Kenchin-jiru facts for kids
Kenchin jiru
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| Alternative names | Kenchin-jiru |
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| Type | Soup |
| Place of origin | Japan |
| Main ingredients | Root vegetables and tofu |
| Ingredients generally used | Burdock root, daikon radish, shiitake mushrooms, konnyaku, taro root, sweet potato or potato, carrot, dashi stock, sesame oil, and seasonings |
Kenchin jiru (けんちん汁, kenchinjiru) is a yummy Japanese vegetable soup. It's made with healthy root vegetables and tofu. This soup is super popular in Japan! People make it in many different ways, using all sorts of ingredients. Some say it started hundreds of years ago at a temple called Kenchō-ji. Others think it came from a special cooking style called shippoku cuisine.
Contents
What is Kenchin Jiru?
Kenchin jiru is a warm and tasty Japanese vegetable soup. It's usually packed with root vegetables and tofu. Imagine a bowl full of good-for-you ingredients!
Common Ingredients
- Tofu: A soft food made from soybeans.
- Burdock root: A long, thin root vegetable.
- Daikon radish: A large, white radish.
- Shiitake mushrooms: Flavorful brown mushrooms.
- Konnyaku: A jelly-like food made from a plant.
- Taro root: A starchy root vegetable.
- Sweet potato or potato: Adds a hearty touch.
- Carrot: For color and sweetness.
- Dashi stock: A basic Japanese broth.
- Sesame oil: Gives a nutty flavor.
- Seasonings: To make it taste just right.
Sometimes, cooks stir-fry the vegetables first. This helps to remove extra water. It also makes their flavors even stronger and more delicious! While it's mostly a vegetable soup, some recipes might add pork or chicken.
The History of Kenchin Jiru
This special soup has a long and interesting history. It's been enjoyed in Japan for many centuries!
A Temple's Story
One story says that Kenchin jiru began at Kenchō-ji. This is a very old Buddhist temple in Kamakura, Japan. It was actually the first Zen Temple in the whole country!
The story goes like this: Many years ago, a young monk was in the temple kitchen. He accidentally dropped a fresh block of tofu on the floor! Luckily, the kitchen floor was kept super clean. So, the cook decided to use the tofu anyway. He crumbled it up and added it to the soup for dinner that night. After that, it became a tradition. Tofu for this soup was always crushed into small pieces. This was based on a Zen idea. It teaches that food should be shared equally among everyone at the temple.
From Chinese Cuisine
Another idea is that Kenchin jiru came from shippoku cuisine. This is a Japanese cooking style that got many ideas from Chinese food. Shippoku cuisine started when Chinese immigrants came to Nagasaki, Japan. This happened during the Edo period (1603-1868). Nagasaki was the only place in Japan where Chinese people were allowed to live for a long time.
The name kenchin might even come from a Chinese word, kenchen. This word means "rolled parched food" or "rolled slivers of food." This connection is interesting because there's a different version of kenchin. Instead of a soup, it's made by rolling cooked vegetables and tofu inside yuba (tofu skin). Then, this roll is deep-fried!
