Saba Ochazuke

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This saba ochazuke (mackerel fish Japanese tea rice) was made with cooked marinated saba fish from the supermarket as a short-cut, so the total recipe time is less than 15 minutes. My family member who is recuperating from a minor day procedure at the hospital requested to eat ochazuke for 3 days (lol). It’s a great choice since ochazuke (お茶漬け/Japanese tea rice) is known to be easy to digest, improve one’s appetite, and particularly good for people who are sick or in recuperation. It’s also good for me because it is so fast & easy to make :P

See Also:

• Umeboshi Ochazuke
• 15-Minute Salmon Ochazuke
• Easy Baked Saba Fish Recipe
• Easy Japanese Recipes

This ochazuke consists of white rice (simple carbs is more suitable during a period of recuperation), chunks of de-boned cooked fish meat, ikura and ochazuke toppings (soup granules, rice cracker & seaweed). And a hot pot of freshly brewed tea, of course.

INGREDIENTS

SHORT-CUT 1: COOKED MARINATED SABA FISH

I bought this cooked marinated saba fish pouch from Kuriya supermarket. It was on sale at 3 pouches for $10. It was really convenient because I just had to remove the fish from the pouch and it was ready to eat. I removed the bones and then broke the saba fish meat to small chunks. What a great and inexpensive short-cut for a lazy cook :P

If you can’t find this, you can use frozen saba fish fillet from the supermarket and either pan-fry or bake it in the oven. Saba fish is a delicious and affordable fish, so I liked it very much.

SHORT-CUT 2: INSTANT OCHAZUKE MIX

I tried a new brand of ochazuke mix this time. I bought this packet from Daiso SG. Unlike the previous ochazuke mix which is individually packed, you scoop the amount you need from the bag, so this is great if you love to adjust the soup to taste, or are making an odd-sized bowl. The rice cracker is the longish type. The ‘soup base’ granules also contained some green tea powder, so if you don’t have tea, just add hot water.

STEP-BY-STEP PHOTOS (SABA OCHAZUKE)

Prepare the ingredients.  Debone and fillet the saba fish, prepare the rice, pit & dice the umeboshi , prepare toppings (ikura & scallions) & get ready the ochazuke mix.

Add cooked rice to the bowl. Top the rice with the ochazuke mix. I added the soup granules & crackers first. (I added the seaweed last as I didn’t want them to wither since I was taking photos).

Add the saba fish chunks, ikura (if using) & umeboshi. Add tea leaves into the teapot.

Add boiling water to the tea pot and let the tea brew for 1-2 minutes. (I added the seaweed and spring onions here).

Pour hot tea into the rice bowl.

Stir with a spoon to dissolve the granules and it is done! Enjoy immediately while it is hot & soupy!