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Japanese hamburger steak

Japanese Hamburger Steak

Japanese Hamburger Steak or hambagu is a popular Western style Japanese dish. The thick, juicy hamburger patty with a sweet, tangy sauce is the perfect combo with rice.
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Prep Time:10 minutes
Cook Time:30 minutes
Course: bento, Main Course, Side Dish
Cuisine: Japanese
Keyword: hambagu, Japanese hamburger steak
Servings: 2 people

Equipment

  • 1 mixing bowl
  • 1 frying pan

Ingredients

Hamburger steak ingredients

  • 1 lb ground beef sub for 3:1 ratio of ground beef and ground pork
  • 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
  • 2 tbsp milk
  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 onion chopped and browned
  • 1 tbsp butter
  • salt and pepper

Sauce ingredients

  • 4 tbsp tonkatsu sauce
  • 2 tbsp ketchup
  • 1 tbsp mayo
  • 2 tbsp water sub for red wine, beef/chicken broth

Instructions

Make the hambuger steak

  • Start by chopping onion and sautee in a pan
  • Add salt and butter to onion
    sautee onion
  • Pan fry until brown
    Brown onion
  • Set aside the onion in fridge to cool down
  • Make sure onion is chilled before using
  • In a bowl, mix in ground beef, breadcrumbs, milk, egg, sauteed onion, salt, and pepper
    ground beef mixture
  • Knead the beef mixture really well until all the ingredients are fully incorporated
    Knead beef
  • Section the beef mixture into fourths (if you want to make smaller hamburger steaks, feel free to do so)
  • Scoop 1/4 of the beef mixture in one hand and shape into an oval
    shape into an oval
  • Toss the hamburger from one hand to the other hand to remove air pockets. This will make sure the hamburger cooks evenly without cracking
  • On medium heat, cook one side of the hamburger until brown (about 5 min)
    cook one side of the patty
  • Once it has a nice browning on one side of the hamburgers, flip the them over
    flip the patties over
  • Cover the pan and lower the heat to low
    Cover the pan
  • Once the hamburgers are fully cooked internally (about 10 minutes), remove them from the heat. I usually just crack one hamburger open to see that the inside is no longer red and raw. If you have a thermometer, then that will be more accurate. 
  • Cook time will depend on size and thickness of the hamburger, so make sure to check. (USDA recommends internal temp for ground beef to reach 160F)

Make the Sauce

  • Using the same pan, remove some of the oil from the hamburger using a paper towel. I leave about 2 tbsp of beef dripping for flavor
    remove beef dripping
  • Add tonkatsu sauce, ketchup, mayo, and water
    Add tonkatsu sauce, ketchup, mayo, and water
  • Cook on medium heat for a few minutes until the sauce thickens
    sauce thickens
  • Remove from heat and serve it on top of the hamburger steak or on the side
    serve on top of the hamburger steak
  • Serve and enjoy