Oden

Daikon, egg, konjac, and fish cakes soak up the broth and release it slowly with each bite. Some regions use a clear brown broth seasoned with dark soy, called Kanto-daki, while others simmer everything in a broth cooked nearly black, along with dark fish cake. More than the ingredients themselves, the color and aroma of the broth is said to carry a place's character. The longer the daikon simmers, the more its fibers loosen and take on the broth, so cooking time itself becomes part of the flavor.

The standard approach is said to be parboiling and beveling the daikon, blanching the oil out of fish cakes, then adding ingredients to the pot in order of how slowly they take on flavor, for a long simmer. Some regions finish by drizzling or dipping the simmered pieces in ginger soy sauce, serving them skewered from a street stall, or dusting them with dried fish powder — the after-simmer touches are said to be where regional character shows. Some shops let the pot rest overnight before serving, treating the resting time itself as part of the craft.

One account holds that a simmered dish descended from grilled tofu dengaku spread across the country, taking on whatever fish cakes or local fish were on hand as it settled into each place's own form. Some regions sold it at candy shops where children could buy a piece easily; others built it into the standard izakaya menu — and that difference in where it was sold is said to have shaped how it came to be eaten. Places where it grew up in a casual, everyday setting are said to have kept that casual manner of eating it to this day.