Recipes
Cook-first pages for rice meals, fermented ingredients, pantry-led everyday cooking, smaller dishes, leftovers, and the next meal.
This is not a generic recipe archive. It is where rice knowledge, fermentation practice, pantry judgment, and no-waste logic turn into something you can actually cook.
In brief: Recipes is where the site stops framing and starts cooking.
Use it for rice-led meals, fermentation-linked dishes, smaller sides, leftover reuse, and the practical decisions that make the rest of the site useful at the stove.
Start here
Where to start — route by cook level and goal
Pick the path closest to where you are right now. Each route skips explanation and goes straight to the dish.
New to Japanese cooking
Start with three forgiving dishes
No special equipment. Each one teaches a ratio that transfers to dozens of other Japanese dishes.
Want fermented flavours
Koji and miso as working ingredients
These three use fermented pantry staples as marinade, glaze, or drink — not as background seasoning.
Using leftover rice
Four intelligent uses for cold cooked rice
Cold rice has better texture for frying and soup than freshly cooked. Each dish below is built around that fact.
Weeknight dinner
Complete meals under 30 minutes
Each dish below works as a standalone weeknight meal with one pan, one protein, and pantry seasoning.
- Rice bowl — dashi + shoyu + mirin sauce ratios
- Miso glazed eggplant — 3 tbsp miso, sear cut-side first
- Shio koji chicken — marinate ahead, 20 min to cook
- Nori tsukudani — simmer nori in shoyu and mirin, 15 min
- Dashi chawanmushi — egg custard, 1:3 egg-to-dashi ratio
- Mochi — pound or microwave, 2:1 mochiko-to-water
Editorial role
How to find the right recipe on this site
Recipes is where the site becomes most useful: less framing, more method, sequence, and actual meal decisions.
On mai-rice.com, Rice and Fermentation hold the deeper subject knowledge. Guides define ingredients, terms, and tools. The Journal keeps the smaller observations and notes.
Recipes picks up when that groundwork is enough. It is where rice bowls, pantry ferments, smaller sides, leftovers, and the ordinary sequencing of a kitchen become something you can cook, including the low-waste logic gathered under No-Waste Cooking.
Concrete starting ratios: miso soup — 1 tbsp miso per 200 ml dashi; shio koji chicken — 8–10% by weight, marinate 4–8 hours; sushi rice seasoning — 3 tbsp rice vinegar + 2 tbsp sugar + 1 tsp salt per 2 cups dry rice. Every recipe page on this site leads with these kinds of numbers because the technique only becomes useful once the proportions are settled. Cooking Japanese food without ratios is like tuning an instrument by feel — possible, but unnecessarily difficult the first few times.
The recipes here are grouped by what leads the plate: rice-centred meals (onigiri, donburi, ochazuke), fermentation-forward dishes (shio koji chicken, miso soup, natto gohan), vegetable sides that complete a Japanese table, and reuse dishes that turn yesterday's leftovers into something worth eating again. That grouping matters because technique transfers within a group — once you understand the shio koji marinade ratio, it works on chicken, salmon, pork, and tofu with only minor adjustments.
If your question is about a rice-led meal: → Rice hub. If it is about cooking with fermented ingredients: → Fermented Foods Recipes. If it is about using what remains: → No-Waste Cooking.
Featured paths
Featured practical recipe paths
These are the strongest current routes for entering the section by the kind of cooking you actually need to do.
Start with the route that matches the meal itself: what is leading, what needs using, and what kind of support the table still needs.
Rice Meals
Rice-led meals, repeat bowls, and grain carryover
This route holds meals where the rice decision comes first, from bowl texture to what the next meal can inherit. It matters because grain choice and carryover often decide the whole dish. Choose it when the bowl, not the garnish, is doing the real work.
Fermentation Use
Miso, koji, and other ferments in live cooking
This route holds dishes where ferments are working ingredients rather than accents. It matters because miso, koji, and fermented rice change timing, seasoning, and heat. Choose it when the ferment itself is shaping the meal.
Support Dishes
Small dishes, finishing touches, and better seasoning
This route holds side dishes, finishing sauces, pantry seasonings, and bowl companions. It matters because meals are often made or lost in these quieter decisions. Choose it when the main ingredient is settled and the rest of the table still needs shape.
