“Oyako” is derived from the two words, 親 (Body) and 子 (Death). Oyako-don (親子 丼) consists of 2 ingredients: chicken and egg. Chickens and eggs have a relationship as parents (親) and children (子). The word “don” in oyako-don comes from the 丼 “ど ん ぶ り” meaning “bowl of rice full of food”.

The large bowls of rice with rice on the bottom and the filled food above are collectively known as 丼 物 (donburimono). In Japan there are many such donburimono such as Gyu-don (beef rice), Katsu-don (rice with fried meat) or Tempura-don (rice with fried tempura dishes).

If you are living in Japan, you can easily find restaurants specializing in donburimono. These donburimono are familiar Japanese everyday items.

In this article, I will show you how to make Oyako-don.

Ingredients (for 2 people to eat)

Boneless chicken 100g (can use chicken breast or thigh meat)
Onions: 50g
Eggs: 2 fruits
Parsley: 2 stalks (it’s okay not to have it or you can use spring onion)

Spices include:
15ml soy sauce
Mirin 10ml (if not, may not use)
Dashi 100ml broth (Japanese supermarkets sell pre-cooked dashi, otherwise you can replace it with water)
Sugar 4g (a small spoon)

How to cook?

• Cook rice
• Cut chicken into small pieces to taste
• Cut onion about 1cm
• Break 2 eggs into a bowl and beat well
• Cut the parsley in Japanese (it doesn’t matter if you don’t have it).
• Add soy sauce, mirin, dashi broth, sugar to a small saucepan after dissolving sugar.
• Add the chicken and onions evenly.
• Cover and cook over medium heat.
• When the meat turns white, gently stir with chopsticks for even meat.

Finally, there are two ways to pour eggs:

Method 1:
When the meat is almost done, slowly pour the eggs into the pan (there is a pan called Oyako nabe used by Japanese people to cook this dish). Cover and cook until egg is soft. If you are unsure about the quality of the egg, you can buy pasteurized eggs or cook them until they are fully cooked.

Method 2:
This method is for those who eat raw eggs. After adding the cooked chicken on the hot rice bowl, create a small hollow area in the middle of the rice bowl and pour the raw eggs into it.

So you’ve finished oyako-don already If you get the chance, you can cook for Japanese people to see if your cooking is similar to the taste of Japanese oyako-don.