Kinpira Makizushi & Imo Mochi (Sticky Potato Gnocchi)
It's been a while since I last gave readers a peek into the diet of the average gaijin in Japan, so I'm taking a break from my busy schedule to catch up on some past meals. A few weeks ago, on two separate occasions, we had home-rolled vegan sushi that keeps your bowels "firm but flexible." Only slightly different, the two variations are presented here together.
Kinpira Sushi #1
Kinpira is a style of Japanese cooking that could be described as "stir-fry of stick-shaped veggies." A quick search for "gobo kinpira" will yield dozens of recipes, but most won't mention the dish's Viagra-like properties - or its special place in the hearts of macrobiotic practitioners.
Most people know kinpira as a delicious mix of sautéed gobo (burdock root), carrots, and red peppers. But in macrobiotics, it's a foundational dish - balanced, energizing, and used to "clean your blood" and keep you strong.
Why Burdock?
Gobo is considered very yang and is said to help men build stamina.
Fun fact: the name "Kinpira" comes from Jōruri, a form of Edo-period puppet theater, where the hero Kinpira (son of legendary sumo wrestler Kintarō) smashes evil with sheer strength and, presumably, awesome digestion.
Tomoe's macrobiotic-style kinpira omits red pepper, which is considered "yin" and cooling. Instead, her version contains:
Gobo – High in fiber, helps keep our house bowel-happy. "Yang" and strengthening.
"The root is crisp, mildly sweet, slightly harsh - soaking can reduce bitterness."
Tomoe disagrees with soaking and prefers long cooking to retain nutrients.
Renkon (lotus root) – Symbolically balanced (like sausage links!), renkon is said to help make the body firm yet flexible. It also tightens loose bowels and soothes the throat. Renkon candies still exist in Japan.
Carrots – Pretty standard. But don't toss the stems - they're even better for blood-cell growth. In Japan, they're often fried as tempura.
Ginger, pickled in umeboshi juice – Adds a tangy kick to balance the plain rice (we used regular rice instead of vinegared sushi rice).
Soy Sauce – Tomoe used her homemade batch, which will be featured in a future post.
All veggies are cut into various stick shapes. According to macrobiotics, thin sticks = more yang, good for anemic (yin) folks. Thicker veggie sticks = more yin, good for allergy-prone (yang) people.
Making the Sushi
Once you've got your masculinity-inducing kinpira, the fun begins: rolling sushi.
We used genmai (brown rice) cooked with akaendō (red peas, often used in Japanese sweets), and added shiso leaves for a refreshing minty touch.
Sushi rolling parties, like the one with Tomoe and the birds, are popular in Japan - especially when entertaining kids.
Kinpira Sushi #2
The second version included a few unique ingredients:
Aburaage (fried tofu skin) – Ours was made from domestic soybeans and natural seawater nigari, avoiding industrial shortcuts like silicone oil.
Okahijiki – Literally "land hijiki." It looks like seaweed but grows on land (oka = land, hijiki = the seaweed). Pickled in umeboshi vinegar for a tangy punch.
Bonus fact: Some species of okahijiki have become invasive in the U.S., especially in the Great Plains, where they now blow across the screen in Western movies as tumbleweeds. Their origin? Ukraine.
What Gaijin Eat: Imo Mochi (Sticky Potato Gnocchi)
Half the joy of cooking (or eating, in my case) comes from what happens when things don't go to plan.
Tonight's dinner began with Tomoe's attempt to make a vegan mayo substitute. Not that we needed it - we haven't eaten or craved mayo in years. It was more of a curiosity thing.
The idea was to mix mashed potatoes with plum vinegar, umeboshi, sesame paste, and salt & pepper. But while mashing the potatoes (which she had steamed to preserve nutrients), Tomoe noticed the texture was sticky and gooey - like mochi.
Hokkaido's Potato Mochi Tradition
Turns out, imo mochi is a real thing - especially in Hokkaido, Japan's cold northern island where rice wasn't always widely grown. Locals grilled sticky mashed potatoes with soy sauce or butter. Think: Japanese gnocchi with a chewy twist.
Of course, man doesn't live on potato alone, so Tomoe sautéed the mochi with a mix of "six baby leaf salad" from our local co-op's farmer's market surprise box:
- Detroit
- Kyo Mizuna (from Kyoto)
- Red Oak (a red-stem lettuce)
- Romaine Lettuce
- Arugula
- Tatsai (a Chinese leafy green)
I honestly couldn't tell a huge difference between these and your average leafy greens, but they earn points for being even more vegan than usual. That's because they were grown at Wagoen, a local farm that uses fermented veggie scraps for fertilizer - no cow poop needed.
Macrobiotic Notes
Potatoes are considered very yin, but steaming and sautéing add yang. Leafy salad is usually too yin to pair with potatoes, so Tomoe sautéed them too, with lots of sesame and garlic.
