Chicken Thigh and Cherry Tomato Salt Stew with a Finishing Pasta, Made Without Umami Seasoning

At the start, Ryuji begins to call the dish "petit tomato stew," then immediately corrects it to "mini tomato." According to Ryuji, "Petit Tomato" is the name of a variety, while "mini tomato" is the general term for small tomatoes. Ryuji also mentions that there was a variety called Petit Tomato back in their childhood, but apparently it no longer exists. The explanation is that it's like variety names for strawberries, such as "Amaou" or "Tochiotome." For that reason, this dish is called "chicken and mini tomato stew."

Ryuji says people often tell them things like "Hasn't your palate been ruined?" and "You won't be able to taste the umami of the ingredients," because Ryuji routinely uses a lot of Ajinomoto. In response, Ryuji states flatly that using umami seasoning or granulated dashi doesn't mess up your palate. The evidence Ryuji offers is that "someone like me, who uses it all the time, can make something delicious with just salt."

Ryuji also talks about the reason for using umami seasoning in the first place. It was meant to make cooking more accessible, but lately Ryuji feels that cooking has become more accessible, so they plan to do more and more salt-only recipes like this one. Ryuji adds that showing they can make something delicious with just salt also makes their explanation of why they usually add Ajinomoto more convincing.

The ingredients are two chicken thighs (about 650 g total), two packs of cherry tomatoes and salt. A little oil is fine, but not necessary. The quantity is given as three to four servings. As a guide, use one pack of cherry tomatoes per chicken thigh.

First, sandwich the chicken between sheets of plastic wrap and pound it. According to Ryuji, this shortens the stewing time and makes the meat tender. In a small apartment, some people may be bothered by the noise of pounding, in which case just scoring the meat is fine too, since the heat gets in through the cuts.

The pounded chicken is cut into three. First cut off the thin part, then cut the rest crosswise to make three pieces. You could cut it into bite-size pieces, but Ryuji thinks about three pieces is best, since larger chunks give a meatier feel when you eat them.

While salting, Ryuji shares a saying attributed to "some important person": the most delicious thing in the world is salt, and the worst-tasting food in the world is also salt. The explanation is that salt is very delicious in the right amount, while too much makes food too salty to eat; in other words, it's a matter of quantity. A staff member cuts in to say "That's something I said," and the back-and-forth continues for a bit.

Sprinkle about three pinches of salt over both sides and all over the skin. The salt used isn't anything special, just ordinary refined salt. Ryuji says, in effect, that of course food tastes better with expensive salt, so there's meaning in making it delicious with ordinary salt.

While washing the cherry tomatoes, Ryuji remarks that there are surprisingly few recipes where cherry tomatoes are the star. Ryuji says they chose them because some people probably search for cherry tomato recipes, and it's getting hot, the time of year when people start craving tomatoes.

As the reason the dish can be delicious with just salt, Ryuji cites the synergistic effect of umami. Tomatoes are rich in glutamic acid, and chicken contains inosinic acid. When different kinds of umami compounds combine, the umami multiplies and the result is extremely delicious. Hence, the explanation goes, there's no need for umami seasoning. When a staff member likens it to "a combined dashi of bonito and kombu," Ryuji agrees that it's the same sort of thing. Ryuji also adds that it was Japan that paid close attention to umami, and that the word "umami" itself was born in Japan.

The cherry tomatoes can be torn in half, or added whole and crushed with a spatula later. This time, Ryuji mixed halved tomatoes with whole ones. However, before tasting, Ryuji reflects that there was no need to split them and they could just have been added whole.

Before stewing, first sear the chicken skin-side down. Lay the pieces in a large frying pan so the skin sticks flat against it. If you want to remove the skin, you can add oil, but Ryuji thinks it tastes better with the skin on. The skin has a lot of gelatin, which dissolves into the cooking liquid and makes it a slightly richer soup. To the opinion that the skin makes you fat, Ryuji replied, "If you get fat, just lose weight."

