Ryuji's Verdict on Nissin's "Fukkura Kamadaki Gohan" as Plain White Rice, and Rearranging It into Zosui and Risotto

According to Ryuji, rice products made by adding hot water have mostly been porridge-like up to now, and Nissin's Curry Meshi also ends up close to a risotto. This product, by contrast, claims that it "becomes rice," and Ryuji says it is a product Nissin is putting a lot of effort into. From the start, Ryuji doubted that just adding hot water could produce freshly cooked rice.

The price is 208 yen before tax. According to the staff, Sato no Gohan went up in price starting with March shipments, from 284 yen to 319 yen. Roughly speaking, the cup rice is 200 yen and Sato no Gohan is 300 yen, a difference of about 100 yen. Ryuji pointed out, however, that Sato no Gohan is also sold in 5-serving packs for 1,000 yen, which works out to 200 yen per serving, so at the lowest prices the two are about the same.

The preparation methods also differ. Sato no Gohan is heated in the microwave for 2 minutes. The cup version calls for pouring hot water up to the line and waiting 5 minutes. Looking at the amount of water, Ryuji was surprised: "That's all it needs?" The contents weigh 92g dry and 180g once cooked. Sato no Gohan is 218g, so the cup version has had its moisture removed to make it lighter.

The first advantage Ryuji named was emergency preparedness. It needs only about 120ml of hot water, so you can eat it by boiling a small amount of water on something like a gas stove. Ryuji's view was that it might be suited to times when electricity is unavailable. Sato no Gohan can also be heated in hot water, but that requires a large amount of water. Ryuji added that you can also eat it without electricity by opening the pouch and stir-frying it in a frying pan.

Another advantage is its light weight. Ryuji mentioned that they also study disaster preparedness, and said that being light to carry might make it good to keep in an emergency bag. On the other hand, Ryuji added that not being able to eat it without hot water is a weakness, and that this is why hardtack is recommended.

A staff member suggested it could be useful for overseas travel, since hotel rooms abroad often don't have a microwave but might have a kettle. Ryuji acknowledged the convenience, but replied that personally they question going abroad and not eating the local food. That thinking only holds up, Ryuji said, unless you're in a country where the food really doesn't suit you. Ryuji also said the only country where the food hadn't suited them was "probably just Eritrea."

After 5 minutes, the cup is opened and gently loosened for 15 seconds as instructed. It looked like rice, but both Ryuji and the staff felt it looked a bit watery and loose. They also confirmed that the water had been poured up to the line.

When they tried Sato no Gohan first, everyone rated it as delicious, saying they could even taste the sweetness of the rice. Then, when they ate the cup rice, the reaction changed completely. Ryuji said the grainy texture of the rice lingered in the mouth and that it couldn't be eaten as white rice. While acknowledging that some people may find it tasty, Ryuji went as far as to say that, personally, it was "the worst rice I've ever eaten." It was close to rice that had been overcooked after a failed attempt at cooking it in a clay pot, and a staff member said it was like pressed barley.

Ryuji also explained what the verdict meant. It wasn't so much that the flavor was bad, but rather a texture problem: asked whether it was Japanese freshly cooked rice, there was a strong sense that "this isn't rice." Ryuji also suggested that this kind of rice might go over well overseas. The assessment was that it doesn't reach the level of rice in the first place, and that the rice in convenience store bento boxes is far better. Joking that "maybe humanity just wasn't ready for this," Ryuji characterized it as perhaps an experimental product showing how far this kind of rice has come in being edible.

From here, Ryuji tests whether it can be made tasty depending on how it's eaten. Adding curry roux would probably make it tasty, but then you might as well have Curry Meshi, and this product's strengths wouldn't come through. So, judging that it could work as a risotto, Ryuji chose to pour in double the usual amount of hot water and wait 5 minutes.

With double the water, the result was like ochazuke. Ryuji added natto to it, plus a little under 1 teaspoon of yukari furikake. Yukari goes very well with natto, Ryuji said. Ryuji reacted right away with "It's good," and even wanted to add a bit more yukari. The staff also rated it highly, saying "I'd totally eat this" and "It's really tasty."

At this point Ryuji reflected that maybe they should have gone this route from the beginning. As porridge or zosui it's plenty tasty, and because the grains hold their shape, this rice is, if anything, even better, Ryuji said. Ryuji's conclusion was that while eating it as white rice can't be recommended, turning it into porridge and combining it with natto and yukari makes it go down easily. Ryuji also said it seemed gentle on the stomach.

There was an additional note from the emergency-preparedness angle. Since natto can't be stockpiled, Ryuji recommended using a shelf-stable furikake you like, such as yukari, or mixing in soy sauce and Ajinomoto. Ryuji also said adding ochazuke seasoning would probably taste good too.

Using another cup, they made porridge again with double the hot water, this time seasoning it with half a teaspoon of kombu dashi. Just stirring it in gives it a kombu dashi flavor. But after tasting it, Ryuji's verdict was "It's not good without natto." Analyzing that the earlier version had tasted good because the natto's thickness made it more porridge-like, Ryuji realized that the thickness had been the key.

So the idea came up of adding cheese to make it risotto-style, and Ryuji also suggested canned tuna. Adding about half a can of tuna and about 25g of pizza cheese and stirring thickened it into something more like risotto. To finish, Ryuji sprinkled on black pepper and, since it had been made with kombu dashi, added a little Ajishio. The cheese became nicely stretchy, and after tasting it Ryuji was delighted: "I might be a genius, this is really good." The staff gave it the same rating.

Ryuji summed up that mixing it with ingredients that add thickness turns it into something like risotto and makes it tasty, and said a direction like quick risotto would work. They also confirmed that while you could make this with Sato no Gohan if you prepared a separate bowl and hot water, being able to do it all in a single cup is unique to this product.

Ryuji's final verdict was that it's tough to eat as white rice, but tasty when made into zosui or risotto. In other words, it's usable, as far as that goes.

In a closing digression, the talk returned to Eritrea. The staple food Ryuji ate in Eritrea was something like bread made by fermenting flour. However, it wasn't risen; it looked like crepe batter and was sour. It didn't suit Ryuji. The restaurant didn't really feel like a restaurant either, and the video ends with Ryuji's reminiscence of buying a flute there.