Nikujaga, Americanized


Meat and Potatoes, Japanese Style

I think that being served this in a Japanese restaurant would be the equivalent of walking into an Italian place and being served American Chop Suey. This stuff, from what I know about it (not much), is home cooking, and from the ingredients I would guess it's post-WWII and heavily American-influenced.

It's basically a Japanified version of American beef stew -- beef (or pork), potatoes, onions, sometimes vegetables like peas and red bell pepper, stirfried and braised quickly in a broth made with dashi, sugar, and soy sauce. What makes this Americanized is that it's a bigger recipe than the traditional Japanese recipes I've seen on Google -- more beef, more potatoes, essentially served as a one-pot dish with rice on the side.

Since this is just a recipe I fell across by accident, I don't know how this is served in Japan, so when I made it it went on the table with some bowls of steamed jasmine rice (no Japanese rice hanging around) and a glass of Pilsner Urquell; sake or green tea would probably be appropriate as well.

In a wok or saute pan on medium-high heat, add vegetable oil and beef. Cook beef until starting to brown, then add potatoes and onions and continue to cook until beef is just cooked. Add sugar, soy sauce, sake, dashi-no-moto, and water, bring to a simmer, and braise, covered, for about 20-30 minutes, or until potatoes are just cooked through. Serve with rice.

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