A Pair of Omelette Donburi Meals

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“Donburi” (丼ぶり) means bowl and refers to a bowl of hot rice topped with savory food, sometimes with a sauce, sometimes plain. This type of meal is very popular for lunch because it is quick to make and easy to eat.

In the past few days we have had two very different egg-topped donburi meals. First is a favorite of mine: Kanitama-don, though I usually make it with the much more affordable shrimp. I suppose in that case it should be called ebitama-don.

The first time I made this recipe my husband commented that it tasted like egg foo yung . You can see the recipe and read about the history of the dish in the United States in this earlier post. It’s popular in Chinese restaurants in Japan, where it is usually called tenshindon (天津丼) after Tianjin, China where the recipe originated.

The second omelette-don is called Oyakodon. Oyako means “parent and child.” In elementary school we learned that a chicken is the egg’s way of making more eggs… Chicken and egg served over udon is often eaten during the Tsukimi festival honoring the first full moon of Autumn—moon-viewing noodles (oyako udon recipe).

bulbs living below
dream of proliferation—
crocuses in rain

Chicken Omelette Over Rice
Oyako Donburi (親子丼)
from Washodu by Elizabeth Andoh
p.156
serves 2 – 3

• 4 extra large eggs
• 2 to 3 cups freshly cooked rice
• 1 cup dashi
• 2 Tablespooons light-colored soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 Tablespoon saké
• 6 ounces boneless chicken breast, sliced thinly at a slant
• 1 small onion, sliced in crescents
• 3 or 4 mitsuba stalks, or watercress sprigs
• 1 sheet toasted nori, cut into thin strips, or crumbled

Break the eggs into a bowl and stir lightly to barely mix the yolks and whites. The omelette should be streaky.
You can make a large omelette and distribute among the bowls, but if you have a small skillet, you can make individual omelettes to cover the rice completely.
Combine the dashi, soy sauce, sugar and saké. Divide in half (or into thirds), and pour one portion into your pan over high heat. When small bubbles appear around the edges of the pan, add a portion of the chicken and onion, stirring to separte the pieces. Skim away froth. Simmer about a minute, until the chicken becomes white.
Pour half (or a third) of the eggs over the simmering chicken and poach for about 45 seconds, until barely set. Slide the omelette out of the pan and over the rice. Garnish with mitsuba and nori. Repeat to make more omelettes.

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