Name: Chashu Pork and Egg Rice Bowl (Yakibuta Tama Gohan)
Cuisine: 和食
Ingredients: 400g pork belly block; 4 eggs; 2 dried red chili peppers; 2 servings of cooked rice; Shredded nori seaweed, to taste; 150–200ml water; 2 tbsp vegetable oil; 50ml soy sauce; 50ml cooking sake; 50ml mirin; 2 tbsp sugar; Chopped green onions, to taste (optional)

About "Chashu Pork and Egg Rice Bowl (Yakibuta Tama Gohan)"

This recipe recreates "Yakibuta Tama Gohan" (Chashu Pork and Egg Rice Bowl), a famous B-class gourmet specialty from Imabari City, Ehime Prefecture, right at home. Searing the pork belly on only one side over high heat coaxes out a savory aroma through the Maillard reaction while keeping the meat incredibly tender. Simmering the sweet and savory sauce made of soy sauce, sake, mirin, sugar, and red chili pepper concentrates the umami for an exquisite finish. The key to tying the whole dish together is the plating: layering shredded nori seaweed underneath, topping it with soft-boiled fried eggs, and drizzling plenty of the rich sauce over everything.

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Video Timestamps

Tips for Making "Chashu Pork and Egg Rice Bowl (Yakibuta Tama Gohan)"

Fried Eggs
- Gently crack the eggs into the edge of the pan from a low height, holding the whites with chopsticks to prevent spreading. Nudge the two yolks to the center to keep them compact and easy to plate.
Fried Eggs
- Cook uncovered over medium-high heat to get a crispy, browned underside while keeping the yolks soft-boiled. Using a bit more oil (2 tbsp) helps achieve that crispy texture.
Heat & Searing
- Sear the pork belly over high heat on one side only. Searing both sides makes the meat tough, so keeping it to one side preserves tenderness.
Prep
- Wipe away all excess fat released from the pork with paper towels. This prevents the dish from being too greasy and helps the sauce absorb better.
Seasoning
- Add the sugar, sake, and mirin first and bring to a boil to burn off the alcohol before adding the soy sauce. This order is crucial, as remaining alcohol can carry away the soy sauce's aroma.
Reducing
- After simmering for 5 minutes, increase the heat to medium and reduce until the sauce bubbles rapidly and thickens. This concentrates the umami into an exquisite sauce.
Plating
- Scatter shredded nori seaweed over the rice before adding the pork and eggs. The aroma of the nori is a hidden, essential element that elevates the entire dish.
Plating
- Arrange the pork slices in a circle, leaving the center open for the soft-boiled fried eggs to create a beautiful presentation. Finish by drizzling plenty of sauce and garnishing with green onions.

Ingredients for "Chashu Pork and Egg Rice Bowl (Yakibuta Tama Gohan)"

12 items

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400gpork belly block
4eggs
2dried red chili peppers
2servings of cooked rice
Shreddednori seaweed, to taste
150–200mlwater
2tbsp vegetable oil
50mlsoy sauce
50mlcooking sake
50mlmirin
2tbsp sugar
Choppedgreen onions, to taste (optional)

How to Make "Chashu Pork and Egg Rice Bowl (Yakibuta Tama Gohan)"

1
Slice the pork belly block into pieces about 1 cm thick (slightly thinner than typical kakuni/braised pork belly).
2
Add 2 tbsp of vegetable oil to a frying pan and heat slightly over medium heat.
3
Gently crack an egg into the edge of the pan from a low height, using chopsticks to hold the egg white in place so it doesn't spread. Crack a second egg right next to it, and use chopsticks to gently nudge the two yolks toward the center to keep them compact.
4
Cook uncovered over medium-high heat. Once the underside is nicely browned and the yolks are still soft-boiled, remove the eggs from the pan.
5
Using the same pan, turn the heat to high and arrange the pork belly slices in a single layer. Press down on any curling parts with chopsticks to get a deep, even sear on one side only.
6
Once one side of the pork is beautifully browned, wipe away any excess fat from the pan using paper towels.
7
Add 2 tbsp of sugar, 50ml of cooking sake, and 50ml of mirin to the pan. Bring to a boil over medium heat and cook for about 30 seconds to thoroughly burn off the alcohol.
8
Add 50ml of soy sauce, 2 dried red chili peppers, and 150–200ml of water. Once it boils, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 5 minutes.
9
After 5 minutes, increase the heat to medium. Simmer until the sauce bubbles rapidly with fine bubbles and thickens, then turn off the heat.
10
Fill bowls with cooked rice and scatter shredded nori seaweed over the top. Arrange the pork slices in a circle on top with the seared side facing up, leaving the center empty.
11
Place the soft-boiled fried eggs in the center, then generously drizzle the rich sauce left in the pan over everything. Garnish with chopped green onions if desired, and serve.

