# Tokibi Meshi (Rice with Corn) ｜ Our Regional Cuisines

**Cuisine Name**: Tokibi Meshi (Rice with Corn)

**Region**: Our Regional Cuisines

## Main Lore Areas
The northern region of the prefecture (the mountainous region)

## Main Ingredients Used
Corn, rice

## History, Origin, and Related Events
A long time ago in this region, "tokibimeshi (rice with Corn)" was a staple food item that played a central role with boiled barley and rice. The seeds of Corn (corn) were planted during the summer in fields and land cleared by the slash-and-burn method. Corn was harvested about the middle of autumn. It was boiled and eaten like that as a snack or grilled and eaten.When Corn is harvested, it is tied in bundles and hung from bamboo poles under the eaves of stables and thoroughly dried. Then it is struck by cold winds that blow down from the mountains and develops a good flavor. The dried Corn is tread on through the use of a treadmill. The cracked dried Corn seeds mixed and cooked with rice is "tokibimeshi (rice with Corn)". It is the flavor of hometowns in the Takachiho region, such as Takachiho, Gokase, and Hinokage. During eras when rice was a precious commodity, the amount of rice was increased with cracked Corn, and the dish satisfied people's appetites. According to the history of Takachiho town, Corn made up 60 percent of the planted area of assorted grains during the Taisho period and was used for food and animal feed.The dish is also called "tokibigohan (cooked rice with Corn)."

## Opportunities and Times of Eating Habits
At one time in the farming villages in this area, people sometimes got tired of eating only boiled barley and rice all year round and sometimes felt unsatisfied. During such times, the aroma and colors of "tokibimeshi (rice with Corn)" satisfied their appetites. When it is freshly cooked, you eat it as is. But when it cools down, it is not tasty. Thus, while it was hot, they turned it in advance into enough rice balls for lunch and dinner, routinely heated the rice balls in the sunken fireplace, and ate them.

## How to Eat
The "tokibimeshi (rice with Corn)" in Hokkaido contains butter. However, for the "tokibimeshi (rice with Corn)" in Miyazaki Prefecture, Corn is mixed with rice, and the Corn makes up 10 or 20 percent of the mixture. Also, the amount of water is a little more than usual, salt is added, and the ingredients are cooked. You can cook the Corn with the rice from the beginning, or you can parboil the Corn in advance and add it to the rice later.

## Efforts for Preservation and Succession
(Outline of the traditions, the preservation society, social media use, modern approaches at commercialization)Tokibigohan (Cooked rice with Corn), packed with the wisdom of our ancestors, was chosen in 1986 as one of the top hundred hometown rice balls. You can make it easily at home, and it also appears on school lunch menus. Also, tokibimeshi (rice with Corn) with a touch is sold on the Internet.

## Ingredients
- Corn: 20g
- Rice: 160g

## Recipe
1. 1. Prepare the dish using coarsely ground Corn. (Wash uncooked finely ground Corn with rice, and cook with your usual amount of water.)
2. 2. Boil coarsely ground Corn beforehand until it softens a little.
3. 3. Cook the softened Corn together with the rice. When you do so, the dish will taste better if you add a little salt.

## Provider Information
provider : "Shiiba Regional Cuisine" (General Affairs Section, Shiiba Village Office)

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