About Chirashi Don
Chirashi Don or Japanese Rice Bowl is one of the easiest Japanese recipe you can make at home. Chirashi Sushi, or “Scattered Sushi” came on the horizon along with Maki Sushi (rolled sushi) around the 18th century. The ingredients (or “gu”) are scattered or topped on sushi rice with no rolling or techniques involved. Simplest Japanese recipe ever right?
Authentic Japanese recipes of Chirashi Sushi do not contain meat. Simply vegetables, eggs, fried tofu, etc., And often Chirashi Sushi contains a lot of ingredients that are not used in most other types of sushi like, kamaboko (fish cakes), soboro (meat, egg, or fish), bamboo shoots, lotus root and baby corn. Other ingredients that go well in it are crab, avocado, carrots, green beans, unagi (eel), omelette slices, tofu or fried tofu, scallions, green beans, bell peppers and if you’re feeling fancy, sea urchin or Uni!
Prepare this easy Japanese recipe for family dinners or special occasions while involving everyone at the dinner table and makes it a perfect way to use any leftovers or frozen meats stored in your freezer. Serve in individual bowls or allow everyone to DIY their own serving bowl.
Different Styles of Chirashi Sushi
Though there are many styles of Chirashi Sushi, there are two types of style that really stand out: Osaka Chirashi Sushi and Tokyo Chirashi Sushi.
Osaka Style Chirashi Sushi
Osaka style scattered sushi contains cured or cooked ingredients rather than raw fish. These are then mixed into the sushi rice or scattered over the top for presentation. This variation is also sweeter than most others and happens to be the most popular forms of Chirashi in Japan.
The lack of raw fish makes Osaka style chirashi sushi the best kind of lunch as you do not need to refrigerate.
Tokyo Style Chirashi Sushi
Tokyo style chirashi sushi is popular in Sushi bars as it is topped with various pieces of beautifully arranged fish that is not mixed but rather beautifully presented on Sushi rice.
Japanese Recipe: Chirashi Don
There really is no one recipe for chirashi sushi and the ingredients tend to vary regionally. Here are is Chirashi Sushi recipe that we love from Just One Cookbook (full recipe and on Chirashi Sushi by Just One Cookbook here). If you’d like to make it healthier, replace white rice with other carbs of liking to enjoy low calorie Chirashi bowls at home!
For Pickled Lotus Root & Ginger
2 inches lotus root (renkon)
1 knob ginger (1″, 2.5 cm)
½ cup rice vinegar
⅓ cup sugar
½ tsp kosher or sea salt
For Chirashi Sushi Mix
4 dried shiitake mushrooms
½ cup water (for soaking dried shiitake mushrooms)
⅔ gobo (burdock root)
0.8 oz dried kanpyo (gourd strips)
1 tsp kosher or sea salt (I use Diamond Crystal; use half for table salt) (for rubbing kanpyo)
½ carrot
1 ¼ cup dashi (Japanese soup stock)
¼ cup sake (4 Tbsp)
3 Tbsp mirin
1 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp Japanese soy sauce
For Egg Crepe (Kinshi Tamago)
3 large eggs (50 g each w/o shell)
1 Tbsp sugar (optional)
1 Tbsp dashi (replace with Japanese soup stock or sake or water if needed)
¼ tsp kosher or sea salt
½ Tbsp neutral-flavored oil (vegetable, rice bran, canola, etc.)
For Snow Peas
6 snow peas
⅛ tsp kosher or sea salt (
For Sushi Rice
3 rice cooker cups uncooked Japanese short-grain rice –3 rice cooker cups yield roughly 5-6 servings
540 ml water
1 piece kombu (dried kelp) (2″, 5 cm)
⅓ cup rice vinegar
3 Tbsp sugar
1 ½ tsp kosher or sea salt
For Unagi (Eels)
1 fillet unagi (eel) (5.6 oz, 160 g)
Toppings (optional)
4 Tbsp ikura (salmon roe)
4 Tbsp shredded nori seaweed (kizami nori)
½ Tbsp toasted white sesame seeds
For other toppings and premium Japanese ingredients, shop on shiki.sg and receive free delivery for orders above $100!
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Resources:
Types of Chirashi Sushi: Osaka and Tokyo Sushi – Read More Here