, or , is a mild and thin Japanese

rice Rice is the seed of the grass species '' Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima'' (African rice). The name wild rice is usually used for species of the genera '' Zizania'' and '' Porteresia'', both wild and domesticat ...

soup akin to a rice-based

vegetable soup Vegetable soup is a common soup prepared using vegetables and leaf vegetables as primary ingredients. It dates to ancient history, and is a mass-produced food product in contemporary times. Overview Vegetable soup is prepared using vegetables, ...

. It is made from pre-cooked

and dashi or water seasoned with either soy sauce or miso and cooked with other ingredients such as meat, seafood, mushrooms, and vegetables. It is generally served to those who are sick or otherwise feeling unwell, and is usually only served in the winter. Leftover soup from

nabe ''Nabemono'' (鍋物, なべ物, ''nabe'' "cooking pot" + ''mono'' "thing"), or simply ''nabe'', is a variety of Japanese hot pot dishes, also known as one pot dishes and "things in a pot". Description Nabemono are stews and soups containin ...

is often re-used for zosui. Instead of rice,

udon Udon ( or ) is a thick noodle made from wheat flour, used in Japanese cuisine. It is a comfort food for many Japanese people. There are a variety of ways it is prepared and served. Its simplest form is in a hot soup as with a mild broth called ...

and

ramen is a Japanese noodle dish. It consists of served in a broth; common flavors are soy sauce and miso, with typical toppings including , nori (dried seaweed), menma (bamboo shoots), and scallions. Ramen has its roots in Chinese noodle di ...

noodles are recent alternatives.

History

In the days when it was difficult to keep cooked rice warm, the only way to reuse cold rice was to combine it with miso soup, so this was widely done in households across Japan. Nowadays, it is more often used to make meals for the sick or those feeling unwell rather than in everyday meals.

Varieties

There are a number of varieties of zōsui, including (made with

Chinese softshell turtle The Chinese softshell turtle (''Pelodiscus sinensis'') is a species of softshell turtle that is native to China (Inner Mongolia to Guangxi, including Hong Kong) and Taiwan, with records of escapees—some of which have established introduced po ...

), , (made with

chicken The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated junglefowl species, with attributes of wild species such as the grey and the Ceylon junglefowl that are originally from Southeastern Asia. Rooster or cock is a term for an adu ...

), (made with crab), , and . For home cooking, leftover broth and rice is combined with whatever ingredients are at hand.

Ojiya

The word ojiya often has the same meaning as zōsui, but was created as part of the ''

nyōbō kotoba was a cant that was originally used by Japanese court ladies during the Muromachi era, and subsequently spread and came to be thought of as a general women's language. It consisted primarily of a special vocabulary of words for food, clothing, a ...

'', or "court ladies

cant Cant, CANT, canting, or canted may refer to: Language * Cant (language), a secret language * Beurla Reagaird, a language of the Scottish Highland Travellers * Scottish Cant, a language of the Scottish Lowland Travellers * Shelta or the Cant, a la ...

". Its origins are unclear, though it has been suggested that it came from the sound made by the rice cooking, or possibly from ''

olla An olla is a ceramic jar, often unglazed, used for cooking stews or soups, for the storage of water or dry foods, or for other purposes like the irrigation of olive trees. ''Ollas'' have short wide necks and wider bellies, resembling beanpots or ...

'', the Spanish word for ceramic cookware (pronounced in Japanese). Many people use the words ojiya and zosui interchangeably, and usage varies by region and household. However, the following list shows some common differences between them: *Zōsui is prepared by rinsing the rice first to increase its stickiness. This is not the case with ojiya. *In zōsui, the broth and rice are brought to a boil together, preserving the shape of the rice. With ojiya, the shape of the rice is not preserved when boiled together with the broth. The rice grains fall apart and distort in shape. *While being flavored with miso or soy sauce, the broth in ojiya remains light or white in color. In contrast, the broth of zosui is only flavored with soy sauce.

Jūshī

The Okinawan dish (originally ) is considered to be derived from zōsui. However, it is generally made with uncooked rice and far more water is used when making it. This is the origin for the name ''jūshī''. Strictly speaking, these rice dishes are called (or ), and zosui is (or ). There are a huge variety of styles in which this is made, including using large amounts of lard or margarine. Ingredients like

ribs The rib cage, as an enclosure that comprises the ribs, vertebral column and sternum in the thorax of most vertebrates, protects vital organs such as the heart, lungs and great vessels. The sternum, together known as the thoracic cage, is a semi- ...

hijiki (''Sargassum fusiforme'', syn. ''Hizikia fusiformis''), sometimes called hiziki, is a brown sea vegetable growing wild on rocky coastlines of East Asia. Hijiki has been a part of the Japanese culinary sphere and diet for centuries. It is ric ...

, carrots,

shiitake The shiitake (alternate form shitake) (; ''Lentinula edodes'') is an edible mushroom native to East Asia, which is now cultivated and consumed around the globe. It is considered a Medicinal fungi, medicinal mushroom in some forms of tradition ...

, and konjac jelly are also commonly used. Yafarā jūshī commonly contains ribs or pork, , , and .

References

{{Rice dishes Japanese rice dishes Japanese soups and stews Okinawan cuisine

History

Varieties

Ojiya

Jūshī

See also

References