Kanako's Kitchen

Western people tend to think of tofu as an alternative to meat, but in Japan lots of dishes put the two together.

My mom’s version of Kenchin-jiru is one of them, a warming dish for cold winter days you can make in about half an hour to 40 minutes. It brings together Tofu, pork, carrots and Japanese radish (daikon) into a lovely, savory-sweet main dish.

Looking around online, it seems there are many different versions of Kenchin-jiru out there – and the original version was a vegetarian soup! My mom’s version was neither vegetarian nor soup – but it is delicious!

The secret to great kenchin-jiru is simple: very fresh Japanese radish. Make sure your daikon is super-fresh, and this dish will turn out great.

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