With chunks of potatoes, onion, and thinly sliced beef simmered in savory and sweet dashi broth, Japanese Meat and Potato Stew (Nikujaga) is one of the most iconic home-cooked dishes in Japan.
Nikujaga (肉じゃが) or Japanese Meat and Potato Stew is synonymous with good old home cooking in Japan. It’s the dish that everyone frequently eats at home and remembers as mother’s taste おふくろの味. Let’s make a killer Nikujaga that steals your family’s heart!
What is Nikujaga
As two of the main ingredients are niku (meat) and jagaimo (potatoes), Nikujaga (肉じゃが) literally means “meat and potatoes”. It is an iconic Japanese home-cooked dish, known as “Ofukuro no Aji” – the taste of a mother’s cooking. For many, nikujaga is an honest-to-goodness comfort food.
Potatoes make up the majority of the dish, with some thinly sliced beef or pork, onion, shirataki noodles (ito konnyaku), and a colorful mix of vegetables. In western Japan, nikujaga typically features beef while pork is more commonly used in eastern Japan.
It is a classic Yoshoku, a western-influenced Japanese food, that appeared in the late 19th century. Here, the ingredients are stewed in soy sauce, sugar, sake, and mirin, along with dashi (or water) in a pot, rendering a familiar Japanese flavor.
History of Nikujaga
Nikujaga originated in the Imperial Japanese Navy. It was introduced to sailors as it was high in nutrition and the ingredients are easy to supply as they are similar to the ones for Navy Curry.
In the late 19th century, General Heihachiro Togo who studied in Portsmouth, England in the late 1800s, asked the naval cook to create a version of the beef stew, which was served in the British Royal Navy. As the chef never tried beef stew before and ingredients like wine and demi glace sauce were not available then, the chef invented his own version with soy sauce and sugar, similar to Sukiyaki. The dish, called Amani (甘煮) back then, became popular in the Navy, and you can find the recipe in the “Navy kitchen textbook.”
On the contrary, the general public didn’t show interest in the dish as it uses beef and potatoes that were foreign to the Japanese at the time. Nikujaga didn’t appear on the table at home until the 1970s. That’s when beef stew and curry rice started to become popular and home cooks started to use beef and potatoes in their cooking.
How to Make Nikujaga
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Potatoes
- Thinly sliced beef or pork (thinly sliced meat cooks a lot faster!)
- Onion
- Shirataki noodles (Ito Konnyaku)
- Carrot
- Green vegetables (Most commonly snow peas, green beans, or green peas)
- Seasonings – soy sauce, sugar, mirin, sake, optional dashi (Japanese soup stock)
Overview of Cooking Steps
- Blanch the green vegetable of your choice in a separate small pot. Set aside for the last step.
- Cook shirataki noodles according to package directions.
- In a large pot, cook the onion and then add meat.
- Add potatoes and coat them well with oil.
- Add the rest of the ingredients, including shirataki noodles.
- Add seasonings and simmer for 15 minutes.
- Let cool for 30-60 minutes.
- When ready to serve, add in blanched green vegetables and reheat to serve.
5 Most Important Tips to Make Best Nikujaga
- Cut the ingredients into roughly equal chunks and size – The ingredients should be all cooked in 15 minutes or less. If you cut them too small or too large, the texture will either be mushy or undercooked.
- Use a bigger pot/pan – To make sure the ingredients absorb all the great flavors, it’s best to use a wide, big pan or pot so the ingredients won’t be overlapping too much and there is no need to mix frequently.
- Use Otoshibuta (Drop Lid) – This Japanese must-have tool keeps the ingredients in place while simmering so they will not move and break down. It also helps to circulate the broth over the surface so you don’t need to mix while cooking. Don’t have one? Make one with aluminum foil or parchment paper!
- Let cool after simmering – During cool down, the ingredients will absorb all the flavors.
- Add green vegetables right before serving – I highly recommend blanching the green vegetables first, and reheating them right before serving. If you cook them with the other ingredients, the color will not stay bright green.