Reuse Route
Leftovers, carryover ingredients, and the next meal
This route holds cooking from what remains, whether that is cooled rice, scraps, condiments, or half-finished preparations. It matters because reuse decisions often decide what dinner can be. Choose it when the next meal starts with what is already in the kitchen.
Pantry Cooking
Ingredient-led everyday cooking from pantry knowledge
This route holds pantry-first cooking where ingredient behavior matters before the method does. It matters because better seasoning and better structure usually begin with understanding what is on the shelf. Choose it when the recipe question is really a pantry question.
By cooking intent
Browse by cooking intent
Start from the need in front of you, not from a content type.
Most Japanese home cooking starts from a practical constraint: what is in the fridge, how much time is available, and whether the meal needs a centrepiece or just a supporting side. These routes mirror that thinking. A weeknight rice bowl and an elaborate chirashi sushi both start with cooked rice, but they lead to very different preparation sequences — and different pantry requirements.
Rice Meal
I want the rice to lead the meal
Use this when grain texture, bowl style, and leftover potential are quietly deciding everything else you will cook.
Fermented Ingredients
I want to cook with fermented ingredients
Use this when miso, koji, or another ferment is doing real seasoning or structural work in the dish.
Use What You Have
I want to cook from what I already have
Use this when leftovers, half-used condiments, scraps, or cooled rice are the starting point rather than an afterthought.
Leftovers
I want to use leftovers well
Use this when the job is to carry a meal forward intelligently instead of starting from zero again.
Support Dishes
I want smaller dishes around the bowl
Use this when the main rice or protein is clear but the meal still needs side structure, sauce, or finishing logic.
Clarify First
I need to clarify the ingredient before I cook
Use this when a recipe stalls because a term, tool, or pantry ingredient still is not clear enough to handle confidently.
By subject connection
Browse by subject connection
Recipes is where the rest of the site becomes active in the kitchen.
These routes matter because the subject pages are not separate from cooking. They are what make the cooking here sharper.
Rice
Rice knowledge becomes a meal here
Use Rice when the question is still about grain type, texture, or bowl role. Recipes is where that knowledge turns into dinner, a side dish, or tomorrow's carryover meal.
Fermentation
Fermentation stops being theory here
Use Fermentation when the real need is process, pace, or transformation. Recipes is where those ferments start shaping timing, seasoning, and meal structure.
Guides
Guides hand off to Recipes
Use Guides when a term, pantry ingredient, tool, or method still needs clear naming. Recipes is what comes after the explanation has done enough work.
No-Waste Cooking
No-waste logic becomes cooking here
Use No-Waste Cooking when the real question is about leftovers, scraps, carryover ingredients, or the next use of what remains. Recipes is where that reuse logic becomes a meal.
Core pages
Start here: the highest-use recipe pages
These are the pages currently carrying the most practical weight on the site. Read them by the kind of cooking problem they solve.
Core recipe pages
Technique-first pages for the highest-use Japanese dishes — ratios, timing, and the logic behind each method.
Recipe
Miso Rice: Japanese Miso-Seasoned Gohan
Rice seasoned with white or red miso — 1 tbsp shiro miso per 2 cups cooked rice, off heat. Three methods: stir-in, dashi-infused cooking water, and miso takikomi. Not miso soup.
Recipe
Natto-Gohan (Natto Rice Bowl)
Stir the natto 40–50 times before adding the tare, not after. Covers the polyglutamic acid thread rule, hot-rice versus cold-natto temperature logic, standard toppings, and optional add-ins.
Recipe
How to Make Miso Soup
The ratio, the order, and the technique: 1 tbsp white miso per 200 ml dashi, added off heat. Covers dashi options (instant, kombu+katsuobushi, niboshi), ingredient timing, and the most common mistakes.
Recipe
Shio Koji Chicken
8–10% shio koji by weight, 4–6 hours, under the skin. Covers the timing chart for different proteins, the enzyme mechanism behind tenderization, and cooking method at each temperature.
Recipe
Japanese Rice Bowl
Bowl construction logic: hot short-grain base, cooked protein, sauce (dashi + shoyu + mirin ratios), fresh topping, texture contrast in order. Covers oyakodon, gyudon, tendon, and kaisendon sauce structures.
