Donburi isn’t just one dish, but an umbrella term for a family of dishes: Steamed rice is the base for these, all topped with a variety of ingredients. These toppings are often paired with sauces or seasonings that soak into the rice, flavoring each bite from the top down. 

Thanks to its balance of simplicity and flavor, donburi is a staple in both Japanese home cooking and casual dining. 

What makes donburi so popular? 

The appeal may seem obvious—rice topped with something delicious—but there’s more to it. 

It starts with its convenience; donburi is easy to prepare so works for a quick lunch or dinner option. From there, it’s customizable with whatever you want or have on-hand, making it a versatile way to create a complete meal with carbs, protein, and vegetables. 

Popular types of donburi 

Now to the most common varieties of donburi. 

Gyudon 

Thinly-sliced beef is simmered in a sweet-savory sauce with thin, tender onions. The marinade-and-beef flavor profile is similar to sukiyaki, meaty and succulent. Sometimes you’ll see it served with an egg, whether fried, soft-boiled, or even raw. This is a rich, comforting donburi. 

Oyakodon 

Meaning “parent-and-child,” oyakodon is named because it’s a chicken and egg donburi. These are cooked together in a slightly sweet, soy-based broth, with some versions being saucier than others. 

Katsudon 

“Katsu” is the Japanese term for a panko-breaded cutlet that’s exactly what katsudon is: a breaded pork cutlet served over rice, usually with a fried egg. The katsu is often topped with a sweet-savory tonkatsu sauce. There is also chicken katsu donburi or oyako katsudon, but when unspecified, you can generally assume pork. 

Tendon 

Tempura served over rice, along with a sauce that’s more concentrated than the usual tentsuyu tempura dipping sauce. Shrimp and vegetables are the most common tempura used for tendon. You can make tempura out of any veggies you want, or leave out the shrimp completely to make it vegetarian. 

Unadon 

Another one of the most popular varieties, unadon is grilled unagi, or eel, glazed repeatedly during cooking with a sweet-savory tare sauce. Extra sauce is added after cooking, ensuring the rice gets seasoned with this satisfying glaze. 

Kaisendon 

This donburi is topped with sashimi and other seafood. Popular toppings reflect popular sushi or sashimi such as tuna, salmon, ikura salmon roe, scallop, shrimp, octopus or squid. It’s often served with vegetable garnishes like sliced cucumbers, seaweed, and pickled ginger. 

Making your own donburi at home 

First, let’s look at the common base ingredients for donburi. At its core, donburi comes down to a few essential components: 

• Japanese short-grain rice, rinsed 
• Your protein or topping of choice — beef, chicken, egg, pork, eel, tofu, seafood, etc. 
• Any vegetables for either a garnish (pickled toppings, for example) or part of the topping (vegetable tempura or onions for gyudon, etc.) 
• Sauce or marinade, or the ingredients to make your own — often with a soy, mirin, dashi base 
• Other garnishes — green onion, sesame seeds, nori, etc. 

The components and steps for making donburi 

1. Start with the right rice. Donburi is best with freshly made Japanese short-grain rice. Rinse the rice thoroughly before cooking to remove excess starch or the cooked rice may end up mushy. You want to cook it so it’s fluffy but slightly sticky, with the individual grains noticeable. 
2. Choose your topping. This is usually a protein, whether that’s beef, chicken, pork, eggs, tofu, seafood, or shrimp. Mushrooms, pickled vegetables, or vegetable tempura would all go great! 
3. Prepare your topping along with sauce. This depends on the type of donburi you’re making — katsudon will involve pounding, breading, and frying a cutlet, while gyudon involves simmering thinly-sliced beef and onions in its sauce, and so on. 
4. Add additional vegetables and garnishes. Pickled vegetables, green onions, sesame seeds or nori can be popular garnishes depending on the donburi.  Often, cooks will add an egg either over easy, soft-boiled, or raw depending on the dish. 

Tips for homemade donburi 

Beyond those baseline steps, here are some tips to keep in mind when making your own donburi. 

1. Prep and cook your toppings while the rice cooks. This will help time it right. Use this time to slice, season, and cook your protein, vegetables, and sauce.
2. Don’t go too hard on the sauce. Sauce is a critical component of many types of donburi, helping to flavor the rice, but you don’t want your donburi drowning in sauce. 
3. Leftover proteins and vegetables are your friend! Donburi is a great way to use what you already have on hand—mix and match ingredients to create an easy, satisfying meal. 
4. Serve in a deep bowl to hold everything together. A deeper bowl helps the ingredients layer properly and prevents heat from escaping too quickly.
    

At the end of the day, donburi is as flexible as it is satisfying. Whether simple or elaborate, it’s a delicious way to bring together a complete meal in one bowl.

And of course, you can find everything you need to make your own donburi at Uwajimaya!