"Salt-Simmered Chicken Breast," Made by Just Putting Everything in a Pot: Ryuji's Simple Scissors-Only Dish from a Collaboration with a Children's Sports School

At the start, Ryuji introduced themselves as "a cooking guy who can't do a back hip circle." JPC Sports School is a school for children where both athletic and non-athletic kids can enjoy learning. Ryuji recently tried out the school and attempted a back hip circle on the bar, thinking that maybe they could do now what they couldn't in elementary and junior high school. But they couldn't do it at all, and looking back, Ryuji wondered whether they had actually come closer back then. The staff member who came along couldn't do one either.

As for why a sports school and a cooking expert would team up, Ryuji explained it this way: if parents are having their children learn sports, food matters too, and the question arises of what to cook. Answering that is the role of a cooking expert. This time, unusually for Ryuji, the dish is seasoned with salt alone. No knife is used; scissors are used instead, and the dish is done just by putting the ingredients in a pot and simmering them. It's a recipe designed on the premise that even children can make it.

The ingredients are 350g chicken breast, 150g cabbage, 1 Japanese long onion (120g), 3 cloves garlic (15g), 300cc water, and half a teaspoon of salt. Ryuji says the cabbage can be swapped for any vegetable you like.

When eating, salt and ponzu are used. What Ryuji recommends is not a seasoned product like Ajipon, but ponzu made from citrus juice. If you don't have it, squeezed lemon or yuzu is fine too. According to Ryuji, this ponzu is very refreshing and delicious, and keeps for quite a while in the refrigerator.

On drinking alcohol during this collaboration, Ryuji said, "This video is more for moms and dads, so I think it's fine to drink." That said, Ryuji stressed that children must not drink. Ryuji said that adding a dash of ponzu to a highball makes a delicious substitute for lemon, and recommended it, predicting it will catch on.

The cabbage is torn by hand and spread over the bottom of the pot. Napa cabbage or mushrooms are fine too, but cabbage brings out sweetness and umami. For the long onion, the inedible parts are removed and it is cut with scissors directly over the pot. Ryuji said it's easy because you don't even use a cutting board. Since the cooking finished so quickly, there was a moment where Ryuji joked that "the video's going to be too short" and laughed with the staff about "going back to do back hip circles again."

The chicken breast is first cut lengthwise with scissors, then crosswise. Thigh meat is also delicious, but Ryuji explained that breast meat has more protein. Since no knife is used, it isn't dangerous. You can remove the skin if you want to lose weight. However, Ryuji took the position that it's fine to leave it on, since some amount of fat is necessary. Ryuji also touched on the fact that it's hard to know what to do with the removed skin. The pieces can be quite large, and if children are eating it, you can cut them a little smaller.

Ryuji laughed that it's so simple it could have been part of their "Kyomu Recipe" (nothingness recipe) series. At the same time, Ryuji said that for people who cook every day, this kind of recipe should be the most helpful. A staff member brought up the "Leave-It-Alone Samgyetang" Ryuji had made before, which was also a dish where you just put in the ingredients and leave it. Ryuji pointed out the differences: that samgyetang used thigh meat, while this one has more vegetables and no carbohydrates.

The garlic is also trimmed at the root with scissors, peeled, and chopped. If that's a hassle, a knife is fine, but Ryuji says, "We're billing this as a no-knife recipe, after all." Garlic becomes soft and fluffy and delicious when simmered. It also has umami, so adding it makes a delicious soup even with just salt. Ryuji said there are actually many recipes like this made with chicken stock alone. Ryuji's point was that while people sometimes say "you just use Ajinomoto all the time," it's entirely possible to cook without umami seasoning if one wants to.

While cooking, Ryuji also addressed viewer comments saying "scissors are a hassle." Ryuji's position is that if scissors are hard to use, just use a knife. Ryuji said this isn't meant to provoke; they simply think the time spent writing that comment is a waste. A staff member guessed that it's probably because people who are used to knives find it bothersome to go out of their way to use scissors. Ryuji concluded that which is better depends on the person. Ryuji added that the garlic can also be peeled and put in whole, and that the dish is delicious even without it. Then, saying "But I put it in," Ryuji added plenty.

The water is only 300cc, and the salt is half a teaspoon. No sake is used either. The reason is that Ryuji thinks many children dislike the smell of sake. Ryuji wants viewers to see just how delicious the dish can be with only water and salt. Before turning on the heat, they placed the chicken in the pot and took photos for the video thumbnail. There was also an exchange about how it's good to have around three thumbnail candidates.

300cc of water is roughly the amount of soup in one bowl of ramen, and the umami of one chicken breast goes into it. That's why there's no need for chicken stock powder, Ryuji explained. Submerging the chicken in the soup brings out more umami. The long onion affects the flavor of the soup and also removes odors, so Ryuji urges viewers to include it.

Pepper is optional, and since some children dislike it, it doesn't need to be added. From here, Ryuji talked about their thinking on the amount of salt.

Ryuji says cooking ultimately comes down to preference. People sometimes say Ryuji's food is on the salty side, and Ryuji has reduced the salt before. If you don't trust your own teaspoon, you can start with 1/3 teaspoon. What matters, Ryuji said, is to make it once and establish a reference point: "So this is what Ryuji's flavor is like." Then, if you find it "too strong," you can adjust.

According to Ryuji, lately they've been focusing on recipes that are easy to adjust. They used to often build flavor with stock alone, but now they always add salt. The reason is that salt is easy to leave out. If a recipe says "1 pinch" or "2 pinches," omitting it gives a milder flavor. Ryuji explained that this is to leave room for people to adjust to their taste.

