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Furofuki Daikon
Furofuki daikon — daikon simmered soft and topped with sweet red miso
Beveled daikon is simmered in dashi, then topped with a sweet miso paste made from red soybean miso. Fitting for a prefecture known for daikon, the miso's deep richness and bitterness is said to pair well with the daikon's dashi-sweetened flavor.
- Origin: Aichi
- About 270 km west of Tokyo
What it's made of
Furofuki daikon is made by simmering trimmed daikon in dashi and topping it with a sweet paste of red miso. Aichi's fan-shaped alluvial land, built up by the Kiso River, is well-drained soil said to have suited daikon cultivation, making it a leading producer. The rich depth and slight bitterness of red miso is said to pair especially well with daikon whose sweetness has been drawn out by the dashi.
How it's made
Daikon is cut into rounds about 3 centimeters thick, with the edges trimmed, then simmered in dashi. Horyo daikon, with its fine flesh that holds its shape well, is said to be well suited to this dish, though Miyashige daikon works too. The dish is finished with a sweet paste made from red miso. The miso sauce is said to vary from household to household, and some add yuzu citrus for a fresh accent.
Why it took this shape
Aichi has three traditional daikon varieties, Miyashige, Horyo, and Moriguchi, said to form the base of the prefecture's love of daikon dishes. Because it is said to warm the body, it is mostly eaten in the cold season, and at Sogenji temple in Toyoake, a daikon-simmering event is reportedly held every November 29th, where furofuki daikon is served to visitors.
Before you go
- How to shop at a supermarketHow to choose prepared foods, sashimi, and packaged sushi, when discount stickers tend to appear, region-only specialties, buying by weight, the checkout and bagging flow, and sampling etiquette at a local supermarket.
- Food for Obon and the harvest moon (tsukimi)A guide to the meat-free shojin ryori and somen served at Obon, and the tsukimi dango offered on the night of the harvest moon.
- At teishoku diners, shokudo, and machi-chukaA guide to the teishoku set-meal format, free rice refills, table placement, and paying at a shokudo-style diner.
Dishes in the same style
- Agonoko UmaniThe roe of egg-bearing flying fish, caught only in early summer, is simmered in stock and soy sauce as an Oki bar snack. Its large grains and dense, sticky texture are prized as a delicacy said to be scarcer even than the fish's flesh.
- Funa MisoCrucian carp is simmered slowly with soybeans for around five hours, then finished in a sauce of red miso and coarse sugar. A freshwater fish dish of the Kiso rivers' lower basin, made with fatty winter carp simmered until the bones soften through.
Ingredients and dishes from this land
Also from Aichi
- Funa MisoCrucian carp is simmered slowly with soybeans for around five hours, then finished in a sauce of red miso and coarse sugar. A freshwater fish dish of the Kiso rivers' lower basin, made with fatty winter carp simmered until the bones soften through.
- Gohei MochiFreshly cooked non-glutinous rice is pounded, pressed flat on a skewer, and grilled with a miso glaze. Said to have originated in the mountainous Chubu region, it's traditionally made the night before a festival praying for safety in mountain work.
- Aichi HakozushiVinegared rice is packed into a wooden frame, topped with shrimp, eel, shiitake, and egg arranged diagonally, and pressed. Placing toppings on the diagonal so everyone gets a fair share of each is said to be a feature of the Owari and western Mikawa style, made for celebrations.
- Hebo MeshiAdult and larval giant hornets are simmered sweet and savory, then folded into freshly cooked rice. Said to have served as a prized protein source across the mountains from Shinshu to Okumikawa, it's now more often served as a treat for guests.
- Iga ManjuSweet bean paste is wrapped in rice flour dough, then coated with dyed sticky rice grains. One account ties the name to the grains' resemblance to a chestnut's spiny husk, and in the western Mikawa region it's said to be offered to Hina dolls at the Doll Festival.
- Aichi Miso OdenA pot of sweet red miso sits in the center of the simmering pot, and daikon, tofu, and other ingredients simmered in dashi are dipped into it before eating. While soy-based Kanto-style oden spread in Edo, Aichi is said to have settled on dipping in soybean miso instead.