Recipe
How to Make Ochazuke
Tea over rice, done deliberately: 150–200g cooked rice, 150ml tea at 70–80°C, toppings arranged before pouring. Covers tea type selection (sencha, hojicha, genmaicha), the one-salty-one-textural-one-fresh topping rule, dashi version, and cold summer ochazuke.
Recipe
Miso Glazed Eggplant (Nasu Dengaku)
Glaze ratio: 3 tbsp white miso, 2 tbsp mirin, 1 tbsp sake, 1 tbsp sugar. Score, oil generously, sear cut-side first, apply glaze after. Covers why oil quantity is non-negotiable, heat management for both pan and broiler methods, and adjustments for red vs white miso.
Recipe
Takikomi Gohan: Seasoned Rice with Vegetables
Rice cooked with dashi and vegetables in one pot: 1:1.1 rice-to-liquid ratio, dashi + shoyu + mirin seasoning added before the lid. Covers vegetable timing, protein additions, and how to avoid mushy or underseasoned results.
Recipe
5 Japanese Vegetable Sides: Braised, Pickled, Grilled
Five template preparations that cover most Japanese vegetable sides: shira-ae, kinpira, ohitashi, quick pickles, and grilled with miso. Learn the ratios once and they work with whatever is in season.
Recipe
Japanese Breakfast Rice: Okayu, Tamago Gohan, Ochazuke
Three preparations that cover the full range of Japanese breakfast rice: okayu (5:1 water-to-rice, 40 min), tamago gohan (raw egg + hot rice + shoyu), and ochazuke (70–80°C tea, arranged toppings). Each has a different texture, pace, and set of additions.
Recipe
Okayu: Japanese Rice Porridge
5:1 water-to-rice ratio, 40 minutes low simmer. Covers plain white okayu, kayu with toppings (natto, umeboshi, pickled ginger, furikake), dashi version, and the thinness scale from okayu to zosui.
Recipe
Miso Ramen from Scratch
Tare ratio: 2 tbsp white miso, 1 tsp sesame paste, 1 tsp mirin, ½ tsp sake. Chicken or pork broth base. Covers tare-to-broth balance, topping order, and the difference between shiro and aka miso in ramen.
Recipe
Onigiri Fillings: 12 Options Ranked
Classic fillings (umeboshi, tuna mayo, salmon, kombu), modern options (shio koji chicken, miso butter), and pantry versions. Covers salting the rice, rice temperature for shaping, and nori timing.
Recipe
Tamagoyaki: Japanese Rolled Omelette
3 eggs, 1 tsp dashi, 1 tsp mirin, ½ tsp shoyu, ½ tsp sugar. Medium-low heat, roll in thirds. Covers dashi vs no-dashi versions, pan size, and how to get even layers.
Recipe
Amazake: Koji Rice Drink
200g koji, 400g cooked rice, 800ml water at 55–60°C for 8–10 hours. No added sugar. Covers the rice-to-koji ratio, temperature control without a machine, drinking vs cooking applications.
Recipe
Koji Marinated Salmon
10–15% shio koji by weight, 6–8 hours, skin side down. The enzyme mechanism that softens protein. Covers timing chart for different fish thickness, broiler vs pan method, and the caramelization difference.
Recipe
Koji Marinated Chicken
Shio koji marinade for 8–24 hours. Koji enzymes break down surface protein — noticeably more tender than salt or soy. The technique that makes chicken thighs exceptional.
Recipe
Sekihan: Japanese Red Bean Rice
Glutinous rice cooked in adzuki bean broth turns deep ceremonial red. Gomashio (black sesame salt) topping is mandatory. Made for celebrations.
Recipe
Zosui: Japanese Rice Soup
Leftover cooked rice simmered in dashi — 200ml broth per 100g rice. 8 minutes from fridge to bowl. The traditional way to finish a nabe hot pot.
Recipe
Chahan: Japanese Fried Rice with Egg and Soy
180g cold cooked rice, 1 egg, 1.5 tbsp soy sauce, highest heat. The egg-first technique: coat cold rice in raw egg before the wok to prevent clumping. Covers the soy-around-the-edges rule, why cold rice is non-negotiable, and kimchi/mentaiko/vegetarian variations.
Recipe
Tamago Kake Gohan (TKG): Raw Egg Over Rice
1 fresh egg over 180g hot rice, 1 tsp soy sauce, 1/2 tsp mirin. The two-stage emulsion technique: white first on hot rice, then yolk-soy mixture. Covers egg safety, soy sauce selection, and dashi/truffle/furikake variations.
