This past weekend was the last weekend we spent together before my son goes to Kindergarten. I know it’s absurd I am thinking as if he’s going off to college, but it’s definitely strange seeing my little baby grow up so quickly. He’s starting his new school this Wednesday and he’s really excited about going to a “big boy” school.
I’ve been quite busy lately due to my husband’s traveling and it’s been a challenge to prepare complete meals. In these times, I always have two options that I fall back on: Donburi (rice bowl dish) or noodles (pasta or Asian noodles). Both types of dishes are relatively easy and quick to prepare, and the important part is that they fill you and your children up quickly and have fewer dishes to wash!
So today Donburi menu is! As I mentioned in my Japanese Beef Curry post, curry rice is one of the Japanese kids’ favorite meals. I always looked forward to the day when my mom was making curry rice for dinner. We have a lot of curry rice specialty restaurants in Japan and it wouldn’t be incorrect to say it’s one of the most popular dishes for the Japanese.
Unlike Thai curry or Indian curry, the spice level is milder and the sauce is quite thick. It’s always served with rice and the main ingredients include meat/seafood, onion, potatoes, and carrot. Each family has its own slightly different recipe as well.
Most Japanese do not make curry from individual spices and use curry roux, which was invented by a Japanese spice company. If you go to an Asian or Japanese store, you will find at least 3 brands of curry roux with varying spice levels. If you like to make curry roux from scratch, here’s the recipe.
This curry is super quick since you don’t really need to simmer for a long time like regular curry. So if you need to make dinner in less than 45 minutes, this is a great option.
Other Donburi Recipes
If curry is not your option, then I have other Donburi recipes that I have shared so far and I hope you can find some recipes that you like.
- Teriyaki Pork Loin Salad Donburi
- Beef Donburi with Shiso Garlic Soy Sauce
- Tori Soboro Donburi
- Eggplant & Unagi Donburi
- Crispy Tonkatsu Donburi
- Negitoro & Avocado Donburi
- Oyakodon
- Chinese Style Karaage Don
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Pork Curry Donburi
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp neutral oil
- 1 onion (thinly sliced)
- ½ lb sliced pork belly (cut into 1-inch (2.5-cm) pieces)
- 2 cups dashi (Japanese soup stock) (use standard Awase Dashi, dashi packet or powder, or Vegan Dashi)
- 2 cubes Japanese curry roux (you can make my homemade curry roux)
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce
For Serving
- 2 servings cooked Japanese short-grain rice (typically 1⅔ cups (250 g) per donburi serving)
- 1 green onion/scallion (chopped)
Instructions
- Before You Start: Gather all the ingredients. For the steamed rice, please note that 1½ cups (300 g, 2 rice cooker cups) of uncooked Japanese short-grain rice yield 4⅓ cups (660 g) of cooked rice, enough for 2 donburi servings (3⅓ cups, 500 g). See how to cook short-grain rice with a rice cooker, pot over the stove, Instant Pot, or donabe.
- In a large frying pan, heat 1 Tbsp neutral oil on medium heat and sauté 1 onion (thinly sliced), about 5 minutes.
- When the sliced onion is tender, add ½ lb sliced pork belly and cook until it‘s no longer pink, about 5 minutes.
- Add 2 cups dashi (Japanese soup stock) and bring it to a boil.
- Using a fine-mesh strainer, skim off the scum and foam from the surface. Then, reduce the heat to medium-low and add 2 cubes Japanese curry roux.
- Dissolve the cubes completely. If the curry is too thick or salty, you can add more dashi or water. When the curry starts to thicken, add 1 Tbsp soy sauce and mix well.
- Divide 2 servings cooked Japanese short-grain rice into individual donburi bowls and put the curry on top. Garnish it with 1 green onion/scallion (chopped) and enjoy!
To Store
- You can keep the leftovers in an airtight glass container and store in the refrigerator for 3 days or in the freezer for a month. Store any unused curry roux in the refrigerator.
To Reheat
- Leftover curry will thicken as it cools, so it tends to burn while reheating. To avoid this, stir ¼ cup (60 ml) water or more into the leftover curry until loosened. Then, gently reheat it on low heat. If it seems thin, continue heating with the lid off to reduce the sauce.
Nutrition
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