Ryuji usually uses Ajinomoto a lot. It isn't used this time, and the reason, Ryuji says, is that the umami from the ingredients is enough. From here, the conversation moved to the relationship between children and umami seasoning.

Ryuji asked the staff whether they had ever heard that it's better not to use Ajinomoto or strongly umami foods for growing children, and the staff said they had. The claim is that taste buds, the cells that detect flavor, die off from strong umami. Ryuji flatly called this a lie. As grounds, Ryuji pointed out that taste buds regenerate within a few days to a few weeks. Ryuji also said, "There are various theories, but there's no scientific basis." Ryuji further spoke from personal experience: they ate instant noodles and the like from childhood, yet became a cooking expert and their food is well regarded.

On the other hand, Ryuji says using too much is not good, because you get used to strong umami. Ryuji's view is that at a moderate concentration, your palate stays intact. Ryuji also recommended using things like granulated dashi once children can eat a certain amount. Ryuji said that school lunches also use dashi powder, but apparently many places don't use Ajinomoto due to reputational damage. Ryuji urged people to use it without being misled by misinformation, while adding that cooking without it once in a while is also recommended.

Once it comes to a boil, cover with a lid and simmer for about 10–15 minutes. This makes the vegetables very soft, the chicken tender, and brings plenty of umami into the soup.

When the lid was opened after 15 minutes, a clear soup had formed. Ryuji said this clear qingtang soup was full of umami from the vegetables and chicken. The chicken was tender enough to fall apart with chopsticks, which is the sign that it's delicious. Ryuji explained that chicken becomes tender either when boiled briefly or when simmered thoroughly. Black pepper turns the dish dark in appearance, so it can be sprinkled on when eating.

The president of JPC Sports School joined for the tasting. When Ryuji asked, "What did you think about us filming while drinking?", the president laughed it off, saying they usually watch videos where Ryuji drinks. Ryuji responded that it was good to have an understanding president. Ryuji said they are sometimes told not to drink while working, but turn down all such offers.

To eat it, put ponzu directly into a bowl, then add the chicken, the long onion, and the cabbage that has sunk to the bottom. The cabbage has soaked up the umami. Sprinkle a light pinch of salt on top. When the president praised the ponzu, Ryuji replied that what they've been hooked on lately is "salt ponzu": the combination of ponzu underneath and salt sprinkled on top. Ryuji further emphasized that since no oil at all is used, "you'll lose a ton of weight."

Adding black pepper changes the flavor, tightening it up with a kick. People who like umami can eat it with aji-shio (seasoned salt). But since the chicken's umami is already strong, Ryuji says regular salt creates a crisp contrast and tastes better. The president said they had never seen this ponzu before. Ryuji said it's always sold at supermarkets, and that freshly squeezed lemon works if you can't find it, but recommended this ponzu, with its gentle citrus aroma, combined with salt as especially delicious.

During the tasting, the president talked about a personal change. When the president said that Ryuji's presence may have increased the number of people who cook, Ryuji responded that this is the one thing they've worked hard at over the past several years, so they won't concede it. The president said they had not cooked at all for 40 years, but started cooking after beginning to work with Ryuji. Ryuji was delighted: "One more person!"

The president revealed that, prompted by having started cooking, they want to teach children to cook as well, and plan to open a cooking class for children. The sports school is driven by the wish for children who dislike exercise to come to enjoy it, and the cooking class shares the same wish: for children who have never cooked to start cooking. The president said they felt this concept overlapped with Ryuji's thinking, and immediately got moving.

Ryuji promised to cooperate and made a request about the class content. Prefacing that this wasn't a criticism of other cooking classes, Ryuji asked that it be practical. While acknowledging that the basics are important, Ryuji noted that in home economics cooking practice, for example, students make stock from dried sardines. What Ryuji wants is a cooking class that helps with daily life, so that when students become working adults or start living alone, they feel they can just make what they learned in class as is. Ryuji said they don't think anything like that exists now, so if that's the plan, they will support it fully. Ryuji also has a personal wish to increase the number of people who cook.

Even after finishing the solids, quite a lot of soup remains. Since it would be a waste to throw it out, add frozen udon and simmer. Seasoning with just 1–2 pinches of salt is enough. According to Ryuji, the chicken breast has flavored the soup well, so no umami seasoning is needed. Adding a dash of ponzu or binding it with beaten egg to taste is also delicious, but simply adding udon is enough.

As a reason to recommend this finish, Ryuji touched on children's meals. Some children can't eat rice after hot pot, so finishing with udon works well. After getting protein from the vegetables and chicken, they can also get carbohydrates. Ryuji described the soup with chicken breast stock as "more luxurious" than chicken-bone soup.

The president was surprised that it tasted like soy sauce. Ryuji replied that there's no soy sauce in it at all, only the chicken's umami. The long onion and cabbage also bring out a nice sweetness. The two rated it as "good enough to serve in a restaurant." The president said it's a flavor that soothes in the colder seasons or when you catch a cold. Ryuji pointed out that since no oil is used, it can be eaten without feeling heavy.

Ryuji revealed that they had wanted to add kombu too, but decided it wasn't needed because the chicken's umami was so strong. When the president said, "Even children could get this flavor," Ryuji answered that since it's just cutting with scissors and simmering, they certainly could. Ryuji then told the president that if they open a cooking class, they should definitely include this recipe.

The video closed by restating that adults and children alike can make it just by putting the ingredients in and simmering, and that it's high in protein, includes vegetables, and is low in calories, with an invitation to try making it.