Kuri Kinton
Servings 6
Ingredients
- 2 lbs Japanese sweet potatoes (satsumaimo), peeled and sliced into ½-inch rounds
- 3/4 cup white sugar, or to taste
- 1/3 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp mirin (sweet sake)
- 1 jar/can sweetened chestnuts in heavy syrup (use at least 6, cut in half or left whole if small)
- 2 tbsp heavy syrup from the chestnuts, or replace with 1 tablespoon honey and 1 tablespoon water
Garnish: optional
- Whole sweetened chestnuts, drained of heavy syrup
Instructions
- Soak the sliced sweet potatoes in water for at least 30 minutes, changing the water once or twice. Drain. This will release excess starch.
- Boil the sweet potatoes in a medium-sized saucepan, uncovered, for approximately 15 minutes or until tender. Check for doneness. Can you easily pierce it with a bamboo skewer? Drain. Mash the sweet potato, using either a pestle and mortar or a potato masher. For a very smooth texture, you can also use a food processor or a wooden spatula and fine meshed strainer to mash the sweet potatoes.
- Return the mashed sweet potato to a clean saucepan, and add in the sugar, salt, mirin, and syrup. Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring and mashing and stirring continually with a wide wooden spoon or long-handled paddle – be careful, as the mixture gets very hot. When it starts to thicken, add in the drained chestnuts. Cook on medium-high heat for approximately 5 minutes, stirring, to combine the mixture thoroughly; it should be thick enough to adhere to the wooden spoon and not fall off, so cook longer if necessary.
- Serve at room temperature, either in a large bowl or in small individual servings during your Osechi feast. If you have any left-over chestnuts, place a few whole on top as garnish.
Notes
This makes a lot of Kuri Kinton! So, if you are expecting a smaller crowd, cut the recipe in half.