This may be the easiest recipe we’ve ever attempted…and maybe the grossest too?

If you’re not familiar with tamagokake gohan, or TKG as we call it around the SoraNews24 office, it’s a Japanese dish where a raw egg (yes, raw) is cracked over a steaming bed of rice. Often seasoned with soy sauce, it’s a quick and easy way to make a hot, protein-rich meal component.

Recently, our boss, Yoshio, heard on a morning television program that famous Japanese painter, calligrapher, and apparently sometimes-chef Rosanjin claimed that the egg used in TKG would become more delicious if warmed by human skin for 30 minutes.

▼ Would you believe this face? Mr. Sato didn’t.

But the only way to find the truth behind this rumor was to try it, and that was the task Yoshio handed down to Mr. Sato. Most people would assume that you’d warm it in your hands…

▼ …because that would be the logical thing to do, right?

But if you’ve already read the title to this article, you’ll know that’s not what he did. The thought of not being able to use your mobile phone- and keyboard-typing hands for a full 30 minutes is, after all, unbearable. So Mr. Sato decided to use one of the warmest places on the human body: the armpit. So Mr. Sato wrapped the egg in some foam to protect it from cracking…

….and probably from his B.O….

…and then it was time to go into his armpit.

▼ In order to have full use of both arms, he taped it to his bare chest.

Mr. Sato decided to pass the 30 long minutes by doing one of his favorite things: playing a game. Isn’t it great to get paid for this?

▼ By the way, we’re not sure why he was shirtless for this.

His game of choice was a battlefield game where his characters kept getting crushed. “Am I too weak or are they too strong?” he pondered. “How can I level up and get stronger faster? Someone help me,” he further lamented.

▼ We’ve all been there, Mr. Sato.

Soon enough, the 30 minutes were up. Mr. Sato carefully unwrapped the egg and checked to see how it had changed.

▼ Yep, still looks like an egg. Maybe the inside will be different?

And so Mr. Sato cracked the egg onto his bed of microwaved rice.

Preparations complete, Mr. Sato decided to spend no more time looking and more eating.

▼ This is the point where the TKG fan club is drooling and the “Oh my god you’re actually going to eat a raw egg?” club comes to a split in the road.

▼ What do you think, Mr. Sato? Was Rosanjin right?

“Well, this is just TKG with a warm egg,” he concluded simply.

So, yeah, warming the egg in your armpit before making tamagokake gohan doesn’t make it taste bad, but it doesn’t really make it taste any better either. If you’re looking for an excuse to rip off your shirt like Mr. Sato, we guess “I’m following the cooking advice of the great artists Rosanjin!” is as good as any, even if it doesn’t produce results quite as delicious as our recipes for leftover sushi fried rice or meatball stew.

Photos ©SoraNews24
● Want to hear about SoraNews24’s latest articles as soon as they’re published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
[ Read in Japanese ]