Gyutan (Sendai grilled beef tongue)

Step 1: Rinse the 6 ½ oz Japanese short-grain rice and 1 oz pressed barley (oshimugi) or pearl barley together in a sieve until the water runs almost clear. Put them in a pan or rice cooker with the 1 cup water and leave to soak for 30 minutes while the tongue cures.

Step 2: Pat the 12 ½ oz beef tongue, peeled slices dry with kitchen paper. Make 3 or 4 shallow cuts, about 2 mm deep, across each side of every slice; this stops them curling and makes them easier to bite.

Step 3: Season both sides of the slices with 1 tsp salt and ½ tsp black pepper, lay them on a plate, cover and leave in the fridge for 30 minutes (at the same time as the rice soaks). The salt seasons the meat right through and firms the surface.

Step 4: Cook the rice: bring the pan to the boil over a medium-high heat, cover, turn to the lowest heat and cook for 13 minutes. Turn off the heat and leave covered for 10 minutes. In a rice cooker, use the normal setting.

Step 5: For the soup, if making it, heat the 2 cups beef stock with the ¼ tsp salt over a medium heat until just simmering. Keep it hot on the lowest heat.

Step 6: Heat a heavy cast-iron pan or griddle over a high heat until it smokes lightly, then wipe it with the 1 tsp vegetable oil. Take the tongue out of the fridge 10 minutes before cooking.

Step 7: Lay the slices in the pan in one layer, leaving gaps (cook in two batches if needed). Cook for 2 to 3 minutes without moving them, until the underside has a deep brown crust.

Step 8: Turn the slices and cook for another 2 minutes, until both sides are browned and the meat is firm and springy and reaches 145°F/145 °F in the centre. Common mistake: cooking the slices over a medium heat. They stew in their juices and turn grey and rubbery instead of crisping at the edges.

Step 9: Move the tongue to a warm plate and rest for 3 minutes before serving.

Step 10: Fluff the barley rice with a rice paddle. Stir the 2 spring onions and 1 pinch white pepper into the soup. Serve the tongue with the rice, the soup, the 2 ⅞ oz Japanese pickled cabbage or other pickles and ½ lemon wedges for squeezing.