Land of the Rising Bun

Sukiyaki

Ingredients:

1.5 Pounds Ground Wagyu Beef

½ Pound Tofu

2 Tablespoons Black Pepper

3 Teaspoons Kosher Salt

5 Tablespoons Dashi

5 Tablespoons Soy Sauce

3 Tablespoons Mirin

1 Tablespoon Sake

1 Tablespoon Caster Sugar

12 Green Onions (dark green top parts trimmed off)

12 Fresh Shiitake Mushrooms (stems removed)

3 Teaspoons Sesame Oil

3 Ounces Enoki Mushrooms (roots cut off)

6 Ounces Shirataki Noodles (drained, rinsed, and cut into 2 inch length pieces)

3 Tablespoons Butter

6 Eggs

6 Sesame Seed Buns

18 Sprigs Watercress

Instructions:

To Make Patties: In a large bowl crush the tofu with your hands so that it looks like crumbled feta cheese. Put beef in the bowl with the tofu. Add the black pepper. With a metal spoon carefully mix everything together. With wetted hands form 6 equal sized meatballs and then gently pat the balls into patties. Sprinkle ¼ teaspoon of salt on each side of each patty. Let rest for at least 10 minutes before grilling.

To Make Sauce: In a small grill-proof sauce pan, heat to medium-high. Pour in dashi, soy sauce, mirin, sake, and caster sugar. Heat through only until the sugar completely dissolves. Be careful not to let it boil. Once the sugar is dissolved remove from heat and set aside.

To Grill: Heat grill to medium-high heat. Brush the grates clean and then oil well. Grill green onions 4 minutes on each side then set aside. Drizzle ¼ teaspoon sesame oil on the top of each shiitake mushroom and grill 4 minutes topside down, then set aside. Place each patty on the grill and let cook for 6 minutes. Flip them over and top each patty with ½ ounce of enoki mushrooms and 1 ounce shirataki noodles, let cook for 6 minutes. Then take the patties off the grill (make sure enoki and shirataki noodles don’t fall off), pour 1 tablespoon of the sauce on top of each patty, and let rest. Pour 1 tablespoon of the sauce on the top half of each bun and grill both halves of the bun for 1 minute, then take off and set aside.

While the vegetables and patties are being grilled fry the eggs (multi-tasking at it’s finest). In a grill-proof skillet melt ½ tablespoon of butter and then gently slide one egg in, careful not to break the yolk. Let cook until the egg white is set and edges are slightly browned. Leave egg yolk runny, sunny-side up. With a spatula remove egg and set aside. Repeat with the remaining 5 eggs adding ½ tablespoon of butter as needed.

Put Burgers Together: On the bottom half of each bun place on patty with the enoki and shirataki noodles on top. Place 2 of the grilled shiitake on top of that, cut the green onions in half and place 4 pieces on top of that, gently lay one fried egg on top of the green onions, top the egg with 3 sprigs of watercress, and top with the top halves of the buns.