🍱 Kasu-yose

“Kasu-yose” is a home-cooked dish, primarily eaten in the town of Yamato and has been served for celebrations and festivals or when a large group of people gathered for an event. It looks similar to “Shira-ae” (=mashed tofu salad) in appearance, but this dish is unique in that it can be served as a main dish, side dish or snack. Taro, onions, carrots and dried shiitake mushrooms are finely chopped and stir-fried with chicken meat. Rice and soybeans are added, and all the ingredients are simmered. The soybeans are soaked in water from the day before so that they become soft and can be mashed into a puree. It is said that the name “Kasu-yose” comes from the word “okara” (=soy pulp). In this region, “okara” is referred to as “kasu”. Another theory is that since different types of vegetables are used together in this recipe, the name came from the word “kazuyose” (=bring numbers together). Another name for this dish is “Oshiyose”, meaning bringing together available ingredients. Different types of rice may be used for the dish and some families opt to use glutinous rice or rice dumplings instead of white rice. The recipe differs per region and some recipes always include pumpkin while others do not. The ingredients are lightly seasoned with soy sauce, mirin (=sweet rice wine) and sugar (soft brown sugar) to enhance the natural flavors of the ingredients.