What to Serve with Nikujaga
- Rice: Steamed rice, Takikomi Gohan
- Soup: Miso Soup, Kakitama Jiru (Japanese Egg Drop Soup)
- Sides: Grilled Mackerel (if you want more protein), Spinach Ohitashi, Chilled Tofu, Green Bean Shiraae, Eggplant Agebitashi
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Nikujaga (Japanese Meat and Potato Stew)
Video
Ingredients
- 1 onion (8.8 oz, 250 g)
- 1 carrot (4.5 oz, 127 g)
- 3 Yukon gold potatoes (1.2 lb, 546 g)
- 8 pieces snow peas (or use green beans or green peas)
- 1 package shirataki noodles (7 oz, 200 g)
- ½ lb thinly sliced beef (chuck or ribeye) (or slice your own meat; you can use thinly sliced pork; substitute with shiitake, king oyster, or portobello mushrooms for vegan/vegetarian)
- 1 Tbsp neutral oil
For the Seasonings
- 2 cups dashi (Japanese soup stock) (use standard Awase Dashi, dashi packet or powder, or Vegan Dashi)
- 4 Tbsp mirin
- 4 Tbsp soy sauce
- 2 Tbsp sake
- 1 Tbsp sugar
Instructions
- Gather all the ingredients.
To Prepare the Ingredients
- Cut 1 onion in half, and cut each half into ½-inch (1.3 cm) wedges.
- Peel 1 carrot and cut it into 1-inch (2.5 cm) pieces. Here, I use a Japanese cutting technique called rangiri where we cut the carrot diagonally while rotating it a quarter turn between cuts. This helps to create more surface area so it will cook faster and absorb more flavor.
- Cut each of the 3 Yukon gold potatoes into quarters. Tip: Yukon golds keep their shape better during simmering, but I sometimes use russet potatoes, which tend to break easily but absorb flavors nicely.
- Remove the sharp edges of the potatoes with a knife to create smooth corners. Then, soak the potatoes in water to remove the starch. Tip: We call this Japanese cutting technique mentori. This prevents the potatoes from breaking into pieces. If the potatoes have sharp edges, they are likely to bump into each other and break while simmering.
- Remove the strings from 8 pieces snow peas.
- Bring a small pot of water to a boil and add a pinch of salt. Add the snow peas.
- Blanch them in the boiling water for 1 minute and take them out. Keep the water boiling.
- Drain 1 package shirataki noodles and cut them roughly in half. Blanch the noodles in the pot of boiling water for 1 minute to remove any odor.
- Drain well and set aside. Cut the thinly-sliced beef in half or thirds (depending on the size) so that the pieces are about 3 inches (7.6 cm) wide.
To Cook the Nikujaga
- Preheat a large pot or Dutch oven (I used a 4-QT Staub cocotte) on medium heat. Then, add 1 Tbsp neutral oil and sauté the onion wedges.
- When the onion wedges are coated with oil, add ½ lb thinly sliced beef (chuck or ribeye) and cook until no longer pink.
- Add the potatoes and coat them well with the cooking liquid. Tip: This coating will help keep the potatoes from breaking.
- Add the carrot pieces and shirataki noodles and mix everything together.
- Add 2 cups dashi (Japanese soup stock), making sure there‘s enough liquid to almost cover the ingredients (it doesn‘t have to fully cover the ingredients). If there‘s not enough liquid, add water.
- Cover with a lid and continue to cook. Once boiling, skim the scum and foam from the surface with a fine-mesh skimmer.
- Add 1 Tbsp sugar, 2 Tbsp sake, 4 Tbsp soy sauce, and 4 Tbsp mirin.
- Mix it all together and place an otoshibuta (drop lid) on top of the ingredients.
- Simmer on low heat for 12–14 minutes, or until a skewer pierces a potato easily. Tip: The otoshibuta holds the ingredients in place and is necessary to maintain the shape of the vegetables. They bump into each other and break easily when they are loose. Do not mix the ingredients while cooking; the otoshibuta will help distribute the cooking liquid and its flavors.
- Turn off the heat and remove the otoshibuta. Ideally, let the Nikujaga rest (uncovered) for 30–60 minutes before serving. The flavors will soak into the ingredients while cooling down.
To Serve
- When you are ready to serve the Nikujaga, add the blanched snow peas to the pot and cover to reheat on medium heat. When simmering, reduce the heat and let it simmer for a few minutes. Tip: Add the snow peas right before serving to keep their bright color.
