Takikomi Gohan

Ingredients

• 10½ ozRiceJapanese short-grain rice, washed and drained (2 go)
• 5¼ ozBeefthinly sliced, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 clovesGarlicroughly chopped or grated
• ½ ozButtercooked with the rice or folded in at the end
• 2 tbspSoy saucebase seasoning for the cooking liquid
• 2 tbspSakefor seasoning the rice liquid
• 1 tbspMirinfor mild sweetness
• ½ tspDashi powderJapanese-style stock granules
• Saltto taste
• Waterfill to the 2-go mark, counting the seasoning liquid
• 4Shiso leavesfinely shredded, as topping
• Mitsubaroughly cut, alternative topping (optional)
• Peppercoarsely ground, to finish (optional)
• 7 ozMushroomstorn into clusters, cooked with the rice (optional)

Method

1. Wash the rice in cold water until the water runs more or less clear, drain it, and let it sit for about 30 minutes to drain and soak.
2. Meanwhile, cut the beef into bite-sized pieces, roughly chop or grate the garlic, and shred the shiso leaves finely — or cut mitsuba into rough lengths if you're using it instead.
3. If you want more roasted flavour, briefly fry the garlic and beef in a pan first until lightly browned in spots, then let them cool a little.
4. Put the drained rice into the rice cooker's inner pot, add the soy sauce, sake, mirin, dashi powder and salt, and top up with water to just under the 2-go mark — the seasoning liquid counts towards that level.
5. Stir briefly, level the rice, and scatter the beef and garlic loosely over the top; add torn clusters of shimeji and maitake if you like. Don't stir the toppings in, or the rice will cook unevenly.
6. Start the rice cooker on the standard setting and let it run through completely.
7. Once the rice is done, fold in the butter and fluff the rice with the rice paddle so the beef and cooking juices are evenly distributed.
8. Serve in bowls, top with the shredded shiso or mitsuba, and add coarsely ground black pepper to taste.

Tips and variations

The butter can also go into the rice cooker before cooking rather than being folded in at the end. Instead of beef, thinly sliced pork belly, chicken wings or chicken breast work well, as do canned scallops. For extra body you can add mushrooms, carrot, cherry tomatoes, green beans, dried daikon, or a gobo-and-carrot mix with aburaage. To take the seasoning in another direction, swap the dashi for a stock cube or chicken stock powder, use straight dashi broth in place of the water, add a little sugar and oil to the seasoning mix, or fold in yuzu kosho after cooking; curry powder mixed with yoghurt makes a good marinade for the meat. With fried onions and butter in the rice cooker you get a biryani-style version that's good with tomato wedges and coriander. Serve it straight from the pot into warmed bowls and scatter the fresh herbs over at the table.