Measure, rinse and soak the rice for 30 minutes. Rinse and soak dried shiitake mushrooms in boiling water (atlast 5 minutes). Rinse and soak hijjiki for 5 minutes.

In the meantime, chop your bamboo and carrots into match stick like pieces. Drain the excess liquid out of the bamboo. In a small bowl add the dashi, mirin, sake and soy sauce. Drain the shiitake mushrooms and hijiki, reerving the water. Slice the shiitake mushrooms and aburaage into thin pieces.

Add the rinsed rice into the rice cooker. Mix in the soy sauce mixture we made earlier and stir. Then add the rest of the ingredients in layers from the hardest to softest (DO NOT mix the ingredients). For the ingredients I used, this would be the order: dried kombu pieces, shiitake mushrooms, bamboo, hijiki, carrots and aburaage. Add in the shiitake mushroom water. Turn on your rice cooker, the total liquid amount should be at the #2 line. Add more water if needed. Close your rice cooker and set to mixed rice setting****.

Once cooked, mix the rice. You will notice the bottom of the mixed rice is caramelized and is the best part. Serve and top with green onions, sesame seeds and/or some thinly cut nori.

Add the rinsed rice into the donabe. Measure out all the liquid ingredients, you need a total of 400ml liquid. Once measured, add enough water to make up 400ml of liquid. Stir the rice. Add the ingredients in layers from hardest to softest. Cover the donabe and turn heat to medium high. Once it comes to a boil, reduce heat to low and cook for 10 minutes. Turn off the heat and then let it sit for another 15 minutes to finish steaming. Once cooked, mix the rice and add scallions if desired. Serve and enjoy!