but better.
It's the perfect comfort dish for when you need a pick-me-up, especially if you're a tea lover. It is very soothing and easy to digest, making it the perfect remedy when you're under the weather. Follow our ochazuke recipe, as it is undoubtedly an exciting way to enjoy tea besides your usual cup of Matcha milk latte.
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Ochazuke Ingredients
Ochazuke requires three essential ingredients: cooked rice, green tea, and your preferred toppings.
Rice
Traditionally, people make the cha-cha gohan with leftover rice but feel free to use fresh rice. Japanese short-grain rice, often used for sushi, is the best rice for the dish. Alternatively, you can also use medium-grain rice. However, long-grain rice is not quite suitable for this dish.
Tea
The broth is the dish's main star. You can make it with a range of Japanese green teas. They do well with rice since they are well-suited to the flavours sought in Japanese cuisine. Our favourite types of Japanese tea to use are genmaicha and sencha.
Genmaicha is green tea leaves mixed with popped brown rice or barley. Its lovely, toasty flavour pairs well with bold and savoury toppings such as grilled eel, pickles, or flaked fish. Genmaicha also gives your dish a golden-coloured broth, making it look even more appetising.
Sencha is one of Japan's standard green teas. You must brew it carefully to avoid a bitter broth in your dish. There are many styles of sencha, and they can also vary in taste. Savoury, deep-steamed sencha makes a strong-flavoured dish. On the other hand, delicate and light-steamed sencha creates a refreshing dish.
Houjicha is smoky, sweet, and somewhat tart in flavour. It is low in caffeine and very sweet. Moreover, it goes well with flavour-dense toppings like mushrooms and grilled meats. We recommend using houjicha when making ochazuke for dinner, as it won't keep you up all night.
There are also kukicha and gyokuro, which are not typically used for making ochazuke. Kukicha will give your broth a citrusy flavour. Gyokuro isn't used simply because it's more expensive and fancy. However, if you do use it, it will add a sweet, vegetal creaminess to your dish. As long as you keep the toppings simple, the incredible flavours of gyokuro can make it a delightful experience.
Salted Salmon
We'll make a salmon ochazuke with salted salmon as our star topping for our recipe.
To make this, lightly salt a piece of salmon fillet on all sides (skin-side too), then let it marinate for at least 15 minutes.
We then use an air fryer to cook the salmon fillet. Line the air fryer basket with parchment paper, and place the salmon fillet (skin-side down) in it. Turn on the air fryer to cook the salmon at 200°C (or 400°F) for 10 minutes. Then, carefully flip the salmon over and cook for another 12 minutes.
If you pan fry, drizzle some oil on the pan and heat it under medium heat on the stove. Once the pan and oil are hot, place the salmon (skin-side down) on the pan. Let the salmon cook under medium-high heat for about 3-4 minutes or until the salmon fillet looks cooked (opaque) over halfway up its sides. Then, flip the salmon over and fry on the other side for another 3-4 minutes.
You can also use flaked salmon or other toppings like ume, eel, nori. See our topping section for more recommendations.
Ochazuke Recipe (Tea Over Rice) Japanese Comfort Food
Video
Ingredients
- 1 cup rice cooked
- 1 cup hot water
To make Salmon Ochazuke
- 2 teaspoon genmaicha leaves or 1 tea bag
- 1 salmon lightly salted, grilled
- nori shredded, optional
- toasted sesame seeds optional
- pickled daikon optional
To make Ume Ochazuke
- 2 teaspoon sencha leaves
- 2 Japanese pickled plums pitted
To make Nori Ochazuke
- 1 sheet nori seaweed shredded
- 2 teaspoon Japanese green tea leaves any green tea
Instructions
- Start by preparing the tea. Put the tea leaves in a pot and pour hot water into it. Set aside for 1-2 minutes, or follow the instructions on the tea packet.
- Add leftover or freshly cooked rice into a bowl. Then, assemble your preferred toppings.
- Pour the tea around the edges of the bowl until it covers half of the rice. If you prefer to incorporate green tea into your toppings, pour the tea over them. Serve and enjoy your ochazuke.
Notes
- If you prefer, you can substitute green tea with dashi broth. To make dashi broth, use 1 cup of dashi stock, 1 teaspoon of mirin, and ⅛ teaspoons of sea salt.
- You can substitute Japanese short-grain rice with medium-grain rice.
Nutrition
Calories have been calculated using an online calculator. Nutritional information offered on Honest Food Talks is for general information purposes and is only a rough estimate.
Cooking Tips
Use good quality Japanese rice and cook it properly without making it too soggy or dry.
How to assemble
Pour in the tea once you've assembled the toppings. This ensures that the toppings' flavour gets infused into the dish. However, you can pour the tea over the rice first to understand the taste.
If you want to create a nice aesthetic, then be sure to pour the tea around the edge of the bowl. This will keep your perfectly piled toppings in place.
However, if you like to incorporate some of the tea flavour into your toppings, feel free to pour it directly over them.
Too bland
Increase the brewing strength of the tea if the dish is too bland. You can also add broth boosters such as mushroom powder or some salt. Only do this if you want a more savoury soup broth. Adding soup stock or broth boosters will make it different from the traditional recipe.
