Oyakodon. A delicious, comforting Japanese chicken egg rice bowl made of chicken, soft-cooked eggs, sweet onions simmered in a flavorful broth. Ready in 15 minutes!
The most popular donburi in Japanese food made with simple ingredients with minimal effort.
There is something so special about oyako donburi. It is classic comfort food with delicious flavors that truly hit the spot. I love curling up to this bowl while watching a good drama.
Oyakodon is of those Japanese dishes that is quick and simple to make with minimal Japanese pantry staples! Because it's so simple and tasty, it is a beloved Japanese dish to many households, mine included!
What is Oyakodon?
In translation, the name of the dish "Oyakodon" means parent-child rice bowl in English. This is in reference to the main ingredients being the chicken and the egg. This is one of those popular choices in Japanese cuisine that many locals enjoy ordering at the Japanese restaurants.
It is known as a donburi, which is a Japanese word for rice bowl. Traditionally, oyakodon is comprised of simmering chicken breast or chicken thighs in a sweet and savory dashi stock with cooked onions and runny eggs over white rice.
It's usually garnish with Japanese herb like Japanese parsley, or sliced scallions. Depending on your preference, sometimes raw eggs are poured over the omelette at the end. This Japanese rice bowl dish is popularly served at many Japanese restaurants and noodle shops with some miso soup. The entire dish is truly a wonderful meal to enjoy as it's satisfying and filling!
What does Oyakodon taste like?
Japanese oyakodon has a sweet and savory flavor thanks to the combination of ingredients. The dashi stock or chicken broth is seasoned with soy sauce, mirin, and sugar to make it salty and sweet. The juicy chicken and luscious eggs absorbs the flavors of the white onions and sweet broth along with the sake used to marinate the chicken meat. When paired with rice, it's very comforting and delicious!
Easy Chicken Egg Rice Bowl
You can't beat the simplicity of this rice bowl! It's so quick and simple featuring minimal ingredients. This dish doesn't take a long time as the smaller pieces of chicken cook quickly in the egg mixture and broth on high heat. In 6 minutes, you'll have a chicken egg bowl with rice in your hands. If you have leftover rice in your rice cooker, this dish will be even easier to whip up!
Do I need a special ladle-like pan?
No! You may use any small 6 to 7-inch-wide small frying pan for this dish. Traditionally, in Japan, the Japanese use a separate pan for this dish. It's made of a light metal with a tall wooden handle that sits upright for swift pouring.
However, you don't need to venture out and buy that special pan - just use what you have. You can easily make the best chicken and egg rice bowl without any fancy equipment.
Ingredients
You’ll need the below main ingredients for oyakodon. Please scroll down to below recipe card for exact measurements.
Note: Most Asian markets will carry these ingredients. You may find some at your local grocery store or online, like on Amazon.
- Boneless chicken thighs: use skinless chicken thighs or substitute with chicken breast. For best results, I highly recommend chicken thighs as they are juicier, thanks to the dark meat and higher fat content. You'll want to dice it into bite-size chicken pieces for faster cooking. Make sure you're using fresh chicken. Sometimes when chicken thighs are not as fresh, they carry a very unpleasant odor. I wouldn't suggest using this as it's one of the key ingredients and it can spoil a great dish.
- Eggs: for vibrant yellow eggs, opt for ones with Omega 3's. We'll also want to beat the eggs a little bit so the egg whites remain intact. So the raw egg yolk remains runny when we pour it over the chicken. If you happen to over beat, don't worry it's not the end of the world.
- Chicken stock, or dashi stock: Traditionally, dashi stock is used in the original recipe but for reasons of simplicity and accessibility, feel free to use chicken broth. If you have instant dashi or good dashi stock at home, make good use of it in this oyakodon recipe!
- White Onion: slice onions into thin pieces and break the layers apart so they can evenly spread across the pan.
- Cooked rice: to serve in our parent-child donburi. I recommend using short-grain or long-grain rice. This is up to your personal preference. You can even serve this over brown rice for a healthier alternative. As long as you serve the cooked mixture over a bowl of rice, you're good!
Seasoning:
- Mirin: this is a sweetened Japanese cooking wine. You can purchase it at Japanese grocery stores. One of the best things about this wine is that it's commonly used in Japanese cooking, so you'll find that you'll use this often if you cook many Japanese recipes.