Detailed Commentary on "Chashu Pork and Egg Rice Bowl (Yakibuta Tama Gohan)"

* Content organized by topics from the video.

Discovering Imabari's Famous Yakibuta Tama Gohan

Today's recipe is 'Yakibuta Tama Gohan' (Chashu Pork and Egg Rice Bowl), a specialty of Imabari City, Ehime Prefecture. While it might not be widely known nationwide yet, it is a local B-class gourmet dish that absolutely everyone will love. At the end of last year, I stayed in Ehime for about a week for work with a local katsuobushi (bonito flake) manufacturer. Ehime, facing the Seto Inland Sea, has incredibly delicious fish. At first, I fully enjoyed local delicacies like sea bream rice and cutlassfish sashimi, but after a week, I grew a bit tired of raw fish. That was when I encountered Yakibuta Tama Gohan. I was so deeply moved by how delicious it was that I felt a burning desire to share it with everyone across the country, which inspired this video. I will carefully guide you through the professional tips to make this dish incredibly delicious at home, incorporating insights from molecular gastronomy.

Three Key Points for a Perfect Finish

To make a professional-grade Yakibuta Tama Gohan at home, we will focus on three key points during cooking. First is 'how to fry the eggs.' Fried eggs are simple, but there are many ways to cook them. Today, I will show you the best style for this rice bowl and a technique to keep two eggs compact and beautiful. Second is 'searing the meat.' Searing the surface of the pork coaxes out a rich, savory aroma, but the secret to keeping it tender is to sear only one side. Third is 'simmering the meat.' Rather than just boiling it, we combine simmering and reducing. This softens the fat and gelatin in the pork to the perfect texture while simultaneously creating an exquisite, umami-concentrated sauce.

How to Fry Two Eggs Compactly

Let's start with our first key point: making the fried eggs. Add 2 tbsp of vegetable oil to a frying pan, heat it slightly over medium heat, and then crack in the eggs. The trick here is to use a bit more oil than usual to get a crispy underside. When cracking the eggs, make sure to drop them near the edge of the pan rather than the center. Gently drop the first egg from a low height, then use chopsticks to lightly hold the thick part of the white to prevent it from spreading. Immediately crack the second egg right next to it, and use your chopsticks to nudge the two yolks toward the center to shape them. This creates a compact double-fried egg that fits perfectly on the rice bowl. Cook uncovered, keeping the yolks soft-boiled while letting the underside develop a beautiful, appetizing golden-brown crust.

Searing the Pork for Maximum Flavor

Next is our second key point: cooking the meat. Using the same pan you used for the eggs, sear the meat over high heat. We are using 400g of pork belly, sliced from a block into pieces about 1 cm thick—think of it as slightly thinner than typical kakuni (braised pork). Arrange the slices one by one, lightly pressing down on any curling parts with chopsticks to get a beautiful, deep sear on one side only. This browning is the result of the 'Maillard reaction' (amino-carbonyl reaction). The savory aroma created when the meat's proteins and sugars heat up triggers an instinctive appetite. However, searing both sides completely would make the meat tough, so the professional secret to keeping it tender is to sear only one side. Once seared, wipe away all the excess fat released into the pan with paper towels to prevent the dish from becoming greasy and to help the sauce penetrate better.

Simmering the Pork and Sauce Perfectly

Now for our final key point: simmering the meat. Return the pork to the wiped pan and add 2 tbsp of sugar, 50ml of cooking sake, and 50ml of mirin. Bring to a boil over medium heat and cook for about 30 seconds to thoroughly burn off the alcohol. Because evaporating alcohol carries away the wonderful aromas of soy sauce and other ingredients, burning it off first is crucial to preserving those scents. Next, add 50ml of soy sauce, 2 dried red chili peppers, and 150–200ml of water. Adding a tiny kick of heat—like dried chili peppers, chili powder, or even Tabasco—to a sweet and savory sauce sharpens the flavor profile and defines the taste. Once it boils, simmer over medium-low heat for 5 minutes to draw the pork's umami into the sauce while tenderizing the meat to perfection.

Plating Secrets: Nori and Sauce

After simmering for 5 minutes, increase the heat to medium to reduce the sauce. Once it bubbles rapidly with fine bubbles and thickens, your exquisite sauce is ready. For plating, first scatter a generous amount of shredded nori seaweed over the rice in the bowl. The aroma of this seaweed is a hidden star that dramatically elevates the overall flavor. Arrange the chashu pork slices in a circle on top with the seared side facing up, making sure to leave the center open. Gently place the soft-boiled fried eggs into that central space. Finally, generously drizzle the rich, sweet, and savory sauce from the pan over everything, and garnish with chopped green onions. Your visually stunning and hearty Yakibuta Tama Gohan is complete! Break the soft yolks, mix them with the sauce, pork, and rice, and dig in!

About こじまぽん助【分子調理学研究家】

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