Rice dishes
Funameshi
Funameshi — crucian carp broth ladled over rice
Crucian carp caught in the waterways of the reclaimed Kojima Bay farmland, at their least fishy in the cold season, are minced by hand and simmered with root vegetables, the rich broth then ladled over hot rice — also known as tonto-ko-jiru for the sound of the knife against the board.
- Origin: Okayama
- About 550 km west of Tokyo
What it's made of
Ground crucian carp is stir-fried and simmered with vegetables into a rich broth that's ladled hot over rice. The carp caught in the cold season carries a particularly deep flavor that melds with the sweetness of root vegetables, and the dish's nickname — tonto-meshi — nods to the sound of the fish being minced on a cutting board, a hearty, no-frills dish.
How it's made
The carp is gutted and ground, sometimes with ginger juice mixed in. It's fried in oil, then carrot and daikon are added and cooked further. Stock is poured in and, once boiling, fried tofu is added and the broth seasoned. Scallion goes in last before the pot is taken off the heat and ladled over hot rice.
Why it took this shape
Southern Okayama's rice paddies were built up over generations of land reclamation around Kojima Bay dating to the Edo period, and the irrigation channels that came with them are said to have been full of crucian carp. Carp caught in the cold season, prized for their unusually rich flavor, are said to have become a valued source of protein, minced by hand on a cutting board in a method that gave the dish its nickname.
Before you go
- How to use a convenience storeA quick guide to choosing rice balls and hot snacks, buying coffee, paying by cash, IC card, or tap payment, using the eat-in corner, and sorting your trash — the basics for a first visit.
- Station food and ekiben (station bento)Where and when to find ekiben (station bento) before it sells out, etiquette for eating on board, how standing soba and udon stalls work, and where to find souvenirs sold inside the station.
- Soraben and airport diningA guide to what soraben means and how it differs from ekiben, whether to buy before or after security, etiquette for eating on board, airport restaurants, and things to check before buying food souvenirs to take home.
Dishes in the same style
- Aburafu DonDeep-fried wheat gluten, shaped into a log, is simmered in a sweet-savory broth and set with egg over rice, katsudon-style — a Tome City bowl said to trace to a tofu shop's shelf-stable gluten product, later turned into a bowl dish by a local innkeeper.
- Aburi-zushiNigiri with just its surface flash-seared by torch or hot iron. Unlike Edomae's shigoto curing for keeping, the searing here is done purely for the change in aroma and fat it brings — a relatively recent way of eating sushi.
Ingredients and dishes from this land
Also from Okayama
- Ami to Daikon no NitsukeTiny Setouchi shrimp called ami, richest in early autumn, are simmered with daikon in soy sauce and sugar — a pairing said to have grown from the two coming into season together, with a salted version kept for winter when rough seas kept boats ashore.
- Bachi JiruThe offcut ends of hand-stretched somen, called bachi for their resemblance to a shamisen pick, are simmered with daikon, carrot, and fried tofu in Asakuchi's Kamogata — said to hold a firmer bite than the somen strands themselves.
- Buri ZoniIn southern Okayama, New Year's zoni is built around yellowtail, a fish that changes name as it grows and so is read as auspicious, simmered with spinach, daikon, and other root vegetables — a dish passed down through the generations for the New Year's table.
- Chiya GyuJapanese Black raised in Niimi, Okayama, tracing to one of the oldest documented "tsuru-ushi" pedigree lines from the Edo period — said to benefit from the clear Takahashi river and fertile soil.
- Demi KatsudonA freshly fried pork cutlet is doused in hot demi-glace sauce over rice, a bowl said to have been devised by the founder of an old Okayama City restaurant after being won over by Western-style cooking at a Tokyo hotel — toppings vary shop to shop.
- Hiruzen OkowaGlutinous rice steamed with chicken, chestnut, burdock, red beans, and seasonal mountain greens, a hearty five-ingredient okowa from the Hiruzen highlands of Maniwa — said to be a fixture at rice-planting celebrations and local festivals.