Buddhist monastic vegetarian cuisine, no meat, fish or strong aromatics, served at Tenryu-ji, Daitoku-ji and Myoshin-ji temple kitchens since the 12th century.

Shojin-ryori arrived in Kyoto with the Rinzai Zen sect in the 12th century. The 1191 introduction of powdered green tea by Eisai and the founding of Tenryu-ji in 1339 anchored the cuisine; the form codified the use of seasonal vegetables, dashi (kombu and shiitake), tofu, yuba and sesame as a substitute for animal proteins. Today Shigetsu inside Tenryu-ji and Izusen Daiji-in at Daitoku-ji serve the canonical seven-bowl meals; Ajiro Honten holds the city's longest-running Michelin recognition for the form.

Where to eat Shojin-ryori in Kyoto

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Make it at home

Serves 42 hrIntermediate

Ingredients

  • Kombu and dried shiitake for shojin dashi (no katsuobushi)
  • 200g silken tofu, 200g yuba sheets, 100g sesame seeds for sesame tofu
  • Seasonal vegetables: turnip, lotus root, takenoko, kabocha squash
  • Mirin, light soy, sake, rice vinegar
  • Steamed white rice, kelp pickles and toasted sesame to serve

Method

  1. Make a shojin dashi: cold-soak 20g kombu and 8g dried shiitake in 1L water for 4 hours.
  2. For goma-dofu (sesame tofu): grind 100g toasted sesame to a paste, mix with 30g kuzu starch and 400ml shojin dashi, heat-and-stir for 15 minutes until thick, pour into a mould, chill 30 minutes.
  3. Simmer cubed lotus root, takenoko and kabocha in dashi with light soy, mirin and a touch of sugar for 15 minutes.
  4. Make a quick-pickled turnip with rice vinegar, salt and a strip of kombu, set aside for 30 minutes.
  5. Plate the bowls into nested lacquer bowls: sesame tofu in one, simmered vegetables in another, pickles in the smallest.
  6. Serve with steamed rice in a separate bowl and a small clear shojin soup.

Editor tip. Shojin-ryori prohibits onion, garlic, leek and chives. Use yuzu skin, ginger and shiso for aroma; never reach for the alliums.

Common allergens: Soy, Wheat, Sesame.