Okinawan Taco Rice

Taco Rice is a popular Okinawan dish and a modern fusion of Tex-Mex and Japanese cuisines. Instead of putting taco toppings on a corn shell, toppings are put on a bed of cooked rice. It sounds a little bit strange to have taco toppings on rice, but it is surprisingly delicious. The bright colour combination of the toppings is appetising.

My taco toppings consist of beef mince, salsa, shredded lettuce, diced avocado, and shredded cheese. The combination of spicy meat, rich and tasty cheese, crispy lettuce, and the sourness of the salsa creates an exquisite harmony in your mouth.

Taco Rice – a Japanese Invention

Taco Rice (タコライス, pronounce it as ‘takoraisu‘) originated in the town called Kin (金武), Okinawa, which is located in the middle of the main island of Okinawa.

It was in the early 1980s when the Japanese yen was strong, which hit the US military people hard and they did not have much money to spare.

The owner of the cafe near the US base camp, Matsuzo Gibo, thought of serving a cheap but filling tasty food to the military people. Tacos were popular among them, so Matsuzo served taco toppings on rice to increase the volume of the dish. His Taco Rice only had taco meat on top, like the photo below.

Taco Rice became popular among the US military people, then spread all over Okinawa and the rest of Japan. The popularity travelled overseas, particularly to the US.

There are many combinations of toppings, and the flavouring of the mince/ground meat can also vary. The meat can be beef, pork, a mixture of beef & pork, or chicken.

Although the idea came from the Tex-Mex Tacos, I find that the taco meat of the Okinawan Taco Rice does not have as many herbs as the Mexican version. It also has a hint of authentic Japanese flavour.

What’s in My Okinawan Taco Rice

None of the ingredients are hard to get and the seasonings are pantry staples, but there are quite few ingredients involved in this dish.

Rice and Toppings

• Hot cooked rice
• Shredded lettuce
• Diced avocado
• Shredded cheese

I used shredded tasty cheese, i.e. cheddar cheese, but you can use other cheese such as Colby, Monterey Jack, or Gouda cheese.

Salsa

• Diced red onion
• Diced green capsicum
• Diced tomatoes
• Grated garlic
• Lemon juice or lime juice
• Tabasco (optional)

Tabasco is optional but the salsa will taste good if you add a few dashes of it.

Taco Meat

• Beef mince
• Finely diced onion
• Finely diced garlic
• Oil

Instead of beef, you can use pork, chicken, or a mixture of beef & pork.

Taco Meat Seasoning

• Cooking sake
• Sugar
• Soy sauce
• Tomato ketchup
• Worcestershire sauce
• Chilli powder
• Cumin

The addition of cooking sake, soy sauce, and Worcestershire sauce makes the Okinawan version of the Taco Meat quite unique. Adjust the quantity of chilli powder to make the Taco Meat more or less spicy.

How to Make Okinawan Taco Rice

Salsa

1. If you don’t like the heat in the onions, submerge them in cold/ice water and leave them for 10-15 minutes. Drain and squeeze water out of them.
2. Put all the Salsa ingredients in a bowl and mix well.

You can make the salsa the day before.

Taco Meat

1. Sauté onion and garlic in a frying pan until the onion pieces become brownish.
2. Add mince/ground meat to the pan and cook until the meat changes the colour.
3. Add all the Taco Meat Seasoning ingredients to the pan and mix well.
4. When liquid evaporates, turn the heat off.

You can make the Taco Meat ahead. You can even freeze it.

Assembling Taco Rice

1. Spread rice on a serving plate.
2. Put the Taco Meat over the rice.
3. Scatter shredded lettuce and avocado pieces over the meat.
4. Put the salsa on top, then scatter the shredded cheese over the mound.

As you can see in the above instructions, it is quite a simple process. It is also good to be able to make Taco Meat and even salsa ahead, so that you only need to reheat the meat and assemble the Taco Rice.

Some Taco Rice you get at restaurants may not have as many toppings as my Taco Rice. Commonly used toppings are shredded lettuce, chopped tomatoes, and shredded cheese, in addition to the Taco Meat (photo below).

Using my Taco Rice Recipe, you can make these simpler versions of Taco Rice by removing the salsa. But I think I like it with the lot.

