Gyudon and Rice Cookbook

Rice: 80+ Nice Rice Recipes from Asia features an exciting collaboration of sweet and savory rice-based dishes from across South, Southeast, and East Asia. A few highlights include Bibimbap, Nuo Mi Fan, Chicken Biryani, Pearl Meatballs, and Pulut Tai Tai. I will also be sharing a recipe for Gyudon following the review.

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from Smith Street Books in exchange for my honest review. All comments and opinions are my own. This post contains Amazon affiliate links. If you purchase something through the link, I may receive a small commission at no extra charge to you.

Rice

Rice begins with a short introduction along with a guide for notable ingredients before jumping into the recipes. As a note- if you are interested in noodles, I reviewed the sister book, Noods, last year and it is a fun accompaniment.

As with Noods, the recipes in this book were contributed by Billy Law, Jerry Mai, Aim Aris, Ahmad Salim, Sareen Rojanametin, Jean Thamthanakorn, and ArChan Chan with editing by Avery Hayes.

Chapters are divided according to cooking style: Steamed, Fried, Simmered, Moulded, and Sweet.

The photography is provided by Emily Weaving. Every single recipe is paired with a full-page photo of the finished dish.

Measurements are listed in Metric and US Customary. Titles are written in the romanized version of the original language. Each recipe has a headnote with background information, creator, yield, helpful notes, and tips.

Gyudon

This recipe for Gyudon comes from Billy Law. Japanese cuisine is home to a variety of incredible Donburi (rice bowl) dishes such as Oyakodon (Japanese Chicken and Egg Rice Bowl), Karaage Don (Japanese Fried Chicken Bowl), and Niratama Donburi (Japanese Eggs with Garlic Chives over Rice).

Gyudon (牛丼, Japanese Beef Rice Bowl) is another favorite with a combination of thinly sliced beef and onions all in a sweet and savory sauce. It also comes together in minutes for a wonderful, comforting weeknight option.

Simply simmer the beef with the onions in the soy sauce mixture until just cooked through (take care to not overcook or the beef may become tough). Serve immediately over a bed of freshly steamed rice with a sprinkling of sliced scallions and pickled ginger.

Notable Ingredients

Place the beef in the freezer for about 20 minutes before using to make it easier to slice as thinly as possible. I often buy pre-sliced beef from my local market with Japanese/Korean ingredients to save some time. Beef Scotch Fillet is known as ribeye in the United States.

Mirin is a sweet Japanese cooking rice wine. I use hon-mirin (true mirin) in recipes calling for mirin. I have been able to find it in markets with Japanese ingredients and some larger grocery stores.

Pickled ginger (beni shōga, 紅生姜) is made by pickling thin strips of ginger in a plum vinegar (赤梅酢). I have been able to locate it in small jars in the refrigerated section of my local market with Japanese and Korean ingredients.

More Rice

I also made Lu Rou Fan, Huang Jin Chao Fan, Jok, and Onigiri.

The Lu Rou Fan was packed with such incredible flavors. In this recipe from Billy Law, slices of pork belly and hard-boiled eggs are simmered in a rich soy sauce mixture until tender. It is served over rice with blanched baby boy choy and fried shallots.

The Huang Jin Chao Fan is another recipe contributed by Billy Law (apparently I was drawn to his dishes during this review). This fried rice has a golden color thanks to the coating from the 4 egg yolks. It is tossed in a fragrant scallion garlic oil until heated through.

The Jok recipe comes from Sareen Rojanametin and Jean Thamthanakorn. This comforting Thai rice porridge is served with homemade pork meatballs, julienned ginger, cilantro, and soft-boiled eggs. It was the perfect start to the day.

I made the Furikake Onigiri to use up some of the furikake seasonings I had on hand. This snack comes together by mixing sushi rice with furikake and a little sesame oil, then forming into triangles. To finish, they are wrapped in nori. There is also a recipe for Onirigi with a Spicy Tuna Mayo filling.

Rice is a great pick for those interested in trying rice at home in a variety of ways and styles. Some of the recipes come together in less than 30 minutes while other require longer simmering or resting times. There is a nice variety of meat, seafood, and vegetable-based dishes.

Many of the ingredients are becoming more readily available in larger American grocery stores. A few items may require an East or South/Southeast Asian market such as sashimi-grade fish, pandan leaves, belacan, lap cheong, pork belly, masoor dal, bird’s eye chilies, glutinous rice, Vietnamese mint, lemongrass, and more.

Gyudon (Japanese Beef Rice Bowl) Recipe

Excerpt from Rice

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5 from 3 votes

Gyudon (Japanese Beef Rice Bowl)

A recipe for Gyudon (Japanese Beef Rice Bowl)! Thinly sliced beef and onions are simmered in a sweet and savory sauce before serving over rice.

Course Main

Cuisine Japanese

Keyword beef, donburi, Japan, Japanese, meat, rice, rice bowl

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Resting Time: 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 30 minutes minutes

Servings 2 Servings

Ingredients

• 250 grams (9 ounces) beef scotch fillet with fat ribeye
• 2 teaspoons neutral oil
• 1 onion finely sliced
• 125 milliliters (1/2 cup) water
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 3 tablespoons mirin
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon Hondashi dashi powder, optional
• Steamed short-grain rice to serve
• 1 spring onion (scallion) finely sliced (optional)

Instructions

• Place the beef in the freezer for 20 minutes.
• Holding a knife at a 45-degree angle, cut the beef into thin slices. If the beef starts to thaw and is too soft to slice, put it back in the freezer and repeat the process. Set the slices aside and rest to room temperature.
• Heat the oil in a wok over high heat and sauté the onion for about 1 minute, until slightly brown. Add 125 milliliters (1/2 cup) of water, the soy sauce, mirin, sugar, and Hondashi, if using, stir well and bring to a simmer.
• Reduce the heat to medium and simmer for about 2 minutes, until the onion is soft.
• Add the beef, spreading it out over the wok, and simmer for 4-5 minutes, skimming off any impurities that float to the surface. Taste and adjust the seasoning accordingly.
• Divide the rice between serving bowls and spoon the beef mixture over the rice.
• Drizzle some sauce on top and finish with pickled ginger and the spring onion, if desired.