炊(た)き込(こ)みご飯(はん)

炊(た)き込(こ)みご飯(はん) is rice cooked together with ingredients and seasonings (醤油(しょうゆ), 出汁(だし), etc.) in the same pot. A staple of Japanese home cooking, often made seasonally.

POPULAR VARIETIES:

• 栗(くり)ご飯(はん): chestnut rice (秋(あき))
• 筍(たけのこ)ご飯(はん): bamboo shoot rice (春(はる))
• 松茸(まつたけ)ご飯(はん): matsutake mushroom rice
• 鯛(たい)めし: sea bream rice
• 鶏(とり)ごぼうの炊(た)き込(こ)みご飯(はん): chicken and burdock root rice

SIMILAR TERMS:

• 混(ま)ぜご飯(はん): rice mixed with ingredients after cooking (different technique)
• 炊(た)き込(こ)みご飯(はん): ingredients cooked together with the rice from the start

The two are sometimes used interchangeably in casual speech.

CULTURE:
Often associated with seasonal cooking (旬(しゅん)). Making 炊(た)き込(こ)みご飯(はん) with seasonal ingredients is a way to enjoy the changing seasons through food.