Thinly sliced pork or beef is the key ingredient in many popular Japanese recipes. Here’s how to slice meat thinly for delicious Japanese dishes like Sukiyaki, Okonomiyaki, and Gyudon!
For Japanese recipes that include pork or beef, the majority will list “thinly sliced meat” on the ingredients list. Very thin slices – about 1/8 inch or even thinner. You can find packages of thinly-sliced meat at Japanese grocery stores like the ones pictured below.
If you don’t live nearby a Japanese grocery store, or you just prefer to slice the meat yourself, follow these simple instructions.
Watch How to Slice Meat Thinly
Thinly sliced pork or beef is the key ingredient in many popular Japanese recipes. Here’s how to slice meat thinly for delicious Japanese dishes like Sukiyaki, Okonomiyaki, and Gyudon!
Recipes with Thinly Sliced Meat
Thinly Sliced Beef
- Baby Carrot Beef Roll
- Beef Udon
- Bulgogi
- Gyudon
- Japchae (Korean Stir-Fried Noodles)
- Nikujaga (Beef and Potato Stew)
- Shabu Shabu
- Sukiyaki
- Teriyaki Steak Rolls
Thinly Sliced Pork Loin
- Crispy Tonkatsu Donburi
- Ginger Pork (Shogayaki)
- Hot Pot for One
- Miso Ginger Pork
- Potato Salad Pork Roll
- Soy Milk Hot Pot
Thinly Sliced Pork Belly
- BBQ Pork Belly
- Goya Champuru
- Honey Pork Belly
- Mille-Feuille Nabe
- Miso Soup with Yuzu Kosho
- Okonomiyaki
- Pressure Cooker Pork Belly (Kakuni)
- Tonjiru (Pork Miso Soup)
- Yaki Udon
- Yakisoba (Japanese Stir Fried Noodles)
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How to Slice Meat Thinly
Ingredients
- premium-quality meat (tenderloin, top sirloin, strip loin, rib eye, pork loin or any cut of meat that is slightly more lean and a bit more firm).
Instructions
- Put the meat in a single layer in a large freezer bag.
- Remove the air from bag and close tightly.
- Put on a metal tray (so the heat transfers faster) and freeze the meat for 1.5 to 2 hours, depending on the size of the meat and how fatty it is.
- Take the meat out from the freezer. Each meat shown here is 1 pound and I had to freeze for 1.5 hours.
- The meat is ready if the knife goes through smoothly and just firm enough for you to slice thinly. If the meat is too soft and you have trouble slicing, put it back into the freezer until it's firmer.
- Slice against the grain using a gentle sawing motion. When you look at the beef, you will see the fibers of the meat are going in one direction. You need to cut across in the other direction to ensure the tenderness.
- Here is the thinly-sliced meat.
- You can wrap the meat in plastic wrap, put in a freezer bag, and store in the freezer.
Notes
- A very sharp knife (A dull knife will not slice nicely)
- A metal tray
- A large freezer bag
Editor’s Note: The post was originally published on September 21, 2013. The post has been updated with video and new images.
Hi Nami! I’m so glad to have found this post. My question is about pre-sliced meat . When you buy it pre-sliced for Shabu shabu, how can you separate the slices and roll them up so they’re easy to pick up with chopsticks?
I always end up with a huge clump that is very messy to unfold.
Thanks!
Hi Joy, Thank you so much for taking the time to read Nami’s post!
We normally peel the meat from the top of the pre-sliced beef layer with chopsticks. We insert the chopsticks between the layers, lift them a bit, and pick them up. You can roll it from the edge of the top layer if you want to prepare it for rolling. You can also fold it instead of rolling it. The one you see in the restaurant sometimes uses a pre-frozen block of meat and a high-speed frozen meat slicer for slicing. It curled up on itself when cut.
We hope this was helpful!
https://www.justonecookbook.com/shabu-shabu/