Create an Original Earthen Pot for an Oriental Dinner Table

What makes earthen pots so attractive?

A core item of Japanese food, the earthen pot

An all-around player in the kitchen

A perfect asset to a Japanese dinner table. Earthen pots are used for hot pot dishes in the winter. However, it would be a waste to use the versatile earthen pots for only hot pot dishes. These can be used to cook rice, make stews, and many others as well!

The first and utmost merit of the earthen pot is the high level of heat retainment. Because they are made from dirt, these pots hold in heat for a longer period of time compared to other stainless pots. Therefore, these pots are a perfect fit for hot pot dishes in the cold winter.
Also, because of the high heat retainment, the trapped heat takes longer to heat up the ingredients inside. Therefore, when used to make stews, the ingredients inside are slowly cooked without losing any of its great flavors. The same technique works extremely well when cooking rice. The heat reaches each and every grain of rice creating a perfect bowl of rice.

Simply placing an earthen pot on your dinner table adds a decorative touch

Earthen pots can also be used as a decorative piece for your dinner table. The deep, baked look of these pots adds a simple, but distinct touch to the dinner table.

Earthen pots change with new generations

Japanese people have a strong connection to earthen pots due to its long history from the Jomon period. These pots were one of the so called, "Jomon Earthen Tools". Since then, many different forms were invented, such as the yukihira pot and the dobinmushi pot. Today, earthen pots used specifically for cooking rice can be purchased at stores.
Regardless of the different types of pots, all earthen pots function in the same way.

Get your very own earthen pot at the "Hand-made Earthen Pot Workshop"

Using an earthen pot, you will be able to see the charms of the versatile pot. If you are going to use this pot everyday, why not make one of your own preferences? With that being said, we would like to recommend the hand-made earthen pot workshop.
In order to make your own earthen pot, we visited the "Shirokane Pottery School", located at a 10 minute walk from the Hibiya Subway Line Hiroo Station.

Make an all-around kitchen equipment at the "Shirokane Pottery School"

Try using the eletric pottery wheel

At the Shirokane Pottery School, visitors can try various workshops including the electric pottery wheel and the hand-made earthen pot. Make the pot from scratch and design an original earthen pot.

First, choose the size of the pot. Visitors can choose between sizes, such as one person use or 3-4 persons use.

Choose a pot size of your choice

Prices vary according to pot sizes. For this workshop, we made a slightly deeper pot for 2 persons.

1. Stretch out the clay to create the pot shape

First, we will create the base shape of the earthen pot. To ensure the pot's strength, the pots were made with heat resistant soil. This soil has a rougher texture compared to ones used for regular tea pots.

using the rough soil

Stretch out the clay, which is close to 2kg, and thin it out to become at 8mm with your hands and a stretch bar. Personally, it was a tough step that required a lot of strength. I steadily stretched out the clay by putting all my body weight on the clay. If you do not have enough strength, the staff will come and help out.

Stretch out the clay using body weight

using the stretch bar also takes a lot of strength

After smoothing out the imperfections on the clay with a rubber spatula, we placed it on an unglazed pot to create it's shape. The point is not to thin it out as much as possible, but rather to gently press the clay on to the mould. This step takes requires little strength. It is as easy as that!
Carve off the edges, wipe down the surface with a rubber spatula or wet sponge, and the base is finished.

while I was smoothing out the imperfections with a rubber spatula...

Cut off the excess clay

Smooth out the bottom of the pot to prevent cracks and breakage

2. Put patterns on the pot

One distinct charm of the earthen pots is the freedom to make original designs for the pot. We continued on to design our original earthen pot patterns.
Various stamps of flowers, fish, reindeer, and even Tokyo Tower are offered, so choose from these stamps to draw on the pot. You can also write on the bottom of the pot, so I decided to decorate my pot solely using stamps.

Choose from the large variety of stamps

Use the stamps with an appropriate amount of strength

There are so many stamps that it is exciting just by looking at them!

