I’m a soup lover. Soup is a very broad term in my mind, because there doesn’t seem to be a term that encompasses the concept of liquid comfort food. Among which you could include soups, stews, porridges (semi-solid — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Porridge), pottage (thick soup — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pottage), and so on.

If I’m out to eat, I can’t help but admire or -envy- the choices of diners around me. In the case of nanakusa though, our item of envy, it’s less likely to be found in restaurants. Maybe because it’s made around the new year when people are mostly at home.

What is Nanakusa?

Nanakusa is a seasonal porridge made on the 7th of January in japan, hence the name nanakusa or seven ingredient porridge.

Nanakusa is under my soup umbrella and is generally be considered a porridge because of the cooked rice used to make the dish.

Where to get it

List of where to get

How to make it

Stock up on your herbs and greens of choice! While the definition of the dish may seem prescriptive, you can certainly find versions that riff on the concept with a variety of ingredients

Examples

There are a number of festivals held on January 7th which serve Nanakusa at accessible prices or in some cases for free.