Kokkoh is an infant formula broth made from whole grains, seeds and legumes lightly toasted and ground to a powder. It was first brought to Western culture by Sakura Nyoichi, better known as George Ohsawa, as part of the

Macrobiotic Diet A macrobiotic diet (or macrobiotics) is an unconventional restrictive diet based on ideas about types of food drawn from Zen Buddhism. The diet tries to balance the supposed yin and yang elements of food and cookware. Major principles of macrobi ...

, based a recipe widely used in traditional Japan.

Brown rice Brown rice is a whole grain rice with only the inedible outer hull removed. This kind of rice sheds its outer hull or husk but the bran and germ layer remain on, constituting the brown or tan colour of rice. White rice is the same grain without ...

is its primary and can be its only solid ingredient. Many kokkoh recipes include other whole grains, seeds and

seasonings Seasoning is the process of supplementing food via herbs, spices, and/or salts, intended to enhance a particular flavour. General meaning Seasonings include herbs and spices, which are themselves frequently referred to as "seasonings". Salt may ...

, most commonly sweet rice, azuki beans,

sesame seeds Sesame (; ''Sesamum indicum'') is a plant in the genus ''Sesamum'', also called benne. Numerous wild relatives occur in Africa and a smaller number in India. It is widely naturalized in tropical regions around the world and is cultivated for it ...

oats The oat (''Avena sativa''), sometimes called the common oat, is a species of cereal grain grown for its seed, which is known by the same name (usually in the plural). Oats appear to have been domesticated as a secondary crop, as their seed ...

barley Barley (), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains; it was domesticated in the Fertile Crescent around 9000 BC, giving it nonshattering spikele ...

soybeans The soybean, soy bean, or soya bean (''Glycine max'') is a species of legume native to East Asia, widely grown for its edible bean. Soy is a staple crop, the world's most grown legume, and an important animal feed. Soy is a key source of f ...

and

kombu ''Konbu'' (from ) is edible kelp mostly from the family Laminariaceae and is widely eaten in East Asia. It may also be referred to as ''dasima'' () or ''haidai'' (). Kelp features in the diets of many civilizations, including Chinese and Icela ...

.Michio Kushi, Stephen Blauer: ''The Macrobiotic Way: The Complete Macrobiotic Lifestyle Book''. Avery 2004, , p. 245 ()J. Gavin Bremner, Gavin Bremner, Alan Fogel: ''Blackwell handbook of infant development''. Wiley Blackwell 2004, , p. 711 ()

Preparation

Broadly speaking, the term "kokkoh" may be applied to any dish in which cereals are diluted in water. However, the rice dish discussed here is by far the most common form. No matter which cereals are used in a kokkoh recipe, preparation is similar and simple. The cereals are soaked in water for two to three hours. Additional water is then added, and the mixture boiled or pressure cooked to completion. In some cases, the cereals are toasted in a dry skillet, or roasted in sesame oil before cooking takes place.

Uses

Kokkoh is recommended as both a substitute for mother's milk and a means of weaning infants from it. (In the former case the recipe often calls only for brown rice ground to a fine powder and water.) Besides its soft and easily digestible texture, kokkoh is recommended as such because its mixture has a high and varied

protein Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residue (biochemistry), residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including Enzyme catalysis, catalysing metab ...

content; combined, the

amino acids Amino acids are organic compounds that contain both amino and carboxylic acid functional groups. Although over 500 amino acids exist in nature, by far the most important are the Proteinogenic amino acid, 22 α-amino acids incorporated into p ...

in each of the ingredients described at the outset include virtually all those needed for consumption. It is thus especially well suited for the growth needs of a child. When used solely for weaning, it is recommended that kokkoh be introduced at between 8 months and a year of age. It may be used as breast

milk substitute A milk substitute is any substance that resembles milk and can be used in the same ways as milk. Such substances may be variously known as non-dairy beverage, nut milk, grain milk, legume milk, mock milk and alternative milk. For adults, milk s ...

as early as five months, but with a larger proportion of water, in order to further dilute the mixture. Kokkoh is also an important part of the

macrobiotic diet A macrobiotic diet (or macrobiotics) is an unconventional restrictive diet based on ideas about types of food drawn from Zen Buddhism. The diet tries to balance the supposed yin and yang elements of food and cookware. Major principles of macrobi ...

, in accordance with the diet's heavy emphasis upon

grains A grain is a small, hard, dry fruit ( caryopsis) – with or without an attached hull layer – harvested for human or animal consumption. A grain crop is a grain-producing plant. The two main types of commercial grain crops are cereals and le ...

. Along with its use as a means of weaning, kokkoh is a common

breakfast Breakfast is the first meal of the day usually eaten in the morning. The word in English refers to breaking the fasting period of the previous night. Various "typical" or "traditional" breakfast menus exist, with food choices varying by regi ...

food among macrobiotic eaters of all ages. If kokkoh is used as a milk replacements for infants, it can lead to unnatural weight gain and iron or vitamin B12 deficiencies.

References

{{Milk substitutes Milk substitutes Rice drinks

Preparation

Uses

See also

References