Simmered Beef and Gobo Root

Simmered Beef and Gobo Root

It never fails to amaze me at how some herbs completely define a dish. The real star of this dish is burdock root, gobō in Japanese, which has a unique flavor that perfectly complements the beef and ginger. It’s easy to prepare – why not try it for yourself?

Beef Japanese Veggies

This dish can be prepared and served as a rice topper. It is made with beef or pork cooked with ginger and gobo, and then simmered in mirin and soy sauce until the meat completely absorbs the sauces. The end product is sweet and savory. The meat will come out either soft or crunchy depending on the fat content – fattier marbled meat yields a crispier result.

Gobo Root, also known as burdock root, is a root vegetable that is available all year round. It as a unique woody flavor and is often shaved and used to season white rice.

When serving over rice you can top with sesame, mitsuba (Japanese parsley), cilantro, tarragon or your favorite herb.

If you like white rice but want to give it a kick, give this awesome dish a try!

Simmered Beef and Gobo Root

I first tried this dish in Miyazaki where it was served as a white rice topping. It is made with beef cooked with ginger and gobo, and then simmered in mirin and soy sauce until the meat completely absorbs the sauces. Make sure to drain the dish when it is finished or it will be too greasy.

PREP	COOKING	YIELD
	30 mins	Serves 4

PREP
COOKING	30 mins
YIELD	Serves 4

Ingredients:

1/2 lb sliced beef rib (200 g)
1 3” slice of fresh gobo (30g)
One 1 1/2” piece of ginger (30g)
1/2 cup mirin (100ml)
1/4 cup soy sauce (50ml)

Instructions:

Wash and peel the ginger and the gobō. Use a vegetable slicer and shave the gobō and ginger into think slices.

Chop the beef finely.

Brown the meat over med high heat in a nonstick saucepan. Do not drain the fat.

Add in the ginger and gobō and sauté with the meat for one more minute. Drain the fat out of the pan.
Add in the mirin and soy sauce. Bring to a boil. Lower the heat to simmer and simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes.

Turn the heat to high and cook for 5 more minutes reducing the liquid as much as possible.

Take off the heat and drain any remaining liquid. The drained liquid should be mostly clear oil.

Serve over white rice. This dish has a strong flavor so do not use too much.

Notes:

Use as a white rice topper. Use white sesame seed or Japanese parsley leaves as additional toppers if desired. You can add raw egg as an additional topper (raw foods can be dangerous if not processed correctly – make sure that the egg is safe to eat – pasteurized and not past the expiration date).

Seal and refrigerate any unused portion for up to 5 days.

Jay H

Jay is a Project Manager for a U.S. Company that does business globally. He has worked and lived in many places and has spent time learning how to cook dishes from around the world. Currently based in Japan, he created the Mountain Plums website during the Covid pandemic as a way to express himself though cooking while staying active.

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Jay H

Jay is a Project Manager for a U.S. Company that does business globally. He has worked and lived in many places and has spent time learning how to cook dishes from around the world. Currently based in Japan, he created the Mountain Plums website during the Covid pandemic as a way to express himself though cooking while staying active.