Gyūdon (牛丼, simmered beef over rice)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Wide shallow saucepan or skillet
• •Cooking chopsticks or tongs
• •Deep ceramic donburi bowls

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare the bowls

   Have the rice cooked and hot before you start the topping. Gyūdon moves quickly, and the beef shouldn't wait in the pan while the rice finishes. Fluff the rice into deep donburi bowls, leaving the surface loose so the broth can settle between the grains.

2. 2

   Mix the broth

   In a wide skillet or shallow saucepan, combine the dashi, soy sauce, mirin, sake, sugar, and grated ginger. Bring it just to a simmer and stir until the sugar dissolves. Taste it now. It should be a little stronger than you want the finished bowl, because the onion and rice will soften it.

   Use real dashi if you can. This is a short simmer, so the broth has no time to become interesting by accident.
3. 3

   Simmer the onion

   Add the sliced onion and spread it into an even layer. Simmer gently for 5 to 7 minutes, until the onion turns translucent at the edges but still keeps its shape. The onion goes in before the beef because it needs time to sweeten, and that sweetness is part of the sauce.

4. 4

   Add the beef

   Separate the beef slices with your fingers and lay them over the onion. Keep the broth at a quiet simmer, turning the slices once or twice with chopsticks until the meat just loses its raw red color, about 3 to 5 minutes. A hard boil squeezes the beef tight and makes the broth cloudy.

5. 5

   Settle the flavor

   Turn off the heat and let the beef sit in the broth for 2 minutes. This short rest lets the seasoning finish moving into the meat without cooking it hard. Skim any gray foam from the surface if you see it, because a clean broth makes a cleaner bowl.

6. 6

   Fill the bowls

   Spoon the beef and onion over the hot rice, building a little height in the center. Ladle over just enough broth to gloss the rice and run down the sides, not enough to flood the bowl. Finish with a small tuft of beni shōga and, if you like, a light shake of shichimi tōgarashi.

Chef Tips

• •Buy beef already sliced for sukiyaki or shabu-shabu if your market offers it. If not, freeze a small piece of beef until firm but not hard, then slice it as thinly as you can. Thickness is the line between tender gyūdon and a chewy beef stew pretending to be quick.
• •Slice the onion with the grain, from root to tip. It keeps a little shape as it softens, so the bowl has sweetness and texture instead of onion paste.
• •Don't drown the rice. A donburi needs sauce, yes, but the rice should still stand as rice. Spoon, look, then spoon again only if it asks for it.

Advance Preparation

• •Dashi can be made up to two days ahead and kept refrigerated.
• •The onion can be sliced several hours ahead and kept covered in the refrigerator.
• •Gyūdon is best cooked just before serving. Reheated beef loses tenderness, though leftovers can be warmed gently with a spoonful of dashi.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 520g)