For ➍4 boneless skinless salmon fillets (100 g each)*
¼ sheet nori
100 g cooked rice*
2 ts hot green tea
4 ts soy sauce
1 ts wasabi**
Cover salmon with a thick layer of salt. Set aside for 30 m. Rinse off salt.
Grill salmon for approximately 5 m. When done, reserve a square of fish* and flake the rest with a fork.
Cut nori into 1 cm strips.
Boil 35 cl of water. Add tea and let steep for 1 to 3 m.
Heat rice in microwave oven. Divide rice into 4 bowls. Place ¼ of salmon in each bowl, square on top*. Drizzle 1 ts of soy sauce in each bowl, along with ¼ ts of wasabi**. Garnish with nori strips. Pour over some green tea***.
*Use 150 g for 4 as snack. Use sautéed shiitake and enoki, or grilled tofu, to make a vegetarian version.
**Optional.
***Depending on taste, you can choose between moist and wet (the traditional way). To have a more western dish, add the salmon and nori at the end to keep them dry.
Another way would be simmering the rice in the tea to achieve a risotto-like consistency.
Ochazuke is a traditional Japanese dish, referring to Chinese wisdom that green tea is not a drink but food. The recipe can vary from snack to substantial dish, with different toppings over the rice.
Green tea is the least processed of teas. It provides the most antioxidants and has been drunk for centuries in Asia, where it originated in China. In Japan, the several varieties, differing highly in price and quality, have been used as the main tea. Matcha, powdered tea, is a fine ground tea made from the tencha variety. It is used primarily in the tea ceremony, but has become popular as flavour for ice cream and other sweets in Japan. It can be added to other foods, and is considered a food itself, not a beverage.
