Genmaicha Ochazuke (Tea-Soaked Rice Bowl)
Steamed rice bathed in hot genmaicha broth with salmon, nori, and wasabi—a classic Japanese comfort dish elevated by the tea's toasted rice character.
Ochazuke is the ultimate Japanese comfort food: a bowl of rice drenched in hot tea. Using genmaicha makes this dish doubly satisfying, since the tea's own toasted rice deepens the grain-on-grain flavor in a way no other tea can.
The broth is deliberately simple—just strong genmaicha poured over rice. The magic comes from the toppings: flaked grilled salmon, strips of nori, crispy rice crackers, and a dab of wasabi that opens up the whole bowl with gentle heat.
This is a dish that thrives on texture contrasts. The soft rice, the crisp nori, the flaky fish, the crunch of arare crackers—every spoonful delivers something different, unified by the warm, nutty broth.
Ochazuke is traditionally eaten as a late-night snack or to use up leftover rice, but it's genuinely good enough to serve as a light dinner. It comes together in under 10 minutes and feels like a warm hug.
Ingredients
- 2 cups cooked Japanese short-grain rice
- 2 cups hot brewed genmaicha tea (strong)
- 100g grilled or baked salmon, flaked
- 1 sheet nori, cut into thin strips
- 1 tbsp arare (small rice crackers)
- 1 tsp wasabi paste
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tsp toasted sesame seeds
- 2 spring onions, thinly sliced
How to make it
- 1Brew genmaicha strong: use 2 tbsp loose leaf or 3 tea bags in 2 cups water at 80°C for 3 minutes. Strain and keep hot.
- 2Divide warm rice between 2 bowls.
- 3Top each bowl with flaked salmon, nori strips, a small mound of wasabi, and a sprinkle of arare crackers.
- 4Pour the hot genmaicha broth over each bowl until the rice is mostly submerged.
- 5Drizzle with soy sauce, sprinkle sesame seeds and spring onions on top.
- 6Serve immediately—eat while the crackers still have some crunch.
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