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How did you come
across the recipe?
One late spring I was the guest of a rice farmer who lived in a thatched dwelling in a small village north of Kyoto, Japan. He owned several paddies, each within walking distance of one another and his home. They were square, barely the size of a badminton court, and enclosed by low-lying mud embankments that served simultaneously as dams, footpaths, and boundary markers.

On the day of my visit my host and his family used some of their rice harvest in a dish called Oyako Donburi. Oyako means "mother and child," and refers to the chicken and egg in the topping of' this version of donburi.

Why is Oyako Donburi
so popular in Japan?
It is appreciated by both peasants and city folk because it is quick and easy to prepare as well as filling and nutritious. It is also a great way for a creative cook to use leftovers.

How is
rice grown?
Rice farming is backbreaking work. The family - husband, wife, and children - must first plant the rice grains in seedling beds. In a month or so, the emerging shoots are replanted by hand in a waiting paddy that has been plowed and flooded with water.

The rice paddies are constantly weeded, and when the grain is mature, they are drained and allowed to dry. The laboring family cuts the plants and threshes the rice by hand. Some of the crop is kept for their use; the rest is sold to pay for the various goods they need to purchase.

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Quick menu

Oyako Donburi - RECIPE
Oyako Donburi - COOKING TIPS
Oyako Donburi - INSIGHTS
What peasant cooking IS & IS NOT
Great Peasant Dishes - HOME PAGE
World Cuisines - HOME PAGE

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