- Regular soy sauce: aka all-purpose soy sauce. This is different from dark soy sauce as it's not as dark or thick in color. You may also substitute with low-sodium soy sauce or light soy sauce.
- Sake: any sake of your choice. I like using a cooking sake. You can also find this in many Japanese grocery stores.
- Sugar: white sugar will work best for this; however, feel free to use any sweetener of your choice.
- Parsley or green onions: to garnish and add color to our dish!
How to Make Oyakodon
Slice chicken into small bite-sized pieces, about 1-inch cubes. Transfer pieces of chicken into a small bowl and mix in sake. Let this marinate as you work on other ingredients.
In another small bowl, crack eggs and lightly beat until the yolks come together but you still see some egg white, about 75% beaten. Set aside.
In a small frying pan (7 inches wide approximately) on medium heat, add chicken stock or dashi stock, regular soy sauce, mirin and sugar. Stir together.
Add thinly sliced onions and spread them evenly across the pan.
Spread diced chicken across the pan in a single layer. Let the chicken cook for 2 minutes. Flip chicken pieces over.
Pour beaten eggs in a circular motion in the pan on top of the chicken. Let this cook for 2 minutes until it’s mostly cooked but slightly runny in some areas. If you prefer fully cooked eggs, cover with a lid and cook until the eggs are cooked through.
Meanwhile serve hot cooked rice into a large bowl (about 7 inches wide) and flatten the rice across evenly.
Slide everything in the pan on top of your bowl of hot rice. Garnish with green onions and enjoy!
Storage for Oyakodon
This dish will last up to 4 days stored in an airtight container in the fridge. To reheat, microwave for 2-3 minutes or warm up on the stove top on medium heat.
FAQ
Substitutes for mirin?
I would suggest omitting altogether and adding more sugar to the broth to taste. Mirin is typically sweet and has a very slightly alcoholic taste.
Substitutes for sake?
Feel free to omit completely if you are trying to minimize alcohol consumption.
Can I substitute the chicken for another source of protein?
Sure, feel free to omit altogether or substitute with thinly sliced beef, thinly sliced pork, or tofu.
Can I make this Oyakodon gluten-free?
Yes, by substituting the soy sauce with tamari sauce, coconut aminos or any gluten-free soy sauce of your choice you can make this gluten-free.
Is this similar to Gyudon?
Yes and no. Gyudon is also a Japanese rice bowl dish but any gyudon recipe will feature simmered beef instead. The beef is also cooked in a flavorful sweet stock like Oyakodon. It also contains egg but a raw egg yolk placed over the simmered beef. Both are equally delicious and popular Japanese dishes that you can find at the Japanese restaurant!
Other Japanese recipes you may enjoy!
If you enjoyed my oyakodon recipe, check out these other recipes:
Easy 15-min. Oyakodon
Ingredients
- 2 chicken thighs skinless boneless
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup chicken stock or dashi stock
- ¼ medium onion thinly sliced
- 1 tablespoon mirin
- 1 tablespoon regular soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon sake
- 2 teaspoon white granulated sugar
- ½ green onion finely chopped (or sub with parsley)
- 2 cups cooked rice to serve
Instructions
- Slice chicken into small bite-sized pieces, about 1-inch cubes. Transfer pieces of chicken into a small bowl and mix in sake. Let this marinate as you work on other ingredients.
- In another small bowl, crack eggs and lightly beat until the yolks come together but you still see some egg white, about 75% beaten. Set aside.
- In a small frying pan (7 inches wide approximately) on medium heat, add chicken stock or dashi stock, regular soy sauce, mirin and sugar. Stir together.
- Add thinly sliced onions and spread them evenly across the pan.
- Spread diced chicken across the pan in a single layer. Let the chicken cook for 2 minutes. Flip chicken pieces over.
- Pour beaten eggs in a circular motion in the pan on top of the chicken. Let this cook for 2 minutes until it’s mostly cooked but slightly runny in some areas. If you prefer fully cooked eggs, cover with a lid and cook until the eggs are cooked through.
- Meanwhile serve hot cooked rice into a large bowl (about 7 inches wide) and flatten the rice across evenly.
- Slide everything in the pan on top of your bowl of hot rice. Garnish with green onions and enjoy!
Did you enjoy my recipe?