Recipe
How to Make Onigiri: Shaping, Filling, Wrapping
90g freshly cooked rice per ball, wet and salted hands, press into triangle. Covers the shaping technique, 5 filling options, konbini-style nori wrapping for crispness, and how to keep onigiri fresh for 4 hours.
Recipe
Chirashi Sushi: Scattered Sushi Rice Bowl
Sushi rice (60ml vinegar per 2 cups rice) topped with tuna, salmon, tamago, cucumber, and ikura. No rolling, no knife skills. Covers the fold-not-stir rice technique, plating order, and a fully cooked non-sashimi version.
Pages that teach the long method
Use these when the page itself is the lesson and the ingredient or process needs to be built properly from the ground up.
Foundational Method
How to Make Miso
A full pantry-making method. It matters because it teaches fermentation pace, ratios, storage, and how a long project becomes everyday seasoning. Go here when you want to build a base ingredient rather than finish a quick dish.
Foundational Method
How to Ferment Rice
A rice-first method page. It matters because moisture, timing, texture, and reuse are the lesson here. Go here when the working ingredient is the rice itself.
Pages that support everyday cooking
These pages matter because real cooking often turns on carryover, pantry flavor, and what completes the bowl.
Support Practice
No-Waste Cooking
A practice hub rather than a single recipe. It matters because leftovers, scraps, and carryover timing often determine the smartest next dish. Go here when dinner begins with what remains.
Support Practice
What Is Shoyu
A pantry guide that functions like cooking support. It matters because better seasoning is often the difference between a flat bowl and a finished one. Go here when sauces, soups, tofu, vegetables, or rice need cleaner direction.
Recipe collection
Fermented Foods Recipes
Practical recipes built on miso, shio koji, rice vinegar, and amazake — fermented pantry staples in everyday use. Go here when the fermented ingredient is ready and the question is what to cook with it.
Support Practice
What Is Natto
A bowl-companion page. It matters because some meals need one decisive topping or small dish more than a larger recipe. Go here when breakfast bowls, quick rice meals, or simple protein support are the actual need.
If your question is about miso or koji: → How to Make Miso. If it is about using fermented pantry ingredients in everyday cooking: → Fermented Foods Recipes. If you need a pantry ingredient explained first: → Guides.
Technique foundation
Kitchen fundamentals — before the recipe
Three technique pages that make most Japanese recipes click. Read one only when a specific method is blocking a dish.
Pantry technique
How to Use Miso
When to add miso off-heat, which paste for which dish, and the shiro-to-aka spectrum. Go here when miso is blending in instead of lifting the dish.
Pantry technique
How to Use Dashi
Ichiban vs niban dashi, when instant works, and how to integrate dashi into soups, sauces, and rice. Go here when Japanese broths taste flat.
Grain technique
How to Cook Japanese Rice
Stovetop and rice-cooker methods, washing logic, and the water-to-rice ratios that actually work. Go here before any recipe where the grain is the foundation.
Kitchen workflow
How Recipes connects back to the rest of the site
Learn, cook, then return to the deeper pages only when the cooking asks for more.
Learn only what the dish requires
If the blocker is grain type, fermentation behavior, or pantry language, go to the deeper subject pages first.
Use GuidesCook from the live question
Come here when the real decision is dinner: what to make, how to season it, and how to use what is already on hand.
Browse RecipesReturn only when the cooking deepens
Go back to Rice, Fermentation, Guides, or No-Waste only when the cooking opens into a larger ingredient, process, or reuse problem.
Open GuidesFAQ
Frequently asked questions about Recipes
- What kind of recipes live here?
- Cook-first method pages tied to rice, ferments, pantry ingredients, smaller dishes, leftovers, and low-waste use.
- Is this a general recipe archive?
- No. It is a focused cooking section, not a general archive.
- How should I use Recipes with Rice and Fermentation?
- Use Rice and Fermentation for depth. Use Recipes when that knowledge needs to become a dish or meal.
- Where should a new reader start?
- Start here if you are ready to cook. Start with Rice, Fermentation, or Guides only if the blocker is still knowledge.
- Does this section include low-waste cooking logic?
- Yes. Leftovers, carryover ingredients, pantry reuse, and second-use logic run through much of the section.