Wafu Hambagu with Oroshi

Japan takes on the hamburger with this juicy wafu hambagu topped with grated daikon and a sweet, spicy ponzu sauce. 

This is a hamburger like you haven’t had before. The juicy beef and pork hamburger steaks are pan fried until crisp and then doused in a sweet, spicy, citrusy ponzu sauce with a ton of flavor. 

They’re topped off with oroshi, a Japanese condiment of grated daikon, giving the final dish a nice peppery bite. 

This dish is hearty and filling. But it’s also surprisingly refreshing because of the bright, citrusy ponzu sauce. 

What is wafu hambagu?

Wafu hambagu is a Japanese-style hamburger steak made from ground beef and pork and topped with daikon oroshi and ponzu sauce.

It’s a typical yōshoku (Japanese-style western food) dish popular throughout Japan.  For other classic yōshoku recipes, check out this Spaghetti Napolitan or this creamy Corn Soup. 

The ground beef and pork are mixed with panko, eggs, onions, garlic and other seasonings like worcestershire, sesame oil and nutmeg.  The meat is made into hamburger size steaks and then pan-fried until crisped on the outside.  A ponzu sauce is added to the burgers while they cook, letting the meat soak up the sweet and spicy flavors of the sauce. 

To finish the dish, the hambagu is topped with daikon oroshi, a simple condiment of grated daikon.

Wafu hambagu is typically served with a green salad and sometimes other roasted vegetables such as potatoes, carrots, or green beans.

What does wafu mean?

“Wafu” means Japanese-style and it often refers to “wafu” salad dressing.  There are all different kinds of wafu dressings, but they all use some combination of traditionally Japanese ingredients such as soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame or ponzu.  

Since this recipe has a ponzu sauce resembling wafu dressing and is often served with a side of green salad, it’s referred to as “wafu hambagu”.

How to make wafu hambagu

Prepare the onions & panko

1. Prepare the onions.  Chop the onions and sauté them in butter on medium heat for 3-5 minutes until lightly browned.  Once finished, set them aside and let them cool to room temperature. 
2. Prepare the panko. Soak the panko bread crumbs in milk for a few minutes.

Make the hambagu steaks

1. Mix the ingredients.  In a medium bowl, combine the ground beef, pork, onions, panko in milk, egg, sesame oil, worcestershire sauce, minced garlic, black pepper, and salt.  Mix and knead the ingredients very thoroughly until fully combined.  Separate the meat into four equal-sized portions.  
2. Form the hambagu steaks.  First oil your hands with about a half tablespoon of oil so that the mixture doesn’t stick to your hands while forming the steaks. To form the hambagu steaks, take one portion of the meat in one of your hands.  Now gently, but firmly, toss it to your other hand.  And then toss it back to your first hand.  And now toss it again.  Toss the meat from hand-to-hand about 15-20 times until you form an oval-shaped steak.  Repeat for the other three steaks.  This process removes air bubbles from the meat to prevent the steaks from cracking into pieces while cooking.  Place the hambagu steaks on a parchment paper lined plate and let them rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Make the oroshi

1. Make the oroshi.  Meanwhile, as the hambagu steaks are resting in the fridge, make the oroshi.  Peel the daikon and grate it with a fine cheese grater.  In Japan they use special graters to get the perfect texture.  I didn’t have one, so I just used a normal cheese grater and it turned out great.  Once grated, squeeze out the liquid from the daikon and set the oroshi aside.

Make the ponzu sauce

1. Make the ponzu sauce.  Combine the ponzu, sugar, and yuzu kosho in a small bowl.  Mix thoroughly until the sugar and yuzu kosho dissolve.

Cook the hambagu

1. Cook the hambagu.  Once the hamburger steaks are done resting, heat oil over medium heat in a large sauté pan.  Once the oil is hot, gently place the hamburger steaks in the pan.  Use your thumb to make an indentation in the middle of each steak.  Cook for four minutes until browned.  Flip the hambagus, cover the pan with a lid, and cook for five minutes.  Now remove the cover and add the ponzu sauce.  Cook for two more minutes, spooning the ponzu sauce over the steaks while they cook.  When fully cooked, remove the hamburger steaks from the pan.  Continue to cook the sauce for 1-2 minutes to slightly reduce it.  Remove from the heat once reduced.
2. Top with oroshi and ponzu sauce.  Place the hamburger steaks on a serving plate and top each with 2-3 tablespoons of the daikon oroshi.  Pour the ponzu sauce over the hamburger steaks.  
3. Serve. Enjoy wafu hambagu with a side of green salad and roasted vegetables.  Use the ponzu sauce for dressing for the salad.

Tips for making wafu hambagu

1. Use beef and pork. American burgers usually use just beef. But Japanese hambagu uses a combination of beef and pork, which adds flavor and keeps the steaks juicy. 
2. Remove trapped air from the hamburger steaks.  When forming the steaks, make sure to remove all the air bubbles from them. To do this, gently but firmly toss each steak from one hand to your other hand 15-20 times until the steaks are formed and all air bubbles are removed. 
3. Indent the center of each hambagu when cooking. When you place the hamburger steaks in the sauté pan to cook them, use your thumb to gently make an indentation of about a half inch in the center of each steak. When the steaks are cooking, the centers will rise, and this indentation will keep them flat and from turning into round balls. 

How to make daikon oroshi

Daikon oroshi is a super simple Japanese condiment of peppery shredded radish.  It’s used to give bite to various Japanese dishes such as grilled meats, fish and this wafu hambagu.

To make oroshi, peel the daikon and grate it.  Once grated, use a cheesecloth or your hands to squeeze out most of the liquid.  And that’s it, your oroshi is done.

What if I don’t have a Japanese grater (oroshigane)

In Japan, a special grater called oroshigane is used to grate the daikon.  I didn’t have an oroshigane, and so I just used the finest cheese grater that I had.  The texture was slightly different than oroshi made with an oroshigane but the taste was exactly the same.

How to serve wafu hambagu

Serve wafu hambagu with a side of green salad and roasted vegetables such as potatoes, carrots, or green beans.  Use the ponzu sauce as a dressing for the salad.  Enjoy with a glass of red wine such as cabernet.