Unadon Recipe: How to Make Japanese Eel Rice Bowls

Unadon is a type of donburi (Japanese rice bowl) made with unagi (freshwater eel). Unadon is a portmanteau of unagi donburi and is believed to be the very first donburi, invented in the late Edo Period. In Japan, unadon is popular in the summer.

Unagi is typically prepared kabayaki-style. Kabayaki means that the fish is dipped in unagi no tare, a soy sauce-based tare sauce, before it is grilled over charcoal, a cooking method similar to teriyaki. In Tokyo, the eel is grilled, steamed, sauced, and grilled again, in a method called shirayaki, and in Kyoto, the unagi is just grilled.

Tare is a multipurpose glaze and dipping sauce consisting of soy sauce, sake, brown sugar, and sweet mirin (Japanese rice wine). Like all great kitchen condiments, individual recipes for tare vary, but they can be easily adjusted to suit the dish at hand. Add miso or shio koji for a sweet boost of umami or togarashi (or preferred spice powder) for heat. If you don’t have tare in your pantry, teriyaki sauce makes a great substitute.

Unadon has different names depending on the vessel it is served in and the condiments it comes with.

1. 1. Unadon: When served in a large bowl, eel donburi is known as unadon, an abbreviation for unagi donburi or unagi-don.
2. 2. Unajū: When the grilled eel and rice are served in a jūbako (lacquer box), the dish is called unajū.
   
3. 3. Hitsumabushi: This style of serving unadon with different toppings comes from Nagoya. The grilled eel and rice typically come in a large bowl or ohitsu (wooden rice tub), with the eel sliced into bite-size pieces. Hitsumabushi is served with condiments like sansho pepper, crumbled nori, thinly sliced green onions, wasabi paste, and dashi stock.

Unadon is commonly served at Japanese restaurants, but well-stocked Japanese grocery stores sell frozen, vacuum-sealed grilled unagi fillets and pre-packaged unagi sauce for making unadon at home.

1. 1. Thaw the frozen eel. Before reheating frozen grilled unagi, first thaw the eel in the refrigerator.
2. 2. Cover the eel with sake. Brush sake on both sides of the grilled unagi.
3. 3. Use a broiler to heat the eel. Heat the eel on a grill or under a broiler, paying close attention so as not to burn the unagi.
4. 4. Add sauce to serve. Drizzle unagi sauce over the rice and eel.