Zoni (Mochi Soup, a winter dish)

[Takeda Sanjuichiro]

While not what was asked for in the Mochi thread, I figured this would be interesting... might be a nice alternative to miso at times.

Zoni (Basic Recipe)

4 cups water	4 pieces mochi
3 chicken thighs	1 small carrot
1 small carrot	4 mushrooms
4 inches leek	1/4 lb. hakusai
1 tsp sugar	1 tbsp sake
2 tbsp soy sauce

Preparation:
Cut the chicken thighs into small pieces. Cut the carrot, leek, and mushrooms into thin slices. Put water, sugar, sake, and soy sauce in a pan and bring to boil. Add chicken pieces and vegetable slices in the pan and simmer until softened. Meanwhile grill the mochi in the oven until softened. To serve, add the grilled mochi to the stock... serve and enjoy.

Variations:
Instead of chicken and water, use 4 cups rich dashi stock as a base, simmer veggies until desired, add grilled mochi and serve. Another variation is to thinly slice the mochi and quickly deep-fry and dry; supposedly popular in the far north.

[Nagamochi]

Grilled mochi in a hearty winter soup? Sounds absolutely delightful!

Arigato
Nagamochi

[Tamayori]

Zoni, or Ozoni as it is also known, has become a soup served during Shogatsu-or New Years. Recipes for it vary, depending on what province it comes from.

This recipe is my family's one-it is from the Kumamoto region.

Ozoni

10 cups of water
12" Dashi Konbu
10-12 pieces dry shrimp

3 cans of Hokkigai Clams (or 2 cans of whole clams)-sliced in half

2 medium Daikon (japanese turnip) sliced into1/2" slices
2 med-lrg carrots sliced
1 pkg shrimp Dashi no moto
1/3 cup shoyu (soy sauce-Kikoman)
3 rounded Tablespoons Sugar

1 med. bunch of Mizuna chopped into 3-4" lengths

plain mochi cakes

Place Dashi konbu and dried shrimp in pot with water, and bring to a boil. Remove Konbu and shrimp(or leave shrimp in if desired)

Add the clams,(sometimes the juice from the can can be added-but that is personal taste) daikon, carrots, shoyu, shrimp dashi, and sugar.

Simmer on medium heat til carrots are soft,and the daikon is translucent.

Add the mizuna to the soup about 5-10 mins before serving.

Grill or pan-fry the mochi til soft and place in individual bowls-spoon soup over mochi, and enjoy!

Notes: since I left home(hawaii) my folks mail me pre-made mochi cakes, which I soak in water for a little bit, then place in serving bowls and microwave them til they puff up-then add the soup.

Hand-made mochi cakes are softer than commercially made-so it is best to pan-fry then with a lil bit of oil to grill them.

[tamayori]

I have seen you recipe for Ozoni before, my recipe is related to one from the Kyoto area. I think yours may come from a mountainous or central province because of the use of chicken.

My friend's family comes from the tokyo region, and her family's ozoni uses miso, with the addition of Natto.

Ozoni is great on New Year's day. (good for hangovers)
Traditionally on New Year's morning, my grandmother would serve us a cup of tea (hoji-cha) with a pickled plum in it (ume). This is to symbolize good health-normally you pick apart the plum, then drink the salty tea-throwing away the seed of course.

Then you are served bowls of Ozoni. (sometimes the mochi cakes were very small-in the belief that one should eat their age in mochi for good luck)

Then normally everyone got a sip of sacred water that had been placed at the altar overnight-also for good luck, and relatives would come to enjoy a lunch of many delicacies for new years. Ie: various Sashimi, and seafood dishes, steamed rice, azuki rice, various pickles,and of course chi chi dango and manju.

(heheh- yea,the adults would get Sake-but us kids got Ama zake that my grandfather made-no i don't know his recipe-wish i did)

[tamayori]

A note about Mizuna....
Mizuna is a type of "wild lettuce". It is very hard to find in Canada.

I have access to an asian market here, but it stocks items primarily chinese. However, you can find mizuna in Mesclun-that fancy gourmet salad mix they sell in grocery stores.

Normally what i have had to do is buy the mesclun, then go thru it an pull out all the mizuna.

Due to the high population of japanese in hawaii, Mizuna is sold in bunches in most of the grocery stores.

I assume besides the mesclun, that you can try checking with gourmet markets, to see if they carry it, or a market that deals in japanese produce.

I normally put th mizuna in last in th ozoni, letting it simmer in th broth til the leaves are a lil wilted, but still retains it's crunch.

Some books will tell you that mizuna is a type of endive,but after trying to use regular endive-it tastes like crap. Mizuna is a lovely spring green with stag-horn like ends.

There is a decent picture of mizuna in the Herbs book that is part of the DK line-or Dorling Kindersley books on page 235. the latin name for it is Brassica Rapa Variation Nipposinica.

Unfortunately Hawaii markets only stock it during the new years, but hi-end resturants use it alot for presentation. I think it would be nice in miso soup, or used with stir-fry. Or even in a salad with tofu and say, salmon.

If anyone has a link to a japanese food store in the states where they stock mizuna I would be very grateful. (normally the farther east ya gets away from hawaii-the harder it is to find certain items)

[suteki]

Well, there used to be a Yaohan down the street, a very large japanese supermarket. They're a chain, or were (there was one by my apartment in Schaumburg, IL, too) but the one here is "Mitsuwa" now, as the chain has been renamed.

www.mitsuwa.com/

That will at least allow you to find one near you. Hopefully that will help, or at least make me look less noobish

Always helpful, except in emergencies;
-Suteki-