If the tea is bitter, pour more hot water into it to dilute it.
Substitute Ingredients
You can use instant ochazuke packets and ochazuke seasoning for convenience. They usually contain nori, kelp powder, dashi stock, and green tea powder. Therefore, you don't need to worry about finding the right toppings since the packet includes everything. All you have to do is prepare some rice and tea! These instant packets are readily available in most convenience stores and supermarkets in Japan.
Using Japanese green tea for broth adds to the authenticity of the dish. However, you can depart from the traditional way and use other ingredients like Korean or Chinese green teas. Just make sure they pair well with the rice and brew them like other Japanese teas.
Dashi is also an excellent alternative if you prefer a savoury soup base. It does mean distancing from the original recipe, which calls for tea. If you prefer, you can also mix the dashi broth with tea. But if you do so, we recommend making a very light dashi broth, as regular dashi stock can be quite thick and flavourful. If you're using instant dashi stock, then double the amount of water used to make the stock before mixing it with tea.
Ochazuke Toppings
Toppings are essential, especially if you want your dish to be more flavourful. Luckily, versatility is the charm of the ochazuke recipe, so you are free to include any toppings you like. Whatever you have in the kitchen will work, but here are some good ones.
- Grilled eel will add savouriness to your meal that is similar to salmon. Shizuoka is famous for its chazuke with grilled eel toppings.
- Nori is dried seaweed that you can sprinkle over the rice before pouring it into the tea. It is a typical rice seasoning in Japan.
- Wakame has a salty, umami flavour with a hint of sweetness. It comes in a dried form, which is the most common and salted form.
- Eggs are great toppings for many dishes, and certainly, you can enjoy ochazuke with eggs.
- Arare are Japanese rice crackers that you can use as toppings by crushing and sprinkling over the rice.
- Shio Kombu are shredded salted kelp, which can add texture to the dish.
- Japanese herbs like mitsuba (Japanese parsley) and shiso can enhance the flavour of the dish.
The topping ingredients are simply our suggestions. We like eating with salted salmon as it contrasts with the mildness of the rice and tea. Feel free to use different combos of toppings as you see fit.
Ume Ochazuke
Ochazuke umeboshi are salty and sour pickled plums commonly used in Japanese cuisine. Umeboshi is one of the popular chazuke toppings in Japan. This is a vegetarian-friendly version of chazuke, which contains freeze-dried pickled plums as toppings. Since the plums are salty and sour, many cooks use sencha to balance the flavours.
How to Serve
The process of making this comfort meal is relatively straightforward. First, prepare some cooked rice in a bowl. Then, add in your preferred toppings and pour in the tea. After doing all that, all that's left to do is serve and enjoy it.
This Japanese dish is perfect on its own, so there is no specific side dish for it. But of course, you can go a little extra and eat it with your favourite side dishes.
For example, some Japanese restaurants serve it with yaki onigiri, and grilled rice balls glazed with soy sauce. The rice balls usually contain bits of salmon and flavoured seaweed. The crispiness and savouriness of the grilled rice balls will wonderfully complement the tea.
If you want to prepare in advance, then make everything but don't pour the tea over the rice. If left aside for long, the rice will start to absorb the tea and make the rice grains expand and be soggy. You can reheat the bowl of rice if you want a super-steamy ochazuke. Alternatively, you can enjoy it cold by letting it cool before serving. It is commonly done during summer.
How To Store
It is best to eat ochazuke immediately after preparing it. However, you can prepare the rice and toppings in advance and store them in an airtight container. Put it in the fridge, and it should last for up to a week. You can also freeze it in an airtight container, and it should last up to a month. Then, just reheat it in a microwave and pour in the tea once you're ready to eat it.
Popularity
This comfort dish has been eaten in Japan for more than 1000 years. It came about as a way to use leftover rice. People had been pouring hot water over cooked rice since the Heian period (794 – 1185). However, during the Edo period (1603 – 1867), many began to prepare the dish with green tea. Matsuo Basho, a famous haiku poet of that era, was a huge fan of the comforting food.
Nowadays, it is the nation's beloved dish enjoyed by many people of all ages. There are even instant versions of it sold in supermarkets and convenience stores. Japanese people typically enjoy this dish at the end of meals or as a quick snack.
Since it is so easy to make, it is also a popular food among students. This is shown in many manga and anime scenes in which students eat while studying. Moreover, cafes and restaurants in modern Japan have made it trendy with their stylish customisations of traditional Japanese comfort food.
Ochazuke has a light-seasoned taste. It is not too plain yet not too seasoned either. Thus, it's perfect for when you have little appetite or are just in the mood for a light-tasting meal.
Plus, Japan has tons of odd food combinations that surprisingly taste heavenly, like Oshiruko. So you can put your trust in this dish as well.
Are you perhaps looking for another type of Japanese comfort food? Something sweeter perhaps? Then look no further and check out our recipe on how to make Japanese mochi at home.
How did your one turn out? Take a snapshot, post it on Instagram, and tag us on @honestfoodtalks. We would love to see how your meals turned out.
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