Braised Root Vegetables With Chicken : Chikuzen-Ni
Chikuzen-Ni is a classic Setouchi dish that today is popular across Japan. Its name comes from the ancient Chikuzen province, where it originated. Located at the northern tip of Kyushu Island at the western edge of the Setouchi, the area is now called Fukuoka prefecture. It’s a mountainous region, but with enough arable land for there to be many small market farms on which are grown all kinds of vegetables, long famous for their quality because of the nutrient-rich soil of the still very actively volcanic island.
It’s a hearty and healthy dish that’s packed with umami and loaded with vitamin C, polyphenols, anti-oxidants and other nutritional benefits, all of which are particularly welcome during the winter months when root vegetables are the main vegetables of the Setouchi diet. But Chikuzen-Ni is also made and eaten throughout the year because it’s a colorful, easy-to-make medley of vegetables that can accommodate what’s in season. For example, bamboo shoots in spring and taro root in autumn instead of lotus root, which is a winter vegetable. It’s also very versatile, and can be served warm or cold as a side dish to any meal, added to bento boxes and picnic hampers, and nibbled on when drinking sake. In the Setouchi, it’s also often taken straight from the fridge and enjoyed as a midnight snack or eaten for breakfast.
Braised Root Vegetables With Chicken
Chikuzen-Ni : 筑前煮
Serves 6-8
Main Foods
Boneless Chicken Thighs or Chicken Breast, ≈ 3/4 lb. (≈ 350 g)
Daikon Radish, 1/4 (160 g)
Carrot, 1/2 large (100 g)
Burdock Root, 1 long (100 g)
Lotus Root, 1/2 (120 g)
Shiitake Mushrooms (dry), 4
Konnyaku, 1 block (225 g) — See Notes
Green Beans, Snow Peas, or Snap Peas, 8
Seasonings
Toasted Sesame Oil, 1 tablespoon
Konbu Dashi, 2 cups (480 ml) — See Notes
Sake, 2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons
Light Brown Sugar, 1/2 tablespoon
Mirin, 2 tablespoons
Usukuchi Soy Sauce, 2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons
Directions
Cut the chicken into large, bite-size pieces, and marinate them in 2 teaspoons of sake and 2 teaspoons of usukuchi soy sauce while you’re preparing the other ingredients.
Prep the vegetables as follows, keeping in mind to cut them into roughly the same size pieces as the chicken, so that everything cooks evenly and will be done at the same time.
Rehydrate the dried shiitake mushrooms by soaking them in 1 cup of water for an hour. Remove the stems (saving for another use) and cut the caps in half, at a diagonal, if very large. Reserve the soaking liquid to add later to the stock.
Lightly scrape the skin off the burdock with the back of a knife and slice it into long pieces at a diagonal. Called the me-giri cutting method, diagonal cuts increase the surface area of the slices, enabling them to better absorb the flavor of the stock and also cook in less time. Put the slices into a small bowl of cold water for 10-20 minutes to remove some of their bitterness.
Peel the carrot, daikon radish, and lotus root, and then cut each into irregular-shaped pieces by the ran-giri cutting method. The ran-giri way of cutting long, round vegetables consists of making random, diagonal cuts while rotating the vegetable a one-quarter turn between cuts. Lay the vegetable crosswise in front of you, and start cutting diagonally from the end. After every cut, rotate the vegetable 90 degrees towards you, and keep cutting randomly until you reach the other end. This creates more surfaces, which, again, enables the pieces to better soak up the flavor of the stock and cook in less time. The irregular shapes also help maintain the textures of the vegetables during a long simmer. Put the pieces of lotus root in a small bowl of water (preferably with 1/2 teaspoon of vinegar) to preserve their color until ready to use.
Pull the konnyaku apart with your hands or a large spoon to create irregular chunks roughly the same size as the other pieces This is called the chi-giri method. Boil the pieces in water for 1 minute to cleanse them.
Blanch the green beans in salted boiling water for 2 minutes. Rinse under cold water, drain, and set aside.
In a large, deep fry pan, heat the toasted sesame oil over medium heat and sauté the chicken until just lightly colored, about 1 minute. Add the konnyaku and all of the vegetables, except for the green beans. Toss everything to coat all of the pieces with oil and stir-fry for 1-2 minutes to tenderize the vegetables.
Add the konbu dashi, reserved shiitake soaking liquid, and all of the remaining seasonings, except for 1 tablespoon of the mirin and 1 tablespoon of the usukuchi soy sauce. (The stock should cover 80% of the ingredients.) Bring to a boil, skim off any impurities, then reduce the heat to a gentle simmer. Cover with an otoshi-buta (drop lid) or a circle of parchment paper or foil with holes cut into it, and cook until the vegetables are tender and the liquid is reduced by half, about 15-20 minutes.
Add the last 1 tablespoon of mirin and 1 tablespoon of usukuchi soy sauce, raise the heat to a boil, and reduce the stock to about 1/3 of its original volume. This should take about another 5 minutes.
Add the green beans just before serving.
Let the Chikuzen-Ni rest in the pan for a while to meld its flavors. If not eating right away, refrigerate. It will keep for about 5 days.
Serve
Serve the Chikuzen-Ni family style in a large bowl as a side dish, either warmed again, at room temperature, or cold. It can also be a meal itself together with a bowl of rice and miso soup. I like to put a large serving on top of a bowl of warm soba noodles, using the stock as a soup.
Notes
Konnyaku — Sometimes called Devil’s Tongue Jelly or Yam Cake, konnyaku is a gelatinous, flavorless white or gray block made from the stem of the konjac plant, which is a type of yam. High in dietary fiber, it’s used in cooking because it aids digestion, but contains no calories and easily absorbs and assumes the flavors of the seasonings in a dish.
Konbu Dashi — If you don’t have Konbu Dashi already made, you can make just enough for this recipe by putting a 3 inch (7.5 cm) piece of dry konbu into 2 cups (480 ml) of cold water in the fry pan you plan to cook the Chikuzen-Ni. Let it soak for 30 minutes (60 minutes if using Rishiri-Konbu), then slowly heat to a gentle simmer, about 10 minutes. Once small bubbles start to form around the edges of the konbu, take it out, discard it, or save it for another use.