Yakiniku Donburi – Quick & Easy Japanese Grilled Beef Rice Bowl with Homemade Yakiniku Sauce

September 18, 2021Mrs. Lin's Kitchen
yakiniku don recipe

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Yakiniku don, or Yakiniku donburi, is Japanese grilled beef rice bowl. In Japanese, yaki means grill; niku means meat; and don or donburi means bowl.

yakiniku don recipe

Yakiniku don is a Japanese dish where grilled meat and veggies are served on a bed of rice with drizzles of flavorful yakiniku sauce. The most common meat type for yakiniku is beef. And in this recipe, I used about 1/2 lb. of grass-fed Angus tenderloin beef steak to serve two people. You can totally increase the amount of meat if you like to have more meat in each serving. Ribeye and tenderloin are some good options for yakiniku. However, high-quality beef such as Wagyu or Kobe is the best choice if you don’t mind the price.

Yakiniku can’t be complete without the special yakiniku sauce. Because the meat isn’t marinated, the flavor of this dish comes from yakiniku sauce. In this recipe, I will also show you how to quickly make yakiniku sauce with easy-to-find ingredients.

Yakiniku Don Ingredients

  • 1/2 lb ribeye/tenderloin beef
  • Wasabi (optional)
  • 4 lettuce leaves (optional)

In yakiniku don, veggies are optional. You can just eat rice with the yakiniku meat. Other veggies you can use are iceberg or green leaf lettuce, sliced cucumbers, or steamed broccoli.

Yakiniku Sauce:

  • 1/3 cup of soy sauce
  • 1/8 cup of sake
  • 1/4 cup of mirin
  • 1/8 cup of honey
  • 1/8 cup of sugar
  • 1 tbsp of sesame seeds
  • 1 tbsp of grated apple
  • 1/8 cup of orange juice
  • 1 tbsp of grated ginger
  • 1 tbsp of grated garlic 

When you read the recipe, you will find that I didn’t boil the orange juice, grated apple, ginger, and garlic. This is because I want to maintain the optimum flavor of these ingredients. As a result, my sauce will only last a few days because orange juice, apple, ginger, and garlic are perishable.

If you want to keep the yakiniku sauce for up to two weeks in the refrigerator, make sure to also boil orange juice, grated ginger, garlic, and apple.

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Yakiniku Don with Easy Homemade Yakiniku Sauce Recipe

Yakiniku don is a Japanese dish where grilled meat (beef) and veggies are served on a bed of rice with drizzles of flavorful yakiniku sauce.

Ingredients

  • 1/2 lb ribeye/tenderloin beef
  • wasabi, (optional)
  • 4 leaves lettuce, (optional)

Yakiniku Sauce

  • 1/3 cup soy sauce , (or gluten-free soy sauce)
  • 1/4 cup mirin
  • 1/8 cup honey
  • 1/8 cup sugar
  • 1/8 cup orange juice
  • 1/8 cup sake
  • 1 tbsp grated apple
  • 1 tbsp grated garlic
  • 1 tbsp grated ginger
  • 1 tbsp sesame seeds

Method

Prepare the Ingredients

  • 1)

    First, you need to grate some ginger, garlic, and apple.

  • 2)

    How you slice your meat really depends on the cut of meat that you have. Yakiniku meat is usually cut up into smaller pieces, which is the perfect size for one bite. I’m cutting each piece of the meat about 1/4 inch thick and about 1.5” to 2” lengthwise. You can freeze the meat for about 30 minutes and that will make slicing easier.

  • 3)

    Chop some red-leaf lettuce. Veggies are optional. Some people just eat rice with the yakiniku meat. Other veggies you can use are iceberg or green leaf lettuce, sliced cucumbers, or steamed broccoli.

Yakiniku Sauce

  • 1)

    In a pan, combine 1/3 cup of soy sauce, 1/4 cup of mirin, 1/8 cup of honey, 1/8 cup of sugar, and 1/8 cup of sake. Turn on the heat and boil until the sugar is all dissolved.

    When the sauce is done, turn off the heat and let the sauce cool for about 15 minutes

  • 2)

    Mix in 1 tbsp of orange juice, 1 tbsp of grated ginger, 1 tbsp of grated garlic, and 1 tbsp of grated apple. And add 1 tbsp of sesame seeds.

    Not boiling these ingredients will maintain their optimum flavor.

    However, if you want to keep this sauce for up to two weeks, make sure to also boil orange juice, grated ginger, garlic, and apple. These fresh ingredients are perishable so boiling them will help extend the shelf life of the sauce.

Grill the Meat

  • 1)

    Grill the meat on both sides. Depending on how cooked you want your meat to be, grilling time will differ. I usually grill for about 30 seconds on each side. That makes the meat almost well done but still tender.

    If you freeze the meat before cutting, just make sure to let them warm up to room temp before grilling

Serve Yakiniku Don

  • 1)

    To serve, create a bed of rice in your serving bowl. If you choose to have veggies, then lay some down in the center of the rice bed. Add a few pieces of grill meat on the top. Garnish with some sesame seed. Lastly, drizzle the yakiniku sauce, and there you have it.

Nutrition

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