- Turn off the heat and serve the Nikujaga with some cooking liquid in a large serving bowl or individual bowls.
To Store
- You can keep the leftovers in an airtight container or in the pot and store in the refrigerator for up to 3–4 days. Nikujaga tastes even better on the second day! To freeze, remove the potatoes as their texture changes when frozen. You can keep it in the freezer for up to a month.
Nutrition
Editor’s Note: The post was originally published on April 19, 2012. New images and video have been added to the post and the content has been updated.
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Yes, yes, yes! I’ve made Nikujaga so many times and it was DULLLLL. Now I know the secret! 秘密
Hi Don! Thanks for your kind words! So happy to hear you like Nikujaga. 🙂
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Konnichiwa Nami,
Chotto shitsumon ga arimasu. I have some frozen ground beef and was wondering if I can use that to replace the sliced beef. Should I try doing it with less time (to prevent beef from turning too old) , or use the same amount of time for simmering?
arigatougozaimasu ! J
Konnichiwa J! You can use ground beef. It’s more of cooking the potatoes. Meat goes in first to cook, and then simmer all the ingredients with meat until potatoes are cooked through (meat will stay in even though it’s been cooked already). To improve the flavor, you can set aside to let the ingredients absorb more flavors at room temperature and reheat to enjoy it. That would be ideal if you have time to cook ahead. Hope that helps!
Thank you Nami! It turned out delicious with the ground beef. Although I would choose beef that is more lean next time.
Thank you! 🙂
Hi J! Thanks so much for letting me know. I’m glad to hear you enjoyed this recipe! 🙂
I made it to the recipe and it tastes fantastic! The homemade dashi stock is an especially good
Hi Nami, thank for sharing such a wonderful recipe. My husband and daughters love them very much. Have been cooking it couples of time……thank you very much!! ????
Hi Wai! So happy to hear your family enjoy this dish! It’s very Japanese “home cook” dish. I’m excited that your family liked it! Thank you for your kind feedback!
Oh my goodness! I made this for the first time tonight and it was absolutely amazing! I couldn’t believe I had made it! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe! It has become a new favorite. とてもおいしかたです!
your recipes are awesome! i love them so much <3 ive gotta try them all ☺️
Thank you so much, dzung! I’m so happy to hear that. 🙂
Definitely a favourite of mine. I added sweet potato to it and a little bit of oyster sauce. I have to freeze it otherwise I tend to eat to much. Definitely a quick comfort food
Thanks for sharing these recipes
Hi Nami! I just wanted to tell you that you are an absolute God-send for me as I am living in Germany and had NO idea how to cook my mom’s Japanese home-cooked meals until I came upon your website. All this time, I’ve relied on her or have been eating out…But this isn’t possible in Germany, so without you I’d be horribly homesick AND starving. Thank you x 1 million! Your recipes are laid out so well and clearly and make it easy for even the worst of cooks.
Hi Marie! Aww you’re so kind and sweet. Thank you very much for writing! Once you cook several dishes, you will be able to season your meal just the way your mom cooks. 🙂 Japanese cooking is very simple (condiments are always same), so you can easily adjust to your liking. I’m glad to hear my recipes are easy to follow. Thank you very much!!! xoxo
Via Nikujaga I discovered your blog. Thanks Nikujaga!! One question: I always make it with chicken (thighs). But if you make it with this thin meat you cook the meat the whole time? It doesn’t get overcooked? Do you use the kind of meat you can use for shabu-shabu? I found out that my eastern food shop sells this beef only the other day. Sooooo happy! First time ever my shabu shabu tasted a bit like Japan.
Hi Lara! So happy to hear how you found my blog. Meat should have enough fat in it and be tender even after simmering. Because the meat is so thin, even after cooking for a while it doesn’t get chewy or hard. It’s pretty common in Japanese cooking to cook meat like this (sukiyaki, gyudon, all similar way). Great that you found a shop that sells thinly sliced meat! Make sure it has some fat in it otherwise the meat will be chewy and tough. If their sliced meat is not good quality, I’d slice my own meat using better quality meat (rib eye is a good choice): https://www.justonecookbook.com/how-to/how-to-slice-meat/