Itoko-ni: Red Beans and Winter Roots for the Hōonkō Table
Cook the azuki separately and keep them firm. Start the hard roots first, add the softer things once the daikon is tender, and save the tofu and seasoning for the last few minutes so that every piece keeps its shape.
In Toyama Prefecture, around November 28, temples and homes prepare meals for Hōonkō, the Buddhist memorial service held near the anniversary of the death of the monk Shinran. One dish that appears at these meals is itoko-ni: a warm, brothy simmer of red azuki beans with daikon, burdock, carrot and taro, torn konnyaku, thick fried tofu and grilled tofu, seasoned with a little miso and soy sauce.
Outside Toyama, the name itoko-ni often means something quite different, such as a sweet simmer of azuki and pumpkin. The Toyama dish is savory and full of root vegetables. This article follows the four-serving recipe shown on the "Uchi no Kyōdo Ryōri" (Our Regional Cuisine) pages of Japan's Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF), which credits it to Toyama Prefecture's collection of home-cooking menus. The amounts and the order of cooking are kept exactly as published. Sekai Gohan has not kitchen-tested this recipe.
For more dishes from across the country, see our Japan page.
What Toyama Itoko-ni Is: A Savory Stew of Azuki and Root Vegetables
In Toyama, itoko-ni is a simmered dish of azuki beans, root vegetables, konnyaku and tofu, not a sweet pumpkin dish. According to MAFF's Toyama page, it has been handed down throughout the prefecture. In the eastern part of Toyama, around Kurobe, it is called nizai, and in the Gokayama area it is served as otsuke. Vegetables, the balance of miso and soy sauce, and the way ingredients are cut differ from place to place, so the recipe here is one published version rather than the single correct form for the whole prefecture.
Elsewhere in Japan, dishes under the same name include azuki with pumpkin and azuki with shiratama rice dumplings. If you are looking for those, this is a different dish; the Toyama version uses no pumpkin and no sugar.
Why It Belongs to Hōonkō: Memorial Meals and the Winter Harvest
Hōonkō is held around November 28, and MAFF's description of Toyama's food culture introduces the Hōonkō meals of the Tonami and Gokayama areas, where produce from the harvest is set aside for this occasion, and lists itoko-ni as one of the dishes of the Hōonkō spread. MAFF's itoko-ni page connects the dish to both the memorial service and the winter table. These are descriptions of particular areas and practices, so it is better not to assume that every home in Toyama serves the same Hōonkō menu.
The name has several explanations, and none is settled. MAFF reports that one theory links it to ingredients that are "like cousins" (itoko) to one another, another to the way ingredients are simmered in one after another (oioi), and another to itoku, the virtue left behind by Shinran. It is also said that Shinran was fond of azuki beans; this is told as tradition, not as established fact.
Ingredients: Serves 4
The azuki are cooked in their own pan with separate water. The dashi is only for the main pot.
Choosing and Swapping Ingredients
- Azuki: Dried azuki let you follow the first boil and water change in step 1. Canned or steamed azuki skip that stage and have a different texture, so they make a different result rather than an equal swap.
- Thick fried tofu: Atsuage is a block of tofu fried on the outside and soft inside. Thin aburaage is not the same ingredient here.
- Grilled tofu: Yaki-dōfu is firm tofu seared on the surface. Plain firm (momen) tofu breaks apart more easily if you use it instead.
- Taro: Fresh satoimo is parboiled before it goes into the pot. Frozen taro changes the texture and moisture, and swapping in another kind of potato has not been checked.
- Konnyaku: If you avoid konnyaku, leaving it out is possible, but that is a departure from the traditional set of ingredients.
- Dashi, miso and soy sauce: Any prepared dashi you normally use can go here; the type of miso and soy sauce is up to you. Keep the 1 tbsp of each.
- Do not add sugar, pumpkin, soybeans, kidney beans or scallions to this version.
Miso, soy sauce, atsuage and grilled tofu all contain soy. Whether other allergens such as wheat are present depends on the product, so check the labels on your miso, soy sauce, dashi and tofu.
Equipment
- Small saucepan for the azuki
- Main pot for the stew
- Colander
- Cutting board and knife
- Small bowl of water for soaking the burdock
- Ladle
Method: Firm Azuki, Roots First, Tofu Last
Each ingredient goes in only when the one before it has reached the right point. Judge by how soft the daikon and the rest of the pot have become.
