Using Japanese Daikon in Oden

I love cooking oden at home.

It's just so easy - simply chop the ingredients required into large pieces and throw them into an oden stock, which is rather simple to make.. Especially if you, like me, cheat with an oden stock mix.

It's even easier if you cook it using a thermal pot. Simply boil everything (except for the fish cakes) together for about 30 mins, then leave in the thermal pot to simmer for half a day. Take it out an hour or two before serving, add the fish cakes and then boil away for another 15 mins, before putting it back into the thermal pot. I usually make enough for 2 days, because I think overnight oden taste much better. The flavour in the stock really seeps into all the ingredients and make everything taste so much richer.

One trick I've learnt that makes homemade oden taste good is to make sure I use only Japanese daikon.

Daikon, or 大根 in Japanese, literally means "large root". Somehow, I think that Japanese daikon (which you can buy from any Japanese supermarket, or some premium supermarkets around town) taste a lot sweeter than those you get from regular supermarkets or markets, which are mainly from either Malaysia or China. Yes, the Japanese daikon cost quite a bit more.. but I do think the taste difference justifies the price.