Gyudon (Japanese Beef Rice Bowl)
My gyudon recipe shows you all the tips to create a hearty Japanese beef rice bowl with tender beef and a savory sweet broth full of umami. It’s easy to put together and tastes even better the next day.
Ingredients
- 2 cups water
- 1.5”x 3” kombu
- 4 tablespoons usukuchi soy sauce (*Footnote 1)
- 4 tablespoons Japanese sake
- 4 tablespoons mirin
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 medium yellow onion , very thinly sliced
- 1 lb beef , thinly sliced (*Footnote 2)
- 2 teaspoons ginger , grated
- 6 cups white rice , steamed
- Pickled ginger (*Footnote 3)
Instructions
- Combine water, kombu, soy sauce, Japanese sake, mirin, sugar and onion. Cook over medium heat until bringing to a boil. Turn to medium-low heat and simmer for 10 minutes, until onion has softened.
- Add the beef and grated ginger. Cook over medium heat until the broth is boiling again. Skim off and discard any brown foam from top, for 2 to 3 minutes, until no new foam is forming. Turn to medium-low heat and simmer covered for 8 minutes. Then simmer uncovered for another 7 minutes, until the broth has reduced by half. During the simmering, you can further skim off any oil from the surface.(*Footnote 4) You can serve the beef now. But it will be tastier if you let the broth cool off a bit, so the beef soaks up the flavor more.
- To serve, portion rice into each serving bowl. Add the beef with some broth. Garnish with pickled ginger and any other toppings you prefer. Enjoy as a main dish.
Notes
- Japanese light soy sauce (Usukuchi soy sauce, 薄口) is the best. If not available, use regular soy sauce.
- The thinner and fattier the beef, the better the result. I prefer the type of rolled up frozen sliced beef, usually labeled for hot pot or sukiyaki (usually found at Chinese or large Asian markets) because it is extra thin and fatty. You can also find sliced beef at Japanese and Korean markets. If none is available, check out how to slice meat thinly by Just One Cookbook.
- For the most authentic presentation, use red pickled ginger. I do not like food coloring personally so I used pickled ginger without dyes.
- If you use a fatty cut of beef, similar to the one I used in this recipe, the beef will release a lot of fat during cooking. I skimmed off about 1/3 cup fat during the cooking. If you make this dish ahead, you can also let the dish chill in the fridge and remove the solidified fat from the surface.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving, Calories: 637kcal, Carbohydrates: 88.2g, Protein: 29.5g, Fat: 15.9g, Saturated Fat: 6g, Trans Fat: 0.4g, Cholesterol: 88mg, Sodium: 1270mg, Fiber: 1.4g, Sugar: 18g