When Things Go Wrong
| Condition | Likely cause | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| The azuki have broken apart | Cooked too soft at the start, or simmered too long in the main pot | Cook them only until firm in their own pan, and add them in the middle stage, not at the beginning |
| Some pieces are hard while others are soft | Ingredients added out of order, or cut to different sizes | Keep the daikon and burdock first, and follow the cut sizes, so everything reaches softness together |
| The broth has turned cloudy | Changed order or cuts, or hard boiling after the tofu went in | Follow the order first, and keep the last few minutes to a gentle simmer |
| The tofu is crumbling | Added too early or stirred hard | Add both kinds of tofu only after everything else is soft, and stir gently |
Other Toyama Versions: How Households Vary
The recipe above is one published form. Other Toyama recipes show how much household cooking varies, and they are best treated as separate recipes rather than mixed into this one.
- JA Kurobe women's division (via JA Group): a ten-serving version from the Kurobe area with soybeans and azuki (1/2 cup each), 2 L water, 1 tbsp soy sauce, 5 tbsp sugar, 2 tbsp sake and 50 ml mentsuyu among its ingredients, with all the ingredients cooked together from the start. It is presented with the custom of eating the dish around the anniversary of Shinran's death.
- Japan Dietary Life Association: a four-serving version that uses soybeans, azuki and kidney beans (1/3 cup each), with 25g each of burdock and carrot. The beans are boiled firm, simmered with the root vegetables, and seasoned at the end.
These show that sweetness and the choice of beans change from household to household. The version in this article has no sugar and only azuki.
Leftovers
Handle leftovers with clean utensils and clean containers. If there is a lot left, divide it into shallow containers. Refrigerate it promptly instead of leaving the pot at room temperature to cool, and reheat it thoroughly before eating.
Frequently Asked Questions
Isn't itoko-ni a pumpkin dish?
In many parts of Japan, itoko-ni means a simmer of azuki and pumpkin, and MAFF also mentions other forms with the same name, such as azuki with shiratama dumplings. Toyama's itoko-ni is a different, savory dish built on azuki, root vegetables, konnyaku and tofu.
Where does the name come from?
There are several theories and no settled answer. MAFF reports explanations linking it to ingredients that are "like cousins," to simmering ingredients in one after another, and to the lasting virtue of Shinran. It is also said that Shinran liked azuki.
How do I keep the azuki from falling apart?
Cook them in a separate pan, changing the water after the first boil, and stop while they are still firm. Add them to the main pot only once the daikon is soft, and keep the final simmer short and gentle.
Is the 1/3 cup of azuki measured dry or cooked?
The published recipe does not say whether the 1/3 cup is dry or already boiled, and it does not define the cup size for the azuki or the dashi. We have not converted these amounts to grams or milliliters.
What kind of dashi should I use? Is the dish vegetarian?
The recipe simply calls for prepared dashi and does not say what it is made from. Whether the finished dish is vegetarian depends on the dashi, miso and other products you choose, so check them yourself.
Can I add sugar or other beans?
Some Toyama households do, as the Kurobe and Japan Dietary Life Association versions show, but those are separate recipes. To make the version in this article, leave out sugar and other beans.
Sources
- Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF), "Uchi no Kyōdo Ryōri: Itoko-ni / Nizai, Toyama Prefecture" (recipe credited to Toyama Prefecture's "Toyama no Katei Ryōri" menu collection). The four-serving ingredients and method used in this article; the dish's transmission across Toyama, Hōonkō and the winter table, the names nizai and otsuke, regional differences, other dishes of the same name, and the theories about the name. https://www.maff.go.jp/j/keikaku/syokubunka/k_ryouri/search_menu/menu/37_6_toyama.html
- MAFF, "Uchi no Kyōdo Ryōri: Hokuriku Region, Toyama Prefecture." Hōonkō cuisine in the Tonami and Gokayama areas, the November 28 memorial service, setting aside harvest produce for the occasion, and itoko-ni as one of the Hōonkō dishes. https://www.maff.go.jp/j/keikaku/syokubunka/k_ryouri/area_stories/toyama.html
- JA Group, "Toyama Prefecture: Itoko-ni" (JA Kurobe women's division). A separate ten-serving Kurobe-area recipe with soybeans and sugar, used here only to show household variation. https://life.ja-group.jp/recipe/detail?id=8511
- Japan Dietary Life Association, "Hokuriku Area: Regional Dishes of Japan." A separately published Toyama version using soybeans, azuki and kidney beans, used here only for comparison. https://www.shokuseikatsu.or.jp/kyoudoryouri/hokuriku/
- Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, "Preventing Food Poisoning at Home." General home hygiene advice on handling leftovers with clean utensils and refrigerating them promptly. https://www.mhlw.go.jp/stf/seisakunitsuite/bunya/kenkou_iryou/shokuhin/syokuchu/01_00008.html
