Japanese Hamburger Steak

Japanese hamburger steak is called hamburg ( ハンバーグ ) in Japanese. While it is not exactly traditional Japanese food, it is very popular to cook in Japanese homes and at Japanese restaurants. It is quite different than a western hamburger, but still is popular among westerners.

The texture of Japanese hamburger steak is more like meatloaf and is served with a variation of steak sauce. It is not served with a bun, as is done in western restaurants. Japanese restaurants often serve hamburg with buttered corn and french fries. At home, we like to serve it with fruits and vegetables. In this example, we ate hamburg with salad and had strawberries for desert.

I first ate a Japanese hamburger steak when I lived in Japan and it was one of my favorite dishes. My wife sometimes makes it at home and we wanted to share the recipe so you can also enjoy Japanese hamburg.

The hamburg is made of minced beef or pork, and other ingredients such as onions, carrots, and mushrooms. In this example we added minced onions into the meat and added sliced mushrooms on top with the sauce.

Tips on how to make the perfect Japanese Hamburger Steak

• It is important to stir the hamburg mix with your hands until it is well mixed. If you don’t mix it well, it can break apart when you try to flip the patty.

• Other ingredients such as minced carrots or mushrooms can also be added, but if you add too many vegetables to the meat, it will fall apart while cooking.

• If you prefer a sweeter flavor, the onions can be caramelized before adding them to the hamburger.

• Indenting each patty with your fingers is important to evenly cook the meat. The meat will expand during cooking and remove the indentation.

Japanese Hamburger Steak

Japanese hamburger steak is a recipe that is often cooked in Japanese homes and at western style restaurants in Japan. Minced meet is mixed with onions to make a hamburger patty. The patty is then covered with steak sauce and mushrooms. It is a favorite among children due to the strong flavors. It can be served with salads, buttered corn, or french fries.

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Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Total Time 35 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine Japanese

Servings 2

Ingredients

  

• 450 g Minced Meat (1 lb)
• 1/2 Onion
• 4 tbsp Panko
• 1.5 tsp Soy sauce
• Salt
• Black pepper
• 1 Egg
• 1 tbsp Butter
• 1.5 cups Sliced mushrooms
• 1/3 cup Tomato ketchup
• 3/4 tsp Worcestershire sauce

Instructions

 

• Mince half an onion
• Add the minced onion and the hamburger into a large bowl
• Add 1.5 tsp soy sauce, 4 tbsp of panko, salt, pepper and an egg to the bowl
• Mix everything by hand
• After mixing, divide the hamburger into 4 even batches to make 4 patties
• Form the patties into an oval shape, slap against your hands to remove the air, and gentle press the center in the top to evenly cook the meat
• Melt the butter on a fry pan and add the hamburger patties. Fry over medium heat for about 2 minutes. Flip the hamburger and fry again for about 2 minutes
• Flip the hamburgers every 2 minutes until their form solidifies. After solidifying, cover pan with a lid and cook on low heat for 5 minutes
• After finishing the hamburger, remove the patties, but keep the remaining oil as a base for the sauce
• Add the mushrooms and fry them on medium heat in the left over oil
• Add the ketchup, the Worcestershire sauce, and 1.5 tsp of soy sauce.
• Simmer the sauce and the mushrooms on low heat for 5 minutes
• Add the sauce to the hamburger patties and enjoy!

Video

Keyword hamburger, Japanese hamburger steak,