Ninjin gohan / carrot rice

Orange color rice on a sunny day.

<Ingredients>

1 cup (180 cc) rice
1 carrot
1 tbsp sake
1/4 usukuchi soy sauce
1/2 niboshi dried sardine

For topping
1 egg
1 tbsp shirasu dried young sardine


<Directions>
1.
Wash rice and set aside 30-60 minutes ahead of time.


2.

Place niboshi on paper towel, cover and crush with bottle opener or handle of knife.








3.

Put sake and soy sauce first, then water to slightly below 1-cup mark.
Add crushed niboshi, and grate carrot.

Mix well, and cook.





4.
When done, gently turn upside down, cover and wait for 10 minutes. Top with scrambled egg and shirasu (optional) and serve.


<Notes>

• Niboshi works as a great dashi stock for this dish and is also a good source of calcium. Its strong taste compliments the "green" taste of carrot well. If not available, katsuo or katsuo-kobu dashi, or even a piece of kombu kelp works fine.
  
• Usukuchi soy sauce is used to ensure brighter orange color. If regular soy sauce is used, use less than the specified amount above and add a tiny pinch of salt.
• I usually put 1/4 tsp salt or 1/2 soy sauce per cup of rice when cooking rice with other ingredients. For this dish, sodium content is lower than usual because it is topped with egg (cooked with a small amount of sake and a tiny pinch of salt) and shirasu (with salty taste). When eating, egg and shirasu should be mixed in carrot rice for evenly distributed saltiness.
• Cook scrambled egg without oil in non-stick pan.