Hamburger Steak Recipe with Japanese twist. Japanese hamburger steak is so soft and juicy because of some secret ingredients are added. (2024)

Published June 13, 2020 / Last modified June 28, 2020 By Shihoko | Chopstick Chronicles / 11 Comments

Japanese hamburger steak is deliciously tender and juicy. Yes, hamburger steak did not originate in Japan, however, it is one of the popular Yoshoku menu items and the Japanese have made their own tweaks to elevate the dish to be more delicious than the original. So I am going to share my hamburger steak recipe with secret ingredients.

What’s the difference between Japanese Hamburger Steak vs Hamburger Steak?

Yoshoku is Japanese versions of western-style dishes such as Korokke Japanese potato croquettes, Hayashi Rice and Chicken Nanban. Japanese hamburger steak is one of the popular yoshoku dishes in Japan. The main difference is that many Japanese hamburger steak recipes often add tofu and panko to make sure the hamburger steak is soft and juicy.

Ingredients

• Ground meat – Japanese often make hamburger steak from “Aibiki mince”. Aibiki is minced beef and pork combined. The larger the pork portion in the mixture the more tender the hamburger steak will be generally speaking. I add tofu and panko to make it even more tender so the best ratio of beef to pork is 80% : 20%.

• Tofu – this is my number one secret ingredient. Well, it is not so much a secret in Japan as this is a popular technique to add tofu when making hamburger steak. In Japan, people substitute expensive meat with cheap tofu to bulk up the volume of the hamburger steak.

• Panko – is the number two secret ingredient. Adding panko is also a popular technique to make the hamburger steak soft. It also acts as a great absorbent for the excess moisture from the tofu and meat.

• Onion – add subtle sweetness, umami flavour and aroma. In order to save cooking time, chop the onion super fine. Also, use a sharp knife to do the chopping, or the onion’s umami component will be lost if the fibre of the onion is squished by a blunt knife.

• Salt & Nutmeg – The protein adhesiveness increases with salt so that when the hamburger steak is cooked, it will hold the shape and not crumble. Nutmeg eliminates the meat smell and enhances the umami flavour.

Tips to Make Japanese Hamburger Steak successfully?

1. Caramelise Onion

Cut Onion finely with a sharp knife and cook with 1 tbsp of oil to caramelise the onion. Sweetness of the onion will be enhanced by caramelisation and it adds Umami to the Hamburger (process photos 1 and 2).

2. Add Tofu and Panko

Remove excess moisture from Tofu by cooking it in boiling water for 5 minutes. It sounds like doing the opposite but actually cooking tofu takes moisture out. After 5 minutes of boiling, wrap with a sheet of kitchen paper towel and leave it for 5 minutes. (Process photos 3 and 4)

3. The Ground Beef and Pork Ratio is 80:20

Mixing ground beef and ground pork makes the hamburger steak tender and juicy. You can change the ratio to you liking. If you like softer steak, add more ground pork. When I make hamburger steak stew, I make hamburger with ground beef and pork 50:50.

4. Knead All Ingredients As Quick As you Can

The salt and egg will keep all ingredients together because they work as a cohesive agent. If you knead the meat patty too long, the fat content will start to melt out and also umami flavour will be lost simultaneously. In order to avoid it, knead the meat quickly. To keep the meat cool, place the bowl of ground meat on to another bowl filled with ice.

5. Remove the Air Pockets of the Patties

Divide the knead patties into 6 equal portions. Shape each portion into an oval shape and toss it between your hands firmly several times to remove the air pockets in the patties.

6. Shape the Patties 0.8 inch (2cm) thick and make an indent when frying.

Patties that contain air pockets are difficult to cook through because of the poor heat conduction. Make the pattie thickness about o.8 inch (2cm) thick and when you fry them and make an indent on the centre so that each pattie cook through evenly and quickly.

FAQ

Variations of Japanese Hamburger Steak

There are many variations of Japanese hamburgers. I have shared Japanese hamburger steak with mushroom sauce on Chopstick Chronicles. So please check it out too if you liked the Japanese hamburger steak recipe.

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