Mame Gohan (Japanese Green Pea Rice)

Mame Gohan, with its vibrant green appearance, is a Japanese mixed rice dish that allows you to fully appreciate the flavor of green peas. Enjoy the delicate yet flavorful taste of Japan.

Mame Gohan is a Japanese rice dish made by mixing green peas with rice. "Mame" refers to beans, and "Gohan" means cooked rice. While there are various types of beans, in this dish it typically refers to green peas.

Green peas are delicious in dishes like soups, salads, and stir-fries, but they also pair surprisingly well with rice. As a result, this mixed rice is considered a classic spring dish in Japan, when green peas are in season.

In my recipe, a small amount of sake and salt are added to fully bring out the flavor of the peas. You will be amazed at how well rice and green peas complement each other.

You might think that this dish is simply made by cooking rice and green peas together, but in reality, doing so won't achieve a vibrant green appearance. To preserve the vivid green color while maintaining the peas' texture, the following methods are necessary:

• Cook the rice and green peas separately.
• Use the water from simmering peas to cook the rice.

By using these two methods, you can make mame gohan both visually appealing and flavorful.

Simply cooking rice and green peas together will compromise the peas' texture and bright green color. However, cooking them separately won't infuse the rice with the peas' flavor. The solution to these issues is to cook the rice with the water from simmering the peas.

Cooking the rice with this water allows it to fully absorb the flavor of the peas. Additionally, adding the green peas after cooking the rice ensures that their texture and color remain intact.

With just a little extra effort, the results will be significantly better. Give this recipe a try and see for yourself.

The tool you need to make this dish is the same as the one used to cook regular Japanese rice: a pot or a rice cooker.

In Japan, while most households have a rice cooker, it is less common outside of Japan, so I'm sharing a recipe using a pot here. Of course, you can also use a rice cooker; in that case, simply replace the pot with the rice cooker in the recipe.

To learn more about How to Cook Japanese Rice on the Stove, please refer to the linked page.

In Japan, there are many types of cooked rice dishes made with fresh, seasonal ingredients. One representative rice dish in spring is mame gohan, but there are also other seasonal varieties, such as Corn Rice, Ginger Rice, Kuri Gohan (chestnut rice), Satsumaimo Gohan (Japanese sweet potato rice), and Kaki Gohan (oyster rice), all prepared according to the season.

In traditional Japanese kaiseki restaurants, it is customary to serve a rice dish made with seasonal ingredients before dessert. If you have the opportunity to try kaiseki cuisine, pay attention to the ingredients used in the rice dishes-you will surely experience the essence of the season.

Ingredients

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Instructions

🕒 Total: 55 mins mins

Step 1
Place a sieve over a bowl, add rice, and rinse it with water. Repeat this process several times, changing the water each time.

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Step 2
Soak the rinsed rice in water in a pot for at least 30 minutes.

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Step 3
In another pot, combine the water (as specified in the recipe) and salt, and bring it to a boil. Once boiling, add green peas and simmer over low heat for 5 minutes. After that, turn off the heat and let them cool gradually in the pot.

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Step 4
Transfer the peas to a bowl. Do not discard the boiled water, as you will need it for the next step.

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Step 5
Drain the soaking water from the pot with the rice. Combine the drained rice with sake and the water used to simmer the peas (the amount specified in the recipe) in the pot.

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Step 6
Cover the pot and bring it to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to low and cook for 10 minutes, or slightly longer for larger quantities (11 minutes for 4 servings, 12 minutes for 6 servings).

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Step 7
Turn off the heat and let it steam for 10 minutes with the lid still on.

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Step 8
Mix the green peas into the cooked rice.

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To store

You can store it in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

Wait until the green peas have cooled down after boiling before removing them from the pot. This helps prevent them from wrinkling and ensures they retain their beautiful shape.