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Chikuzenni (筑前煮) is a mix of vegetables such as Renkon (lotus root) and carrots, Konnyaku and chicken boiled in strongly flavored broth with soy sauce and sugar. The dish is originally from the southern part of Japan, in the f*ckuoka region of Kyushu island, however, it has spread all over Japan.
Chikuzenni is an ordinary Nimono dish (boiled and seasoned vegetables) for everyday, but also a big part of Osechi Ryori, Japanese New Year’s cuisine. Strongly seasoned Chikuzenni is perfect for Osechi Ryori which is designed to last at least 3 days so house wives don’t have to cook in the beginning of new year (so they say).
Chikuzenni is also a very good Osechi dish because you can cook all the vegetables in one pot. Each vegetable in traditional Nishime (a different term for boiled and seasoned vegetables) is cooked and seasoned separately. So Chikuzenni is an easier version of Nishime, and that works for the busiest time of the year in Japan. That said, you still have to prepare each vegetable in its proper way: shaping Konnyaku into twisted ropes, cutting carrots into plum flowers, etc. It is not hard at all, but it requires some time and patience. It is a special dish to celebrate a new year, so we like to put some effort and thought into the dish, not just slapping ingredients together (we do enough of that all year :-).
There are a lot of vegetables you may not be familiar with in this dish. If there is no Japanese grocery store nearby to buy them, try other Asian stores, as they may likely carry most of ingredients.
Print Recipe
5 from 1 vote
Chikuzenni
Simmered Japanese vegetables like lotus root, carrot, and bamboo shoot along with chicken
Prep Time30 minutes mins
Cook Time40 minutes mins
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Japanese
Keyword: osechi, vegetable
Servings: 8 servings
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Ingredients
- 8 dried Shiitake mushrooms
- 8 snow peas
- 1 block Konnyaku
- 1 large carrot
- 1 Takenoko Bamboo Shoot, boiled, cut into pieces 1″ thick 2″ long
- 5 oz Renkon Lotus Root, boiled, sliced 1″ thick
- 1 chicken breast or 2 thighs cut into 2″ pieces
- 1 Tbsp oil
- 2 1/2 cups Dashi
- 4 Tbsp sugar
- 5 Tbsp soy sauce
- 3 Tbsp Sake
- 3 Tbsp Mirin
US Customary – Metric
Instructions
Hydrate dried Shiitake mushrooms in water in a medium bowl.
Blanch the snow peas in boiling water or Dashi with a pinch of salt.
Cut Konnyaku into 1/2″ thick pieces, make 1/2″ slit in the middle of the piece, and thread an end through the hole to make like a twisted rope (you can blanch them as well if you don’t like the smell).
Cut carrot into 1/2″ thick rounds, then cut with a flower shaped cookie cutter (please watch the video to see how to cut for a 3-D effect).
In a large pot, add oil and heat at medium heat. When the oil becomes hot, add chicken pieces and cook until brown (no need to cook through). Add all vegetables except the Shiitake and the snow peas and cook and stir for a couple of minutes. Then add Shiitake and Dashi, cover, and cook for 15-20 minutes until vegetables become soft.
Add sugar, soy sauce, Sake, and Mirin, stir, and cook another 15-20 minutes uncovered.
Remove from heat and let it continue to cook, covered, so the meat and vegetables absorb flavor from the soup. Serve with snow peas as garnish.
Video
nimonoosechi
December 11, 2013 By JapaneseCooking101
About JapaneseCooking101
Noriko and Yuko, the authors of this site, are both from Japan but now live in California. They love cooking and eating great food, and share a similar passion for home cooking using fresh ingredients.Noriko and Yuko plan and develop recipes together for Japanese Cooking 101. They cook and shoot photos/videos at their home kitchen(s.)
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April
June 1, 2014 at 8:22 am
Is this served cold or warm? Looks so good!
Noriko
June 2, 2014 at 11:05 pm
April,
it could be warm or room temperature.
David
August 29, 2014 at 2:41 am
Hey I was wondering if there’s any recipe that has daikon radish in it? I’ve bought a take away box in Japan 7-11 before, It taste really good and healthy but I’ve no idea what’s that dish called. All I remember is there’s this daikon radish, carrot and some other vegetable in it, they all light brown coloured and were either stew, steam or boil.
The daikon radish was the best as it’s really soft and sweet.
Noriko
September 8, 2014 at 9:02 pm
David,
it is hard to say… but we have Daikon Salad!
Ace
February 5, 2016 at 8:31 am
Hello, will this dish turn out sweet or salty?
Noriko
February 5, 2016 at 1:04 pm
Ace,
Salty with some sweetness.
Margs
January 21, 2017 at 10:36 pm
I’m a beginner but I think my attempt came out really well. I’ll definitely make this dish again and again. What’s a good use for the soup, since your recommendation is to eat the stewed parts but not serve the liquid?
