Ikameshi (烏賊飯)

By cookism

Trust the Japanese to think of a dish consisting of stuffing rice into the hollow bodies of squid. Ikameshi is both fun to make and eat. In a way, they are like reverse sushi, with the meat wrapping the rice. Even though the process of disemboweling squid can be somewhat revolting, the final product is definitely worth the slime and ink. Itadakimasu!

Ingredients

• For sauce mix:
• 8 medium Squid
• 1 Cup of Mochigome (Japanese Glutinous Rice)
• 3 tbsp + 1 tsp of Shoyu (Japanese Soya Sauce)
• 3 tbsp of Sugar
• 1 tbsp of Mirin
• 100 ml of Sake
• 800 ml of Water
• You will need bamboo skewers for this recipe.

Preparation

Step 1

1. Wash mochigome for 3 times. Fill up enough water to cover the rice. Leave the rice to soak for about 1 hour.
2. In the meantime, let's prepare the squids. Firmly hold onto the body of the squid with one hand and the head with another. Pull them apart, the head and innards should easily be removed from the body. Cut the tentacles away by slicing the squid just below its eyes. Remove the hard beak from the center of the tentacles. Cut and discard away the tentacles of the longer arms. Cut the longer arms from the rest of the tentacles. Remove the suckers from the tentacles by either scraping them off with a knife or manually peeling them off. Firmly pull the cuttlebone out of the body using your fingers. Discard the cuttlebone. Use a spoon, remove any excess innards. Rinse the inside of the mantle and tentacles in cold water.
3. When 1 hour is up, drain the rice with a strainer. Fill the squid with rice up to 60% full. Give the mantle a light shake to allow the rice to be filled from the bottom. Secure the collar of the squid with a bamboo skewer to prevent the rice from coming out.
4. Combine the sauce mix ingredients in a deep pan. Stir well. Heat the pan under medium heat. Immediately place the squid into the pan while the mixture is still cold. Bring it to a boil, then lower the heat to a simmer. Allow the squid to simmer for about 30 minutes.Make sure the squid is covered with the sauce mix. This will ensure that the rice cooks evenly. Occasionally flip the squid over, baste the squid with the sauce and remove the foam from the sauce using a mesh strainer.
5. Add the tentacles into the pan halfway during cooking. You may lightly remove the purple film by scraping the body with a spatula. After 30 minutes, reduce the sauce. Continue to baste the squid with the sauce at times. This may take about 10 minutes. Strain the sauce to remove any foam or film.
6. Cut Ikameshi into slices. Drizzle the sauce onto the Ikameshi. Ready to serve! Enjoy!