Chukadon (中華丼) is one of those dishes that provide both comfort and satisfaction at the end of a long day. Flashed cooked in a wok and served over a bowl of steamed rice, it meets my hallmarks of ‘easy cleanup’ and ‘one-pot favorites.’
What is Chukadon
Chukadon (中華丼) literally means “Chinese style Rice Bowl” in Japanese. It’s a donburi (don for short) that consists of stir-fried ingredients served over rice. It is believed that chukadon originated in the 1930s from a Chinese-style restaurant in Tokyo.
The colorful stir-fry that sits atop of the rice is actually a well-known dish itself and it’s called Happosai (八宝菜) in Japanese. It came from the Cantonese “Eight Treasure” (八宝) dish.
Happosai served over steamed rice is called Chukadon, and when it’s served over crispy noodles, we call it Ankake Yakisoba or Gomoku Yakisoba, similar to Sara Udon.
The number from “Eight Treasure” doesn’t necessarily mean the dish contains 8 ingredients. It just implies an abundance of ingredients from seafood (shrimp and squid) to meat (typically pork), to sliced vegetables that are all stir-fried quickly in a wok (or pan).
Happosai (Japanese-style Eight Treasure) is mainly seasoned with both soy sauce and oyster sauce, along with additional and optional condiments. To finish, slurry sauce (starch and water) is added to create a thick saucy dish that goes perfectly over steamed rice. When the stir fry is thickened, we call the dish Ankake (あんかけ) in Japanese.
Not only Chukadon can employ a variety of nutritioius ingredients, it’s one of popular fast foods at Japanese fast food diners. Today let’s make it in our own kitchen!
How to Make Chukadon
Basic Ingredients You’ll Need
- Pork
- Shrimp
- Carrot
- Napa cabbage
- Bok choy
- Shiitake mushroom
- Bamboo shoot
- Wood ear mushroom
- Condiments: chicken stock, soy sauce, oyster sauce, sake, sesame oil, potato starch (cornstarch)
- Steamed rice
Don’t have all the ingredients? Don’t worry, you can swap or leave out some of them. No napa cabbage? Use regular cabbage. Look in the fridge to see what works.
The only tip I have is that I do not recommend fragile leafy ingredients (like spinach) as stir-frying will cook them too fast and cannot withstand the heat for a longer time.
Quick Overview on Cooking Process
- Prepare ingredients – rehydrate, chop, and marinade.
- Stir fry pork and shrimp and set them aside.
- Stir fry dense vegetables and then leafy vegetables.
- Put back the pork and shrimp and toss them all together.
- Season the ingredients, add the slurry sauce, and give everything a good final toss!
Stir-Frying Tips
- Cut into similar shapes and sizes. This will cook the ingredients evenly.
- Heat the wok (or frying pan) till hot before adding ingredients.
- Don’t be shy with the oil. Add the oil after the wok/pan is heated, so the oil will be distributed easily.
- Stir fry ingredients in stages for best texture. Start with the proteins then set aside before you cook the vegetables. You’ll add in the proteins back later.
- Maintain high heat throughout cooking.
- Mix slurry sauce really well right before you drizzle.
How to Serve Chukadon
Obviously this is a donburi (rice bowl) dish so we serve the medley of stir fry over a bowl of rice. The simple yet flavorful combo has everything you need!
However, if you want to serve it as a main dish without rice (the dish will be called Happosai), or a small portion as a side dish along with other Chinese-style dishes, you can definitely do that!
Other Chinese-Style Dishes You’ll Enjoy:
- Mapo Tofu
- Mapo Eggplants (Mabo Nasu)
- Beef & Green Pepper Stir Fry
- Sara Udon (Crispy Noodles with Seafood)
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Chukadon (Chinese-Style Rice Bowl)
Ingredients
- 4 dried wood ear mushrooms (0.1 oz, 3 g)
- ½ carrot (3.5 oz, 100 g)
- 1 Shanghai bok choy (3.5 oz, 100 g)
- 2 leaves napa cabbage (6.6 oz, 188 g)
- ¼ piece boiled bamboo shoot (1.5 oz, 43 g)
- 1 shiitake mushroom (0.6 oz, 18 g)
For the Shrimp and Pork
- 6 oz sliced pork belly
- 6 shrimp (4.2 oz, 120 g)
- 1 Tbsp sake
- ¼ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- 2 tsp potato starch or cornstarch
For Stir-Frying
- 2 Tbsp neutral oil (divided; half for the pork and shrimp and half for the veggies)
For the Seasoning Sauce
- 1 cup chicken stock/broth
- ½ cup water
- ½ tsp sugar
- 1 Tbsp sake
- 1½ Tbsp soy sauce
- 1½ Tbsp oyster sauce
- ⅛ tsp white pepper powder (optional)
- 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
For the Slurry
- 2 Tbsp potato starch or cornstarch
- 2 Tbsp water
For Serving
- 3 servings cooked Japanese short-grain rice (typically 1⅔ cups (250 g) per donburi serving)
- white pepper powder (optional)
Instructions
- Before You Start: Gather all the ingredients. For the steamed rice, please note that 2¼ cups (450 g, 3 rice cooker cups) of uncooked Japanese short-grain rice yield 6⅔ cups (990 g) of cooked rice, enough for 3 donburi servings (5 cups, 750 g). See how to cook short-grain rice with a rice cooker, pot over the stove, Instant Pot, or donabe.
