I’ve been listening to an audio book, ‘Butter‘, a novel about food, fat-phobia and murder; as well as also reading another book about Japanese food. I’ve also landed on a Japanese TikTok algorithm, so all I can think about lately is washoku (food from Japan). I’ve been to the Japanese grocery store a few times to stock up on things I’ve been reading about and seeing.

I will be recreating a dish shortly that I am inspired to make from reading ‘Butter’, but for now it was creating this simple dish.

Oyakodon, literally “parent-and-child donburi”, is a donburi, or Japanese rice bowl dish, in which chicken, egg, sliced scallion, and other ingredients are all simmered together in a kind of soup that is made with soy sauce and stock, and then served on top of a large bowl of rice.

– Wikipedia

Tim Anderson’s non traditional recipe contains butter and shiitake mushrooms, which adds a nice richness and flavour boost. It’s an easy one you can whip up mid week for a tasty taste of Japan.

Oyakodon (Chicken & Egg Rice Bowl)

Tim Anderson

Print Recipe

Servings 4

Ingredients

  

• 80g butter
• 2 onions, peeled and thinly sliced
• 4 boned and skinned chicken thighs, cut into bite-size pieces
• 100g shiitake mushrooms, destemmed and thinly sliced
• 200ml dashi or chicken stock
• 3 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp mirin
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 8 eggs
• 2 spring onions, thinly sliced
• shichimi togarashi, to serve

Instructions

 

• Melt the butter in a large frying pan over medium heat, then add the onions and cook until they soften and brown – about 10 minutes.
• Add the chicken and mushrooms, and cook for another five to 10 minutes, until these brown as well.
• Pour in the stock, soy, mirin and sugar, and cook for 10 minutes, or until the liquid reduces and coats the chicken.
• Lower the heat and crack in the eggs. Break the yolks and stir gently. When cooked to a semi-scrambled consistency, take off the heat.
• Scoop the rice into deep bowls, top with the chicken and egg mixture, and garnish with spring onions and chilli powder.