High protein Ochazuke 🍵

To be honest, I’d never made this dish or even tried it in my life. But we didn’t have any groceries after long holiday, and all I could find in the fridge was frozen barramundi, instant rice, and katsuobushi. So I came up with the idea to make this, and it turned out surprisingly good.

Ochazuke is basically a Japanese home-style dish where you pour green tea over rice. At first, I thought it would be weird, but then I realised—when I was younger, my go-to meal was plain rice soaked in water, paired with kimchi and nori. So… why not?

Lee was really sceptical when I told him I was going to make a broth using matcha. But when he tried it, he was surprised. The broth was nicely fragrant from the katsuobushi (which is dried bonito flakes), and the matcha balanced the fish flavour with a slight bitterness. The macros were really good too, so he was very happy about that.

People often use salmon or roasted fish roe for this dish as well, which adds more richness because of the fat content. But if you want to keep it low-fat, I recommend using white fish. You’ll still be surprised by how clean yet flavourful the meal is.

High protein Ochazuke 🍵

Recipe by Minseo KimDifficulty: Easy

Servings

2

servings

Prep time

10

minutes

Cooking time

40

minutes

Calories

625

kcal

Protein

65

g

Carbs

53

g

Fat

16

g

Ingredients

• Fish
  • Barramundi — 600g (defrosted)
  • Salt — enough to season generously
  • Olive oil — 10g

• Broth
  • Katsuobushi — 6g
  • Dried kombu (kelp) — 2 pieces
  • Water — 500ml
  • Tuna extract — 10g
  • Matcha powder — 6g

• Fish
  • Barramundi — 600g (defrosted)
  • Salt — enough to season generously
  • Olive oil — 10g

• Rice
  • Cooked rice — 300g
  • Furikake — 5g

• Garnish
  • Chopped spring onion

Directions

• Preparation
• Prepare the fish
  Line an oven tray with baking paper. Season the barramundi generously with salt on both sides and leave it at room temperature for 10 minutes.
• Cooking
• Roast the fish
  Rub olive oil over both sides of the fish.
  Bake in a preheated oven at 200°C for 30 minutes, flipping halfway through, until golden brown and slightly crispy on both sides.
• Make the broth
  In a pot, add water, dried kombu, katsuobushi, and tuna extract.
  Bring to a boil, then turn off the heat. Strain the broth and transfer it to a teapot (or any heat-proof container).
• Prepare the matcha
  In a separate bowl, combine matcha powder with 50ml water. Whisk or blend until smooth with no lumps.
• Combine
  Add the matcha mixture to the strained broth and mix well.
• Assemble
  Place cooked rice into a bowl.
  Top with roasted barramundi, furikake, and chopped spring onions if using.
• Serve
  Pour the hot broth over the rice and fish.
  Enjoy immediately.
• Enjoy!

Recipe Video

Notes

• I used a convection oven, so cooking time and temperature may vary depending on your oven. The fish is done when both sides are golden brown and lightly crispy.
• If you don’t have a teapot, simply strain the broth using a sieve.
• You can use strongly brewed green tea instead of matcha—just make sure it’s concentrated enough since it will be mixed with the broth.
• Tuna extract can be substituted with tsuyu or light soy sauce.
• Katsuobushi is available at Asian grocery stores. If unavailable, dried sardines can be used as a substitute.