COOKING THE OKAYU. Place the rice cooker insert onto a scale and add the washed rice. Tare the scale and pour in the water. If you want to make more than the amount specified in this recipe, just wash the desired amount of rice and cover with 10x its weight in water. Place the insert into the rice cooker and let the rice soak for 30 minutes. Select the okayu setting on the rice cooker and press start. While the okayu is cooking, prepare the goma shio (sesame salt).
3 MAKING GOMA SHIO. Toast the sesame seeds in a pan set over low heat until fragrant and golden. Transfer the toasted seeds to a mortar and pestle. Add the salt and grind until the texture resembles sand. Sesame seeds are highly nutritious, but indigestible when eaten whole. The grinding solves this. It is best to make this fresh every time for the best flavor and nutrition. It also helps avoid rancidity; the sesame seeds have a high oil content which makes them susceptible to oxidation.
4 SERVING. When the okayu has finished cooking, open the lid of the rice cooker slowly. Be careful as you open the lid. A lot of steam will be released, and it is easy to get a steam burn. Give the rice a gentle stir, and divide it equally into serving bowls. Serve with goma shio and a few tsukemono (Japanese pickles) such as umeboshi and daikon radish on the side.
Note
MAKING OKAYU WITH COOKED RICE. You might not always have the time to wash, soak, and cook okayu from scratch. Life happens. Part of being mindful is about recognizing the real constraints at any given moment. Time is often the most common in day-to-day life. If that is the case just add some left over cooked rice to a pot and cover it with two times the amount of rice (by weight) with water or tea. Bring it to a boil, then reduce it to a simmer. Cook for 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent it from sticking. Add water as needed to adjust the consistency.
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