Sekihan : Sticky Pink Bean Rice　

Sekihan, or ‘osekihan’ or ‘purple rice’, is a conventional rice dish in Japanese delicacies. It’s made out of glutinous rice and azuki beans giving it a delicate and chewy texture, distinctive flavour, and signature purple tinge. This traditional purple color has made sekihan a staple meals for particular events like New Yr, birthdays, and different celebrations. It’s a well-liked sort of rice in Japan and may be served as a part of a comforting meal at residence in addition to to rejoice comfortable occasions!

What’s Sekihan?

Sekihan is a conventional Japanese dish made out of sticky rice and azuki beans. The phrase ‘sekihan’ interprets to purple rice due to the signature purple color the rice has from the purple beans (azuki beans). Due to its purple color which symbolises happiness, luck, and auspicious beginnings, sekihan is usually eaten when celebrating particular or comfortable events. This is the reason it’s a part of the ‘Osechi Ryori’ New Yr’s feast eaten in Japan when bringing within the new yr. Though it’s related to celebrations, sekihan can also be eaten each day and may be discovered as pre-packaged rice balls (onigiri) in comfort shops and supermarkets in Japan. 

The purple beans not solely add the traditional colouring of the rice but additionally deliver a barely nutty barely candy flavour. The rice used can also be typically known as candy rice, however sekihan is just not candy. It has a novel flavour however is a savoury dish particularly because it’s normally seasoned with a sprinkle of salt and black sesame seeds.

Components utilized in Sekihan

Listed below are the elements generally used to arrange sekihan.

1. Glutinous Rice: Often known as sticky or candy rice, glutinous rice has a excessive starch content material that offers sekihan its attribute stickiness. This is similar sort of short-grain rice that’s used to make mochi (rice cake) so it’s sticky and really filling. That’s why it is usually known as ‘Mochigome’. The rice grain color could be very white not like strange rice grains, that are clear. The sort of rice may be purchased from Asian grocery shops or on-line Mochigome. Learn extra in “How one can make Mochi” put up.

2. Azuki Beans: These small reddish-brown beans are a staple ingredient in lots of Japanese sweets. It’s normally made right into a paste known as Anko and used as a filling for numerous sorts of mochi, dorayaki, and different desserts. However in sekihan it’s savoury. The beans additionally present a wealthy purple hue to the dish when cooked. 

4. Sesame Seeds and Salt: Toasted black sesame seeds and a little bit of salt are normally sprinkled on prime of the sekihan on the finish.

Mochigome (glutinous rice) and Azuki beans, can these days be present in exterior of Japan. In Australia (and different international locations), they are often present in Asian or Japanese grocery shops or within the Asian meals aisle of normal supermarkets.

Directions

Listed below are directions for easy methods to effortlessly put together scrumptious sekihan utilizing each a strain cooker and an Instantaneous Pot. Whichever you utilize, the method is just about the identical as follows:

1. Wash the rice, drain the water and go away the drained rice to the facet (or you are able to do this step whereas the beans are cooking).

2. Wash azuki beans and drain the washing water.

3. Set water and azuki beans within the strain cooker/prompt pot and cook dinner the azuki beans.

4. Launch the strain, and open the lid, and scoop up the water with a ladle and pour it again in a number of instances to oxidise the beans. Proceed this step a number of instances to verify the color comes out later within the rice.

5. Then add rice and salt into the strain cooker/prompt pot.

6. Cook dinner all for 3 minutes.

7. Launch the strain naturally.

8. Open the lid and stir the rice and serve with a sprinkle of salt and black sesame seeds.

Fashionable Events to Serve Sekihan

Sekihan holds a big place in Japanese tradition and is usually served on joyous and particular events equivalent to New Years, birthdays, weddings, or festivals due to its celebratory purple color. My mum all the time makes this rice for New Yr’s and our birthdays as a result of she is aware of how a lot all of us find it irresistible.

What to serve with Sekihan

• Miso Soup: Easy miso soup with tofu and seaweed or extra hearty soup with added seasonal greens like spinach or mushrooms goes properly with sekihan.
• Pickles (Tsukemono): Tangy and crunchy pickles like radish and cucumber are a traditional facet dish in Japan and complement sekihan completely. 
• Grilled Fish: Delicate white fish equivalent to sea bream or mackerel pairs properly with the delicate flavours of the purple bean rice. 
• Simmered Greens: A facet dish of simmered greens like carrots, daikon radish, lotus root, or bamboo shoots in soy sauce-based broth (nimono) is ideal together with sekihan.
• Tempura: Calmly battered and deep-fried greens or seafood tempura make for a pleasant distinction when served alongside sekihan. Fashionable decisions embody shrimp tempura, candy potato tempura, and eggplant tempura.
• Chawanmushi: chawanmushi is a superb accompaniment to sekihan, as its clean and custard-like texture balances the sticky rice texture.

Suggestions for Making Sekihan

• After we cook dinner strange rice in a rice cooker, we let the rice grain take in some water earlier than cooking it in order that when the rice is cooked it’s delicate. Nevertheless, don’t go away glutinous rice in water if you’re going to use a rice cooker or a strain cooker, as a result of the water absorption price of glutinous rice is increased so there finally ends up being not sufficient water to cook dinner it or if you happen to add water to cook dinner, it finally ends up soggy.
• Historically, the rice is cooked by steaming, after we didn’t have strain cookers. If you’re going to resolve to cook dinner this dish within the conventional method, you should soak the rice in water for 6-8 hours and if the rice is outdated, it must be soaked for longer. Then drain the soaked liquid and steam cook dinner the rice.
• It’s necessary so as to add the salt on the proper time when cooking. Don’t add the salt to the Azuki Beans. The salt makes the azuki beans agency and won’t be cooked correctly. The salt must be added when cooking the rice (after the beans have cooked).

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