Japanese recipes
Easy Japanese Recipes: Gyudon, Teriyaki and Miso Soup
Japanese home cooking leans on a short list of seasonings, mainly soy sauce, mirin, sake, miso and dashi, and lets a few good ingredients taste of themselves. Many everyday dishes are quicker than they look: a rice bowl topping simmers in minutes, and good miso soup is mostly about not letting the pot boil.
The recipes here are everyday favourites. Gyudon is a beef and onion rice bowl ready in 30 minutes, and miso soup with tofu and wakame works with homemade or instant dashi. Teriyaki chicken and air fryer chicken katsu are Japanese-inspired weeknight dinners: the teriyaki glaze is a quick homemade mix of soy sauce, mirin, ginger and garlic rather than a bottled sauce, and the katsu gets its panko crust without a pot of oil. Swaps are given for specialist ingredients, such as dry sherry and a little sugar for mirin.
4 recipes · Updated
Quick answer
Savour's Japanese recipes include miso soup with tofu and wakame (25 minutes with homemade dashi, about 10 with instant), teriyaki chicken with a homemade glaze (25 minutes), air fryer chicken katsu (27 minutes) and gyudon, a beef and onion rice bowl (30 minutes including the rice). The teriyaki, katsu and gyudon each have 28 g or more protein per serving, and the miso soup is about 60 calories.
- Recipes
- 4
- Average total time
- 27 mins
- Quickest
- Miso Soup (25 mins)
- Rated Easy
- 4 of 4
- Average calories
- 322 per serving
- Newest
- Air Fryer Chicken Katsu
All Japanese Recipes (4)
Frequently Asked Questions
What Japanese pantry staples should I buy first?
Soy sauce, mirin, sake (or dry white wine), miso paste and instant dashi granules cover most everyday Japanese cooking, including the gyudon and miso soup here. Soy sauce and mirin are also the base of a homemade teriyaki glaze, with fresh ginger, garlic and a little sugar. Add short-grain rice and panko breadcrumbs and you can make chicken katsu too. Miso keeps for months in the fridge.
What can I use instead of dashi?
Instant dashi granules dissolved in water are the easiest swap for homemade dashi. In gyudon, low-sodium chicken or beef stock also works. Miso soup depends on dashi for its flavour, so for a fish-free version make the dashi from kombu and dried shiitake mushrooms instead.
Which Japanese recipe should I make first?
Miso soup is the easiest place to start: it uses a handful of ingredients and takes 25 minutes, or about 10 with instant dashi. For a full dinner, teriyaki chicken is ready in 25 minutes and gyudon in 30 minutes including the rice, and a bowl of miso soup goes well alongside either.
What rice should I use for Japanese dishes?
Use Japanese short-grain rice, sometimes sold as sushi rice. It cooks up glossy and slightly sticky, which suits rice bowls such as gyudon and dishes served over rice, like teriyaki chicken and katsu. Medium-grain rice is a good substitute, while long-grain rice such as basmati is too dry and separate.