Tanin-don, a comforting rice bowl topped with beef, egg, and a savory-and-slightly-sweet sauce. This quick one-pan meal is one of my favorite quick weeknight recipes.
Rice bowls, also called donburi, are very popular in Japan and are often served as “quick, easy meals”. If you see a “-don” added at the end of the dish name, it signifies that it’s a rice bowl. Some of the most popular are Gyu-don (beef and onion bowls), Katsu-don (katsu and egg bowls), and Oyako-don (chicken and egg bowls).
I think my favorite donburi, though, is Tanin-don.
My favorite things about Tanin-don
- The Name. While donburi are typically named after their protein (katsu-don, gyu-don), I love that Tanin-don has a tongue-in-cheek name that is tied to Oyako-don. Oyako-don is made of chicken and egg and uses the word “okyako” which means “parent & child,” a sort of morbid but also great way to describe the chicken and egg. The “tanin” in Tanin-don means “unrelated person” or “stranger,” in reference to Oyako-don, since Tanin-don is made with egg and a completely unrelated meat (like beef or pork). I just think it’s so clever and funny.
- It’s FAST. To prep and cook it is under 15 minutes, which is amazing. It’s cooked in one pan which means minimal cleanup. It’s my favorite no-effort weeknight meal because of this.
- Simple Ingredients. It uses ingredients I usually already have on hand. You can basically use any protein (beef is my fave but pork is often used), green onion or regular onion, egg, and then some Japanese pantry items/condiments.
My favorite topping/finisher for Tanin-don (and Oyako-don or almost any donburi) is Shichimi Togarashi. This is a dry Japanese 7-spice blend that I sprinkle on top to give it a little kick. You can find Shichimi Togarashi at your local Japanese market or I have it linked in my PANTRY or below in the “Shop this post” section if you want to order it online.
Tanin-don (Beef and Egg Bowl) / 他人丼
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound thinly sliced beef
- 4 large eggs
- 3-4 green onions cut into 3" sections
- 1/2 cup dashi
- 2 tbsp sake
- 1 1/2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 2 cups cooked white rice
Instructions
- Cut the green onions into 3" sections. Separate the whites & the greens.
- In a small bowl, crack in 2 eggs and beat until the whites and yolk are somewhat combined.
- In another small bowl, mix together the dashi, sake, soy sauce, and sugar.
- In a small pan (about the same size as your bowl) on medium heat, pour in half of the sauce and add the half of the white parts of the green onions and bring to a boil.
- Once boiling, add in half of the beef and half of the green onion. Cover with a lid and let the beef cook (since the beef is thin it should cook in about a minute).
- When the beef is cooked, pour the egg into the pan in a figure 8 shape. Rotate the pan or give the ingredients a quick stir so the egg spreads around more evenly.
- Cook until the egg is just slightly runny, about a minute. If you want it to be cooked through, you can cover with a lid and cook longer.
- Use a spatula to carefully release the bottom of the beef and egg mixture without breaking it apart (it should release fairly easily). Then slide the whole thing off the pan and into a bowl with rice.
- Repeat steps with the leftover ingredients to make a second donburi.
Notes
Shop this post:
Japanese Short Grain Koshihikari Rice (Shirakiku)
California-grown Medium Grain Japanese Rice
Shichimi Togarashi / 七味唐がらし
Soy Sauce / 醬油
Dashi / だし
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