Sa-Go-Hachi Cultured Rice Pickle

[helenjp]

Sa-Go-Hachi Cultured Rice Pickle

This is Akiko Murakami's recipe, translated. Her pickle recipes always respect her long experience, and are full of useful adaptations. This recipe uses about 1/3 less salt than the traditional method.

Freeze-dried koji (cultured rice, used for amazake drinks, and for making miso) is available in furry mats or as loose grains. The loose type is easier to use.

You can also buy dry sa-go-hachi mixes. At one time these were very salty and took a while to mature, but recently seem to be better.

• 1/2 c coarse natural salt
  
• 1 c loose freeze-dried koji (cultured rice)
  
• 2 c short-grained rice, raw
  

Wash raw rice well, and put in rice-cooker with 2 and 4/5cup of water (40% more water than rice, by volume) and cook as usual.

Fluff up the cooked rice, and sprinkle the koji over it (or crumble the mat-type koji over the rice), mixing as you go.

Move to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and wrap the whole thing in a towel and leave overnight.

Next day, mix in salt, and place in a lidded container in the fridge for 2-4 weeks to mature.

To use, wash vegetables (carrot, daikon radish, egglant, cucumber, lotus root, etc.) and place in pickle bed. Cut harder vegetables into chunks, but leave softer vegetables whole.

Leave in pickle bed for 5-12 hours, until soft. Wipe clean, and slice to serve. These pickles have a mild flavor, without the sourness of nuka-zuke.

Keywords: Japanese

( RG1090 )