Delicious

Simmered Daikon Radish, Drumettes Perfect for Winter; Simple Dish that Packs Plenty of Flavor

The Yomiuri Shimbun
Simmered daikon radish and drumettes

By Tomoyo Yamada / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

12:30 JST, February 25, 2025

Yumiko Kozumi, a culinary researcher and owner of a restaurant serving many spicy dishes, shared her recipe for simmered daikon radish and chicken wings, specifically the drumettes. This spicy dish is perfect for keeping warm when it’s cold outside. The cinnamon’s faint aroma goes surprisingly well with the chicken, and it has a comforting taste.

Kozumi cooked seasonal daikon with chicken drumettes on the bone using Chinese cassia cinnamon, a spice that has a warming effect, which is good to serve on special occasions.

Strong-smelling spices, such as clove, go well with pork and beef, but the cinnamon’s gentler aroma goes well with the lighter flavor of chicken, according to Kozumi.

Instead of Ceylon cinnamon, which has a refreshing aroma, she chose the more sweet-smelling Chinese cassia cinnamon, since the dish is cooked without mirin or sugar. Ginger and black peppercorns are the other spices used.

The key to the recipe is boiling the spices beforehand. Put the ginger in a pot with room-temperature water and, once it comes to a boil, add the cinnamon and black peppercorns.

To allow more of the cinnamon’s aroma to be released, it should be broken up before being added to the pot. Boil thoroughly, until the water turns a slightly brown.

Sear the daikon in a pan until they brown, remove, then sear the drumettes. “You can sear them thoroughly to produce a fragrant smell and appetizing appearance,” Kozumi said. Next, add water to the pan, partially submerging the chicken, and boil briefly to remove any excess fat.

The daikon and chicken are then added to the pot of water and spices. Simmered daikon is usually seasoned with soy sauce, but this dish is cooked only with salt to allow the flavor of the spices to stand out. “It tastes good, even just with salt, as drumettes produce a good broth,” she said.

It is ready to be served when the cooking liquid is reduced to a depth of about 1 centimeter.

The chicken is soft and easily comes off the bone. The daikon, which absorbs the flavor of the chicken, is succulent and sweet.

“In this dish, you can better taste the other ingredients thanks to the power of the spices. Enjoy the natural sweetness,” Kozumi said.

Make chai with leftover spices

Kozumi suggests using the leftover spices to make chai that warms you up.

Add ginger to water and bring to a boil before adding cinnamon and black peppercorns. Simmer to bring out the aroma. Add loose leaf black tea. Add the same amount of milk as water and continue to boil. Spices such as clove can also be added.

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Simmered daikon radish and chicken drumettes

Ingredients (serves 2):

250 grams daikon radish
4 chicken drumettes
10 grams ginger (thinly sliced)
4 grams Chinese cassia cinnamon
8 black peppercorns
1 red chili pepper
1 bay leaf

Directions:

1. Cut the daikon radish into three equal pieces and peel. Cut them into half-moons and round off the corners. Make a cut along the bone of the drumettes.

2. Put the ginger in a pot with 600 milliliters of water and bring to a boil. Add the cinnamon and black peppercorns, then reduce the heat to low. Simmer for about 5 minutes.

3. Heat a little salad oil in a frying pan, add the daikon and red chili pepper. Cook until the daikon browns on both sides and remove from the frying pan.

4. Add the drumettes to the frying pan and sear until they brown. Add enough water to partially submerge the chicken. Bring to a boil, and then remove the chicken. Discard the water.

5. Add the drumettes, daikon, red chili pepper and bay leaf to the pot of water and spices, then heat. When it comes to a boil, add ⅔ teaspoon of salt. Cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer for 10 minutes. Remove the lid and simmer over a low-medium heat until the liquid reduces to 1 centimeter in depth. Turn off the heat and serve.