A Japanese Home Cooking Recipe in Fall Season, "Ginkgo-Nut Rice"

Now Ginkgo trees are turning gorgeous yellow in Tokyo area. Also it is ginkgo nuts season, too. Many packaged ginkgo nuts are sold at grocery sections as in the photo(1). In Japan it is a popular seasonal food. The outer fruits are already removed  and washed since the flesh of Gingko fruits is  very stinky. 

The edible part is inside of beige-colored hard shells, and it is usually light yellow or bright yellow green and very beautiful. Therefore those are often used for adding a color accent to a dish in addition to enjoying the taste.

I'd like to introduce a simple Japanese home cooking recipe to enjoy the taste and flavor of ginkgo nuts. There are many ways to cook ginkgo nuts, but "Ginkgo-Nut Rice" would be one of the common ways to prepare Japanese home-cook meals. Let's see the recipe step by step with the photos numbered (1)-(8) above.

(1)Buy a package of ginkgo nuts. (You can pick ginkgo fruits from ground, but have to remove the flesh of the fruit and wash it before use)
(2)Crack the nutshells of ginkgo nuts with a nut-cracker or a hummer, but the nuts inside the shells are soft, so it would be better to stop when the shells crack.
(3)Remove the hard shells by hand.
(4)This amount would be sufficient for two or three servings.
(5)Remove the thin brown skin, and you are ready to cook rice.
(6)Measure 360mL of rice (short length sticky rice which is used for making Sushi) and wash the rice. After draining the water, add 400mL of water and about 1/2 tea spoon of salt.
(7)Add the peeled ginkgo nuts on the top of the rice and soak for 20 minutes. (You can skip the soak step if you are in a hurry)
(8)Cook the rice. If you have a rice cooker, just use it same setting as cook plain rice. If you don't have a rice cooker, please use a heavy pot like LeCreuset. 

Additional Recipe for cooking rice with a pot
After step (7), put the lid on and heat until boiling at medium heat. When it starts boiling, turn the heat low and keep it simmering for 10-13minutes. After that, turn off the heat and let stand for 10-15minutes. While you are waiting, don't open the lid as it is very important in cooking proper sticky rice. Afterwards, open the lid, and mix the rice and ginkgo nuts gently with a spatula. 

I hope you will enjoy the taste!
Actually the "Chestnut Rice" which I introduced previously on October 2nd, can be cooked in the same way.