Recipe Highlights
My household loves nikujaga, however on busy nights I attain for starchy potatoes and floor meat as an alternative. Simmered Potato and Rooster has all the identical heat—candy soy broth, tender potatoes, savory floor meat—with out the longer cook dinner time.
I’ll stroll you thru my drop-lid method so the potatoes keep entire and absorb each little bit of that sweet-savory seasoning.
- Prepared in about 35 minutes
- Drop-lid method for completely tender potatoes
- Pantry-friendly components
- Nice for meal prep—tastes even higher the subsequent day
Love potato dishes? Strive my Japanese Croquettes (Korokke), Nikujaga, and Japanese Potato Salad subsequent!
What’s Simmered Potato and Rooster?
Simmered potato and hen is a tackle nimono (煮物), the Japanese custom of slow-cooking components in a seasoned broth of dashi, soy sauce, mirin, and sake. The method has roots throughout Japan, the place simmered dishes are a staple of on a regular basis katei ryōri (家庭料理—home-style cooking).
This model will get inspiration from the sweet-soy profile of nikujaga and simplifies it into a fast but comforting weeknight dish.
Substances for Simmered Potato and Rooster
- small Yukon Gold potatoes – or related yellow-flesh selection
- floor hen – or different floor meat or plant-based mince
- snap peas
- seasonings – sake, mirin, soy sauce, sugar
- potato starch or cornstarch
- water – or hen broth or hen inventory
- salt
- impartial oil
Discover the printable recipe with measurements under.
Make Simmered Potato and Rooster
- Brown the hen. Prepare dinner floor hen over medium warmth, breaking it into crumbles till now not pink, about 3–4 minutes.
- Add potatoes and seasonings. Coat the potatoes with oil, then add the sake, mirin, sugar, soy sauce, and water.
- Simmer with a drop lid. Place an otoshibuta (drop lid) straight on the components and simmer on low for 13–quarter-hour, till a skewer pierces a potato simply.
- Thicken. Stir within the slurry and cook dinner till the sauce is shiny.
- Serve. Dish into bowls and high with snap peas.
Nami’s Recipe Suggestions
A number of easy suggestions make all of the distinction!
- Select Yukon Gold potatoes – Their waxy texture holds as much as simmering higher than starchy russets, which are likely to get mealy.
- Use a drop lid – An otoshibuta (drop lid) holds the potatoes in place in order that they don’t knock towards one another and break. It additionally circulates the seasoned broth evenly. No drop lid? Reduce a circle from aluminum foil or parchment paper—see my information on What’s Otoshibuta and Make It.
- Don’t stir whereas simmering – Stirring causes the potatoes to crumble. Let the drop lid do the work.
- Make the slurry simply earlier than utilizing – Starch settles shortly, so stir it once more proper earlier than you pour it into the pot.
- Relaxation for richer taste and tender texture – This dish improves with time. Because it cools, the potatoes and hen take in the broth extra deeply, turning into extra tender and flavorful. Let it sit uncovered for 30–60 minutes earlier than reheating—or refrigerate in a single day for greatest outcomes.
Variations and Customizations
Listed here are a couple of simple methods to make this dish your individual.
- Vegan model. Swap the bottom hen for a plant-based mince and use vegetable inventory, Vegan Dashi, or water as the bottom.
- Completely different protein. Floor pork or thinly sliced beef mirror nikujaga much more intently. I don’t advocate hen breast, as it is going to dry out.
- Add greens. Onion wedges, carrots, shiitake mushrooms, or konnyaku (konjac) are all basic additions.
- Gluten-free. Use tamari and double-check your mirin label.
What to Serve with Simmered Potato and Rooster
Serve these simple dishes alongside to make an entire meal.
- Miso Soup with Yuzu Kosho – This hearty soup provides protein and a spicy kick that pairs nicely with the candy fringe of the broth.
- Stir-Fried Tomatoes and Eggs – A colourful vegetarian facet that provides protein and brightens the plate.
- Inexperienced Bean Gomaae – A nutty sesame dressing provides a welcome contrasting taste towards the richness of the hen.
- Asazuke – Evenly pickled greens deliver a crisp, refreshing chew alongside the tender stew.
Storage and Reheating Suggestions
To retailer: Switch leftovers to an hermetic container and refrigerate for as much as 3–4 days. Don’t freeze—potato texture adjustments considerably after freezing.
To reheat: Heat gently over medium-low warmth, including a splash of water if the sauce has thickened an excessive amount of.
FAQs
Can I exploit a unique potato?
Yukon Gold, different yellow child potatoes, or crimson potatoes are the very best decisions for this recipe as a result of their waxy texture holds up via simmering and gained’t flip mushy. Russet potatoes are too starchy and have a tendency to interrupt aside.
How is that this totally different from nikujaga?
Each dishes use a candy soy and mirin broth. Nikujaga makes use of thinly sliced beef and onion, shirataki noodles, and extra greens. With fewer components, this recipe comes collectively quicker for a fantastic weeknight possibility.
Can I make this forward?
Sure—this dish really improves in a single day. The potatoes take in the broth because it cools, so the flavour deepens. Make it the day earlier than, retailer in an hermetic container within the fridge, and reheat gently earlier than serving.
I’d love to listen to how yours turned out! 💛 Please depart a star score and remark under to share your expertise. Your suggestions not solely helps Simply One Cookbook but in addition helps different residence cooks uncover recipes they’ll belief.
Simmered Potato and Rooster
To Prepare dinner the Potatoes and Rooster
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Wash and minimize 14 oz Yukon gold potatoes in half crosswise.
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Set a medium pot over medium warmth and add 1 Tbsp impartial oil. Add 6 oz floor hen and break up the chunks with a wood spatula. Prepare dinner for 3–4 minutes till the meat crumbles and is now not pink.
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Add the potatoes and stir-fry for 2 minutes till coated with oil.
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Add 2 Tbsp sake, 2 Tbsp mirin, 1 Tbsp sugar, and 2 Tbsp soy sauce.
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Add 1½ cups water and scale back to low warmth. Place a drop lid (otoshibuta) straight on the components and simmer for 13–quarter-hour with out stirring, till a skewer pierces a potato simply and the liquid has lowered.Nami’s Tip: An otoshibuta retains the potatoes from breaking whereas simmering and circulates cooking liquid evenly. You need to use a chrome steel otoshibuta, or make one with aluminum foil or parchment paper. See What’s Otoshibuta (Drop Lid) and Make It.
To Blanch the Peas
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Whereas the potatoes are cooking, take away the strings from 4–5 snap peas. Convey a small saucepan of water to a boil and add ½ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt.
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Add the peas and blanch for 1–2 minutes, till their shade brightens. Take away to a tray till cool sufficient to deal with.
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Run the tip of a knife alongside the underside edge of every pod and open it like a e book. Preserve the half with the peas for garnish and slice off the opposite half.
To Retailer
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Retailer in an hermetic container within the fridge for as much as 3–4 days. Don’t freeze, as the feel of potatoes will change. To serve, reheat gently over medium warmth.
- Vegan model. Swap the bottom hen for a plant-based mince and use vegetable inventory, Vegan Dashi, or water as the bottom.
- Completely different protein. Floor pork or thinly sliced beef mirror nikujaga much more intently. I don’t advocate hen breast, as it is going to dry out.
- Add greens. Onion wedges, carrots, shiitake mushrooms, or konnyaku (konjac) are all basic additions.
- Gluten-free. Use tamari and double-check your mirin label.
Did you make this recipe?
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