Beef soboro don

Name: Beef soboro don
Cook time: 30 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Japanese
Ingredients: 350g beef mince; 60ml (3 tbsp) soy sauce; 40ml (2 tbsp) sake; 2 tbsp caster sugar; 2 cloves garlic, finely grated; black pepper, to taste; steamed Japanese short-grain rice (such as Koshihikari), to serve; 2 eggs, soft-boiled and halved; 150g sugar snap peas or green beans, trimmed and blanched; mizuna or shiso leaves, to serve

Julia Busuttil Nishimura

August 4, 2023

easyTime:< 30 minsServes:4

Soboro don is pure comfort food and a real crowd-pleaser in my house. Soboro in Japanese means to crumble; here it refers to a protein – fish, meat, eggs or tofu – that’s cooked down to a crumbly texture. I’ve chosen beef mince, but chicken mince is a great alternative. While the traditional don (or bento) would commonly be served with scrambled eggs, I like the simplicity of half a soft-boiled egg. This sweet and salty dish loves the company of blanched vegetables, such as sugar snap peas or green beans. Serve with a leafy green of your choice: mizuna is nice, or shiso for extra flavour.

Ingredients

350g beef mince
60ml (3 tbsp) soy sauce
40ml (2 tbsp) sake
2 tbsp caster sugar
2 cloves garlic, finely grated
black pepper, to taste
steamed Japanese short-grain rice (such as Koshihikari), to serve
2 eggs, soft-boiled and halved
150g sugar snap peas or green beans, trimmed and blanched
mizuna or shiso leaves, to serve

Method

Step 1
Place the beef, soy sauce, sake, sugar and garlic in a small-medium saucepan and set over a medium heat. Stir to break up the mince – chopsticks are handy here – and ensure everything is well mixed. Cook the mixture for 3 minutes or until the beef has begun to change colour. Reduce heat to low-medium and cook for a further 5-6 minutes, stirring often, until nearly all of the liquid has evaporated. Season with pepper.
Step 2
Spoon some steamed rice into four bowls and top the rice with the beef, half a boiled egg, the sugar snap peas and mizuna or shiso. Season with a little more black pepper and serve.