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–+ servings

Okinawa Taco Rice And Cheese

Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time10 minutes
Total Time20 minutes
Author Yuto Omura
Servings 2 servings

Ingredients 
 

Marinated Tomatoes

  • 150 g mini tomatoes halved, or regular tomato roughly chopped
  • 1 tsp lemon juice
  • ¼ tsp chili sauce of your choice Tabasco-style hot sauce
  • 1 pinch salt

Japanese Style Taco Meat

Taco Rice

  • 2 portions cooked Japanese short-grain rice or Calrose
  • 100 g shredded cabbage or iceberg lettuce
  • ½ avocado cubed
  • preferred shredded melting cheese cheddar or similar
  • tortilla chips about 1 handful per plate, crushed at serving
  • 2 soft-boiled eggs optional

Instructions 

  • Before you start, cook your rice and finely dice 1 garlic clove and ½ onion.
    Halve 150 g mini tomatoes and place them in a bowl with 1 tsp lemon juice, ¼ tsp chili sauce of your choice and 1 pinch salt. Mix, cover and store in the fridge for now.
    Mix the dry spices (1 tsp chili powder, ½ tsp ground cumin, and ½ tsp smoked paprika powder) in a small bowl.
    Make the sauce by mixing 2 tsp Japanese soy sauce (koikuchi shoyu), 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce, 2 tsp tomato ketchup, ½ tsp Chinese-style chicken bouillon powder and ⅛ tsp dashi granules in a bowl. Set the spice mix and sauce by the stove for later.
    finely diced garlic and onion on a prep plate, spices and sauce in glass bowls, and halved mini tomatoes in a bowl for making Okinawan taco rice
  • Heat a large skillet on medium-high and swirl in ½ tbsp cooking oil. Add 150 g ground beef and spread in a flat layer. Fry for 90 seconds to 2 minutes, then flip and repeat.
    seared beef mince in a frying pan on the stove top
  • Add the onion and fry until lightly golden. Add the garlic and fry until fragrant.
    finely diced garlic added to ground beef and onion mixture in a frying pan on the stove top
  • Sprinkle the prepared spice mix around the pan and stir continuously for 10-20 seconds. Pour 1 tbsp sake into the pan to deglaze, scraping up any browned bits stuck to the pan.
  • Pour the sauce into the pan and mix thoroughly. Once the meat is glossy and evenly coated, take the pan off of the heat.
  • Dish up 2 portions cooked Japanese short-grain rice and top with shredded cabbage. Spoon the ground meat over the top, then scatter with shredded cheese. Optional: Melt the cheese with a kitchen torch or 30 seconds under a broiler.
    Assembling taco rice on an off-white dish. Rice first, topped with shredded cabbage and taco-style beef mince, cheese, halved mini tomatoes and cubes of avocado
  • Grab the marinated tomatoes from the fridge and arrange them around the plate with avocado and soft boiled eggs. Crush the tortilla chips over the top, and enjoy!
    Taco rice topped with crushed tortilla chips and soft boiled eggs

Notes

Lean beef needs added fat. If you can only find ground beef leaner than 80/20, stir in a small amount of lard before browning. The 80/20 ratio is what keeps the finished taco meat juicy and full-flavored.
Meat keeps reducing off heat. The sauce continues to tighten from residual heat after you remove the pan from the stove, so pull off while the meat still looks slightly wetter than your target.
Rescue dry, over-reduced meat. If you've gone too far and the meat looks crumbly, add a splash of water and a tablespoon of ketchup, then stir over medium heat until the glaze reconstitutes and the meat glistens again.
Crush chips at the table. Tortilla chips absorb moisture from warm toppings within seconds of contact. If crushed during assembly in the kitchen, they turn limp and stale-tasting by the time the plate is served.