Anime Recipe: Imoni inspired by Osomatsu-San (Pescatarian)

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My friend Liz recently requested an anime recipe from a show we both adore (that is highly underrated here in the United States): imoni! This cold-weather comfort stew was featured recently in an episode of Osomatsu-san where one of the characters, Dekapan, asks his neighbors to compete to make the best pot of imoni since he's feeling homesick (and hilarity ensues). So, I decided to try to make my own pot worthy of Dekapan!

If you're counting calories or on a program like Weight Watchers, this is a great dish to make on a cold day. It's warm, hearty, and loaded with vegetables so it's a really healthy option! It normally calls for roast beef, but since I don't eat beef, I swapped it with some tempeh bacon (you could also use seitan bacon) to mimic the flavor and it was delightful.

A pot of imoni in Osomatsu-san

Ingredients (serves 4)

• 4 cups water
• 2 tbsp miso paste
• 1 packet dashi granules (if you are vegatarian, skip this)
• 0.5 cup chopped cabbage
• 1 large daikon radish, diced into bite-size chunks 
• 1-2 small turnips, diced into bite-size chunks
• 0.5 cup sliced carrots 
• 0.5 cup mushrooms, thinly sliced or diced
• 0.5 cup green onion, thinly sliced
• 2 Taro roots or Russet potatoes, diced into bite-size chunks
• 8 oz seitan or tempeh bacon (or, if you eat beef, you can use roast beef, which is traditionally used here)

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Instructions

• Add all ingredients except for the seitan/tempeh bacon to a pot or slow cooker and let simmer.
• Once the root vegetables have softened, add cooked seitan/tempeh bacon strips (or roast beef) and serve.

The Verdict

Since you can just throw everything in one pot (whether it be your slow cooker, InstantPot, or just a normal pot on the stovetop), it's super easy to make and the ingredients are pretty easy to either grab or substitute, earning this a 10/10 for ease of replication.

I'm also going to give this a 10/10 in the taste category. The flavor of everything in the stew is fairly mild, so it allows for each individual ingredient to shine without any one thing being overpowering. Anthony and I both loved it and would definitely make this again. 

Have a food from an anime that you want me to try to recreate? Let me know in the comments below! Plus, follow me on TikTok to see the behind the scenes of how this was made.