3. Making the lid of the pot

Next, we made the lid of the pot. In order to make the lid, we used the same technique as the base, and took a block of clay and rolled it out to be 8mm thin. I felt that this technique was easier the second time around because of the repetition.

same techniques used to create the lid

I chose to make a cute, round lid. In this step, I cut off the excess clay parts that did not fit on the mould.

4. Create a design for the lid grip

In this step, we will make the grip for the lid. Some choose to make simple grips, whereas others go to the extent of creating animals and other designs. For my lid grip, I chose to make a Java sparrow design.

Mold the clay into a design of your preference

Take a random amount of clay and start designing. There are no regulations for grip sizes, so feel free to make anything of your likings.
I placed my bird grip on the center of the lid. To stick the grip to the lid, the clay was softened with water, called dobe, and stuck together. After this step, the grip is done!

"Dobe"

Sticking the grip to the lid

Afterwards, I decorated the lid with the same patterns as the pot. By using lace to circle the bird handle, I created a fairy tale-like earthen pot.

5. Making the handles

Do not forget about the handles. After the pot slightly dries, place your originally designed handles on both sides of the pot.

glue down the handles with the same techniques

The key is to make the handles at a corresponding size to the pot. It would be a hazard if the handles could not handle the weight of the pot and fell off. In order to prevent such happenings, please keep in mind the size and weight of the pot when creating the handles.

6. Customize the lid to match the pot size, and you are all done!

Some lid modifications will be needed to perfectly fit the frame of the pot. The final shape of the pots are crucial to the creation, so the staff will take over for the last steps. After the lid was beautifully smoothened out, the lid was complete.
Now, all production processes were finished. The whole process took about an hour and a half. However, even with some hesitations or detours, most people should finish within 2 hours.

accurately cut the size of the lid

You can choose between two colors for the pot: clear (white) and black. The black glaze could potentially cover up the designs, so if you would like to accentuate the designs, I recommend going for the white color.

choose between white or black

Although this workshop only had the options of white and black, if you would like to add colors to your pot, we recommend the 2 day course. You will create your pot on the first day and add colors to the dried pot on the 2nd.
The pot will be completely finished in about 4 weeks after the workshop. You can either come get the pot yourself or have it delivered to your home for 2500 JPY. I am excited to see my original earthen pot in about a month!

Finished product

Ticket needed to receive your earthen pot

My first hand-made earthen pot experience. The originality that comes from making an earthen pot by hand is a process that cannot be felt through using an electric wheel. The process was a lot easier than I expected. Although I was making quite a large item, the steps were fun and easy. Also, kneading the clay was a great hands-on experience.
Making small pottery with the electric pottery wheel is great, however, getting a first-hand experience with creating your own earthen pot is an process like no other.

Make your dinner table more fun! Ways to use the earthen pot

Make delicious dishes with your earthen pot

We will introduce the dishes you can make with your original earthen pot. It would be a waste to neglect a daily usage of such a great pot.

Try cooking rice with the earthen pot

A staple item for Japanese cuisine, rice. Try cooking rice with an earthen pot to make sweet, soft rice. You can cook rice in less time than a rice cooker, so there is no reason not to try it out.

Put in 200ml of water for 1 cup of rice

After washing the rice, place it in the earthen pot and let it sit for a while to let the water drain out. For every cup of rice, put in 200ml of water. Therefore, if you were to cook 2 cups, use 400ml and 600ml for 3 cups. Let the rice sit for about 20 minutes. Then, place a piece of seaweed on top of the rice for some seaweed infused rice. The gentle taste and smell of the seaweed will add a Japanese touch to the rice.
The total cooking time is 20 minutes. Place the lid on the pot and let the rice cook on medium heat for the first 5 minutes. When the lid starts to bounce or you see steam, turn down the heat to low heat and let it cook for 12~13 minutes. If you want a little crisp at the bottom, cook the rice for 2 more minutes on low heat. Lastly, turn off the heat and let the rice sit with the lid on for about 10 minutes. By keeping the lid on, the heat will continue to flow through the pot. In order to make the perfect earthen pot rice, patiently wait for the rice to finish cooking without opening the lid.
After waiting 10 minutes, the rice is all done! Open up the lid to smell the sweet scent of rice.