Okinawan Taco Rice is a quick and easy dish to make. It can scale up without much trouble either. It is visually attractive and quite filling too. It’s a perfect family meal.

Yumiko

5 from 1 vote

Print

Okinawan Taco Rice

Prep Time

10 mins

Cook Time

10 mins

Total Time

20 mins

 

Taco Rice is a popular Okinawan dish and a modern fusion of Tex-Mex and Japanese cuisines. Instead of putting taco toppings on a corn shell, toppings are put on a bed of cooked rice. It sounds a little bit strange to have taco toppings on rice, but it is surprisingly delicious. The bright colour combination of the toppings is appetising.

Don't forget to see the section 'MEAL IDEAS' below the recipe card! It gives you a list of dishes that I have already posted and this recipe that can make up a complete meal. I hope it is of help to you.

Recipe Type: Main, Rice

Cuisine: Japanese

Keyword: okinawan recipes, taco rice, taco rice recipes

Serves: 2

Author: Yumiko

Ingredients (tbsp=15ml, cup=250ml)

• 360-400g/0.8-0.9lb cooked rice (hot, note 1)

Salsa

• 90g/3.2oz tomato deseeded and diced
• 60g/2.1oz red onion finely chopped (note 2)
• 30g/1.1oz green capsicum finely chopped
• ½ tsp garlic grated
• 1 tbsp lemon juice (or lime juice)
• ¼ tsp salt
• 3-4 dashes Tabasco (optional)

Taco Meat

• 200g/7.1oz beef mince/ground beef (note 3)
• 100g/3.5oz onion finely diced
• 1 clove of garlic finely chopped
• 2 tsp oil

Taco Meat Seasoning

• 1 tbsp cooking sake
• 1 tsp sugar
• 2 tsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp tomato ketchup
• 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• ½ -1 tsp chilli powder (note 4)
• ½ tsp cumin powder

Other Toppings

• 1½ cups lettuce finely shredded
• 50g/1.8oz avocado cut into 1cm cubes
• 50g/1.8oz10 shredded cheese (note 5)

Instructions

Salsa (note 6)

1. If you don’t like the heat in the chopped onions, submerge them in cold/ice water and leave them for 10-15 minutes. Drain and squeeze water out of them.

2. Put all the Salsa ingredients in a bowl and mix well.

Taco Meat (note 7)

1. Sauté onion and garlic in a frying pan until the onion pieces become brownish.

2. Add mince/ground meat to the pan and cook until the meat changes colour.

3. Add all the Taco Meat Seasoning ingredients to the pan and mix well.
4. When liquid evaporates, turn the heat off.

Assembling Taco Rice

1. Spread rice on a serving plate.
2. Put the Taco Meat over the rice.
3. Scatter shredded lettuce and avocado pieces over the meat.
4. Put the salsa on top, then scatter the shredded cheese over the mound.
5. Serve immediately while the rice is hot.

Recipe Notes

1.  A large serving of rice offers a good balance with the Taco Meat. You can cut down the volume of rice if you like.

2. You can substitute it with brown or white onion.

3. Instead of beef you can use pork, chicken, or a mixture of pork & beef.

4. 1 teaspoon of chilli powder makes the Taco Meat  noticeable heat with 1 teaspoon of chilli powder. You can reduce the quantity to make the meat less spicy. But I think that a little bit of spiciness makes a difference in the taste of the meat.

If you are making Okinawan Taco Rice for your children, you can omit chilli powder.

5. I bought a bag of shredded tasty cheese for this. You can also use Monterey Jack, Colby, or Gouda.

6. Nutrition per serving. It is a bit serving and the calories are high. You can reduce the quantity of rice  to cut it back.

serving: 566g calories: 783kcal fat: 38g (49%) saturated fat: 13g (65%) trans fat: 1.4g polyunsaturated fat: 2.5g monounsaturated fat: 17g cholesterol: 96mg (32%) sodium: 1216mg (53%) carbohydrates: 78g (28%) dietary fibre: 5.8g (21%) sugar: 14g protein: 31g vitamin D: 0mcg (1%) calcium: 288mg (22%) iron: 6.7mg (37%) potassium: 1082mg (23%)