To Prepare the Vegetables
- In a small bowl, soak 4 dried wood ear mushrooms in water for 15 minutes to rehydrate, then cut them into smaller pieces. If you have time, soak them for 6 hours; they‘ll be close to fresh wood ear mushrooms.
- Cut ½ carrot into 2-inch (5-cm) lengths and slice them into thin slabs. If any slabs are too wide, cut them in half to get bite-sized pieces.
- Cut and discard the bottom end of 1 Shanghai bok choy. Then, cut it into 2-inch (5-cm) pieces. Wash the bok choy again if you find dirt between the layers. Keep the dense bottom and leafy pieces in two separate piles.
- Cut 2 leaves napa cabbage into 2-inch (5-cm) pieces widthwise. Then, cut them into bite-size pieces. Keep the dense bottom and leafy pieces in two separate piles.
- Cut ¼ piece boiled bamboo shoot in half widthwise and cut into thin slices. The key to a great stir-fry is to have ingredients that are uniform in shape and thickness.
- Remove the stem of 1 shiitake mushroom and cut the cap into thin slices.
- Prepare all the ingredients on a tray/plate so it‘s easy to add them to the wok when you start stir-frying.
To Prepare the Shrimp and Pork
- Remove and discard the shells of 6 shrimp. Using a knife, cut along the outer edge of the shrimp’s back, about ¼-inch (6-mm) deep. If you can find it, remove and discard the vein that runs right under the surface. For step-by-step photos, see my post How to Devein Shrimp. If you can’t see the vein, don’t worry.
- In a medium bowl, add the deveined shrimp, 6 oz sliced pork belly, 1 Tbsp sake, ¼ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt, and 2 tsp potato starch or cornstarch. Rub the meat and shrimp with the seasonings.
- In a small bowl, combine 2 Tbsp potato starch or cornstarch and 2 Tbsp water and mix well together. You will need to mix it again right before pouring.
To Stir-Fry
- Heat the wok (or large frying pan) on medium high. When it’s hot, add 1 Tbsp oil and wait until the smoke starts to rise from the edge of the pan. Then, add the shrimp and pork to the wok.
- Spread out the pork and shrimp so they have good contact with the hot wok surface. Cook until the pork is no longer pink and the shrimp changes color.
- Transfer the pork and shrimp to a plate. Next, add 1 Tbsp oil to the wok/pan and heat until hot.
- Add the thick or dense vegetables—the sliced carrots, bamboo shoots, wood ear mushrooms, and bottom parts of the napa cabbage and bok choy. Stir-fry until 50% cooked through.
- Add the leafy vegetables and shiitake mushrooms. Quickly stir-fry, about 1–2 minutes.
- Add 1 cup chicken stock/broth and ½ cup water to the hot wok.
- Add ½ tsp sugar and 1 Tbsp sake and toss all together. Bring it back to a simmer and cook for 3–4 minutes.
- When all the ingredients are nicely tender but still crisp, add the pork and shrimp back to the wok and toss them all together.
- Add 1½ Tbsp oyster sauce and 1½ Tbsp soy sauce and combine well with the ingredients.
- Add ⅛ tsp white pepper powder and 1 tsp toasted sesame oil.
- Give the slurry another stir to loosen it up. With a fast motion, drizzle the slurry around the wok to evenly distribute it so it thickens evenly. Then, give everything a final toss together. Tip: If you feel the starch is too thick, you can add some water to loosen it up. The thickness of the sauce varies depending on how much cooking liquid has evaporated during the cooking process.
To Serve
- Divide the stir-fry over 3 servings cooked Japanese short-grain rice portioned into individual donburi (large) bowls. You can sprinkle white pepper powder if you like. Enjoy!
To Store
- You can keep the leftovers in an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or in the freezer for a month.
Nutrition
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