Socarrat. The rice that’s been caramelized at the bottom of your pan/pot till it’s toasty, crispy and chewy, spans across cultures. From sunshine tinted paella flecked with seafood to Chinese Claypot rice adorned with various cured, waxed meats, to this Japanese “Donabe” dish I bastardized in a Singapore kitchen. And there’s tahdig, a Persian dish that places the crispy rice front and centre.Far flung places. Same same but Different. A testament to a universal thread binding us all together in our shared humanity. In light of the mess that is 2020 (covid, cancel culture, shootings..), let’s remember that.... 💓🌍💞I've actually bookmarked this Bacon and Corn Donabe recipe from Mrs Donabe since April, well, some procrastination and 5 months later, here we all are. Better late than never, right?

Since I don't own a double-lidded donabe, (Author's note: this was written in 2020 or 2019 before i bought my kamado-san), I'll be guiding you through the steps here using my trusty Dutch Oven, which works beautifully as well. Whatever your cooking vessel of choice is, you really can't go wrong with bacon, corn and butter. Juicy sweet corn, smokey bacon, an umami-packed seasoning and taking the bottom layer of rice so far to the edge of caramelization that the charred bits taste almost... cheese-y . Definitely a crowd pleaser AND a cinch to put together!

Ingredients

• 300g Japanese Rice

• 40ml sake

• 400ml dashi stock (See notes regarding amount of stock)

• 3 to 4 rashers of bacon, sliced into chunks

• 2 corn cobs, shucked

• spring onions, to taste

• cracked black pepper

• 1 and a half teaspoons white miso paste

• 1 Tablespoon smoked fish sauce (or regular fish sauce)

• 1 teaspoon light soy sauce

• 45g unsalted butter

• kombu (optional)

Directions

• First, fry up the bacon chunks in your dutch oven over medium-low heat, until its fat renders out and the meat becomes lightly golden. Tip 2 to 3 stalks of spring onion whites into the pan, along with your corn. Crank your heat up to high and continue to fry up this corn and bacon mixture for about 1 to 2 minutes. Add in your miso paste and sake, which will deglaze your pan.

• Switch off your heat and tip in your rice. Give it all a good mix around and add in your seasoning (fish sauce & light soy) and dashi stock. Check for seasoning. If using the kombu, add a square into your pot at this point. Allow the rice to soak in this mixture for 20 to 30 minutes.

• After 20 to 30 minutes, clamp your lid on tight and let the whole thing cook over medium high heat for about 13 to 16 minutes. The rice should be cooked through with a nice golden crust forming at the bottom. If it's too pale, just crank your heat up for a bit to get the rice more toasty.

• Switch off the heat and let the mixture sit for 15 to 20 minutes. Finally, decant the lid and add a wad of butter to your steaming hot pot of rice. To serve, some freshly cracked black pepper, spring onion slices and make sure to get all up, around and under to scrape off the burnt, crusty bits!