From weekday desk lunches to late-night refuels, donburi are the perfect one-bowl meal for meat-lovers and vegans alike. A base of fluffy short-grain rice catches juicy sauces while toppings such as caramelised pork, flame-kissed seafood, or crumbed eggplant and silky eggs are blanketed above.
These one-bowl wonders combine convenience with a flavour punch, where imagination is the only limit (we're looking at you, ).
Here are some of the most moreish donburi recipes you can try today.
Tender, juicy pieces of chicken thigh and softly set eggs poach together in a sweetened soy broth until they reach the point of a barely set omelette. Then, the silky concoction is slid gently over steaming rice for a spoonable rice bowl ready in minutes.
Credit: Adam Liaw
Once fuel for farmhands in Tokachi, Hokkaido, this donburi has become a sought-after northern classic, pairing smoky grill-marked pork belly with a soy-mirin glaze that clings to each slice.
Credit: Jiwon Kim
Tender, thin slices of beef are simmered with onions and a dashi sauce until to sweet-savoury perfection. Crimson pickled ginger brighten each bite, cutting richness and waking up your palate.
Char-grilled pork strips are lacquered in caramel glaze and served with crisp cabbage over freshly steamed rice. The sticky-sweet-umami combination is an undoubtable crowd-pleaser.
Credit: Jiwon Kim
Blow-torched sashimi salmon gets a lick of char and smoky aroma while staying sashimi-tender inside. Add a sesame oil-soy sauce dressing, creamy avocado, crunchy pickled ginger, wisps of Kewpie mayonnaise and wasabi to taste for a sushi-bar experience in one bowl.
Credit: Adam Liaw
Panko-crusted eggplant fries until golden and boasting an audible crunch, then lounges over rice under a velvety curry-style katsu sauce. The mighty eggplant proves that a plant-based bowl can still pack steak-level swagger.
Credit: HQ Non Fiction
Ultra-thin wagyu sears in seconds, locking in its buttery marbling, a 30-second microwaved egg delivers level ooze, and a garlic-soy tare (sauce) is thickened to the consistency of maple syrup to bring everything together.
Credit: Adam Liaw
A mapo tofu-style topping meets donburi: pork mince, shiitake mushrooms and silken tofu cubes simmer in five-spice-laced sauce. The richness of the combination is complemented by the gentle flavour of steamed short-grain rice.
Mushrooms, mince and tofu donburi Credit: Kitti Gould
Two skillets, two textures: caramelised minced chicken on one side, buttery egg crumble on the other. Add greens and pickled ginger for a three-tone midweek saviour that adults and kids alike will devour.
Credit: Alan Benson
With pantry staples and ten minutes, tamago-don delivers custardy comfort: onions and mushrooms simmer in a soy broth, absorbing umami before cascading onto rice. A dusting of shichimi togarashi — Japanese seven spice (optional) — gives gentle heat.
Egg bowl (tamago-don) Credit: Kitti Gould
Charcoal-grilled is repeatedly brushed with smoky soy-mirin glaze until lacquered and fragrant, then draped over rice. This is a classic summer dish in Japan, when unagi is in season and believed to bring the energy needed to battle the hot and humid weather.
Unagi no kabayaki Credit: Food Safari Water
This Japanese comfort food staple answers the eternal question — keep the katsu (fried breaded coating) crisp or soak it in broth? Solution: both. A quick simmer keeps edges crunchy yet lets flavour seep through. This is the classic pork version found ubiquitously across Japan, from convenience stores to speciality diners.
Katsudon Credit: Brett Stevens.
This triple-layered rice bowl is a family favourite for good reason: sweet soy beef, tender broccoli and seasoned egg crumble combine for an easy, no-fuss meal.
Credit: Danielle Abou Karam
Garlic-soy pork belly and raw egg yolk crown rice, delivering the high-octane energy that gave this dish its “stamina” name. Nori and spring onion keep flavours bright.
Stamina-don Credit: Adam Liaw
A summer donburi remix: ripe tomato wedges melt into the oyakodon broth, lending sweetness and brightness that cut through rich chicken and egg.
Tomato oyakodon Credit: Adam Liaw