Sweet, soft rice made with the earthen pot

Also, if you have rice left over, keep the rice in the pot and refrigerate it. You can either heat up the rice on a later day or make porridge using the same exact pot.

Cook western-styled foods with the earthen pot

Hot pot dishes made with enamel pans and other pans can also be made with earthen pots as well. As mentioned before, the earthen pots are made to slowly put heat through the ingredients, so this pot is perfect for stews. Dishes that require a slow steam in trapped heat, such as cream stew, pot-au-feu, bouillabaisse, and acqua pazza, would work greatly with the earthen pot.

Make international foods with the earthen pot

Using the original earthen pot, which is not too thin but not too thick, is definitely recommended.

Tips on how to make earthen pots last longer

We will introduce some tips on how to make your original earthen pot last as long as possible.

Filling

The first thing you should do after receiving your earthen pot is filling. Filling is described as the care process to prevent dirt and other soils from getting in the cracks of the pot.
Fill up 8/10th of the pot with water used from washing rice and boil for about 10 minutes on low heat. Leave the water in the pot until the water cools. The starch from the rice fills up the cracks of the pot and prevents other soils and dirt from getting getting in the cracks.

Use the earthen pot after it is completely dry

The earthen pot is weak to sudden temperature changes due to its dirt make up. Putting fire on a wet earthen pot surface will lead to cracks in the pot. Please make sure to use the pot only when the base of the pot is completely dry. Also, putting the pot of high heat from the start is also dangerous. Start by using low heat and gradually strengthen the heat level.

Use a dish mat when placing the earthen pot on the table

When placing the earthen pot on the table, make sure to use a dish mat. Because the pot has a high level of heat retainment, it takes just as long to cool down. Therefore, placing the pot directly on the table could lead to tables melting and leaving burnt marks on both the table and the pot.

Wash the pot right after usage

Due to the main material of earthen pots being soil, the pot has a high absorbency rate. Therefore, leaving the pot unwashed after use leaves time for all the ingredients to soak into the pot itself. After making stew or hot pot, wash the pot by hand in hot water. If there is a stain that bothers you, use a neutral detergent to wash the pot.

Fix the cracks with starch

It is inevitable for cracks to form after a long time of usage. If your pot has several cracks in it, fill the pot with plenty of water and add a handful of rice. Turn the heat to a heat level lower than low heat to let it boil. Once the water boils, turn off the heat. Leave the water until it has completely cooled down.

When the smell or mold bothers you

If a certain smell bothers you, boil tea in the pot. Fill 3/4 of the pot with water and add a snatch of tea leaves. Boil the tea water for 10 minutes on low heat with the lid on. Just by boiling the water for 10 minutes, the smell will disappear. The sterilization factor of the tea leaves does the job.
If mold forms on the pot after being left in the cabinet, use vinegar to solve the problem. Fill up 8/10th of the pot with water and add 3 table spoons of vinegar. Boil the water on low heat with the lid on for 10 minutes and see the mold disappear.

With proper care, the earthen pot will last a long time

When you participate in the hand-made earthen pot workshop at the Shirokane Pottery School, you will learn about all the care tips. If there are others points that you are curious about, please ask the educated staff.

Make an original earthen pot that will last you a lifetime

With proper care, earthen pots have the ability to last a lifetime. Furthermore, with the original touch, using this pot in your everyday life will be even more exciting. Aside from hot pot dishes, the earthen pot can be used to make a wide range of dishes. Open doors to more delicious dishes with the earthen pot!