No extra oil is added; the chicken is seared only in the fat rendered from the skin. As a result, it's lighter to eat than a typical stew. Once it's nicely browned, the seared aroma and umami transfer to the soup. The other side gets a good sear as well. Ryuji explains that searing before stewing is "a somewhat Western way of making it."

Once seared, add water. In the video Ryuji says "about 240, I guess," but the recipe in the description says 200 cc. In a later scene, Ryuji also describes it as "a cup of water." Add 2/3 teaspoon of salt, which Ryuji says draws out the flavor. Chicken fat floats on the cooking liquid, making it like a rich chicken soup. The fat used is 100% chicken fat; no salad oil or the like is used.

The tomatoes don't go in yet, because if added from the start they fall apart too much. First, cover and simmer for about 7 to 8 minutes.

There's a purpose behind the stewing time. According to Ryuji, chicken takes on a springy texture when seared and a tender, falling-apart texture when stewed. With chunks like these, stewing for about 15 to 20 minutes gives the tender, falling-apart texture you'd expect from a stew. The thinking is that with grilled dishes you want to enjoy the springiness, but with a stew you want to eat chicken that falls apart.

Ryuji calls this "a technique where you change the flavor through cooking, rather than creating flavor with seasonings." Ryuji emphasized that when cooking without umami seasonings or dashi, it's extremely important to build the flavor through how you apply heat and for how long.

After simmering for 7 to 8 minutes, Ryuji shows the color of the soup and says viewers should taste it once at this point. Then add all the cherry tomatoes, cover, and simmer about 10 more minutes, and it's done. "Super easy, right?" says Ryuji.

When the lid comes off, the staff react to the size and color of the ingredients. Ryuji explains that if you want the umami more concentrated, turn up the heat and reduce the liquid, and if it's good enough, just eat it as is; this time, Ryuji reduced it only slightly. The cooking liquid is yellowish and, thanks to the chicken, "tastes like consommé." That's because chicken simmered down is chicken consommé, and Ryuji says you can enjoy a flavor like Italian cuisine.

The plated portion is about two to three servings, with a little soup poured over. The cooking liquid is saved for the pasta that follows.

At the tasting, the cast react to how tender the chicken is, coming apart with chopsticks. One comment was, "It's five times more tender than you're all imagining." Ryuji says it only stewed for about 20 minutes, yet became this tender. Ryuji recommends topping it with cherry tomatoes and eating them together.

A staff member confirms that no olive oil, garlic or herbs were used, and Ryuji replies that there is the seared aroma. As for how to eat it, it goes with bread or rice, and can also be served alongside pasta.

In the second half, Ryuji makes a finishing pasta with the cooking liquid left in the frying pan. Ryuji says that with a delicious soup, they can't rest until it's either soaked up with bread or turned into pasta. The amount of soup this time is expected to make about two servings.

The pasta is boiled in water with about 1% salt concentration, using ordinary salt. Ryuji says a thin pasta they promote is a good match, and uses that. The pasta is boiled one minute less than the package says, to finish al dente.

The boiled pasta goes into the cooking liquid and simmers gently for a bit so it absorbs the umami of the chicken and tomatoes. The leftover chicken is tender enough to tear by hand, so it's shredded and added. When a staff member asked, Ryuji decided to add the tomatoes too.

Taste partway through, and if it's bland, add one or two pinches of salt. Since it's pasta, Ryuji says it's delicious with about 1 to 2 tablespoons of olive oil tossed in. So this pasta does have added olive oil and salt. However, no umami seasoning at all is used. Finish by simmering, and a sprinkle of parsley makes it look restaurant-like, according to Ryuji. Ryuji described it as "it's no exaggeration to call it a chicken ragù sauce."

After eating the pasta, Ryuji says, "It's this good?" and that umami seasoning wasn't needed. The staff commented that the chicken's umami clings to every single strand of pasta, and that there's no sourness, perhaps because it's cherry tomatoes. One person also said there aren't many restaurants that serve pasta at this level.

It's also mentioned that you could add freshly cooked rice to make a risotto. In closing, Ryuji recommended eating this stew made with just chicken, cherry tomatoes and salt, all the way through to the finishing pasta. Ryuji also noted once more that a little olive oil was added to the pasta.