Thinly sliced meat simmered in soy sauce, sake and mirin with ginger and sugar. A tasty and boldly flavored stew, the sauce of beef shigureni is a sweeter version of teriyaki with the subtle heat of ginger. Perfect for donburi meal.
What does shigureni mean?
I read that shigure is an intermittent rain that comes and goes between autumn and winter in Japan, ni means braise, and shigureni is not a dish but a generic name for an array of dishes cooked in sweetened soy sauce with a generous amount of ginger. Beef shigureni is the most well known of these dishes.
Is shigureni sauce the same as teriyaki sauce?
No, shigureni sauce is actually a sweeter (and a bit spicy) version of teriyaki sauce. But shigureni is, by definition, not a sauce but a class of dishes.
What’s the best cut for beef shigureni?
Beef shigureni is a stew so I chose a stewing cut. Brisket, shank and short ribs are my favorite cuts for beef stew. But since cooking shigureni requires thinly sliced beef, it had to be brisket. Shank and short ribs, both of which come with bones, would have been difficult to slice.
Beef Shigureni
Ingredients
- 500 grams beef brisket or other stewing beef, cut into ¼ inch slices across the grain
- 1 tablespoon sesame seed oil
- ¼ cup Japanese soy sauce
- ¼ cup mirin
- ¼ cup sake
- 3 thick slices ginger
- 1 ½ tablespoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
- cooked rice to serve
Instructions
- Heat the sesame seed oil in a wok or frying pan.
- Spread the beef slices on the hot oil. Leave for a minute before stirring. Cook the meat until the edges start to brown.
- Pour in the soy sauce, sake and mirin. Stir in the sugar.
- Add the ginger slices then pour in a cup of water (see notes after the recipe).
- Bring the liquid to the boil. Turn the the heat to low. Cover the wok or frying pan and cook the beef until tender and the cooking liquid has turned into a thick paste.
- Serve the beef shigureni over rice. Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds.
