Plump Osaka wheat udon in a light dashi-soy broth, topped with sweet soy-simmered sliced beef and spring onion. The standing-soba-and-udon shop staple of central Osaka.

Dotonbori Imai opened in 1946 in the bombed-out theatre district as an udon-suki house and helped define Osaka's lighter dashi-led udon broth, distinct from the soy-darker Tokyo style. Niku-udon, the beef variant introduced when sugared sliced beef became a workers' lunch in the 1950s, is now standard across every Osaka udon shop.

Where to eat Niku-udon (beef udon) in Osaka

2 editor picks for Niku-udon (beef udon) in Osaka, ranked by editorial score. All Osaka signature dishes · Niku-udon (beef udon) across every city.

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Make it at home

Serves 230 minEasy

Ingredients

  • 2 portions thick wheat udon noodles (frozen Sanuki-style works well)
  • 200g thinly sliced beef shin or chuck
  • 1 tablespoon neutral oil
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce (for the beef)
  • 2 tablespoons mirin
  • 1 tablespoon sake
  • 1 tablespoon caster sugar
  • 1 small piece ginger, grated
  • For the broth: 1 litre dashi stock
  • 3 tablespoons light soy sauce
  • 2 tablespoons mirin
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 leek or 2 spring onions, finely sliced, to top
  • Shichimi togarashi, to finish

Method

  1. Heat the oil in a small saucepan. Add the sliced beef and stir-fry 1 minute until just coloured.
  2. Pour in the 2 tablespoons soy sauce, mirin, sake, sugar and ginger. Simmer 6 to 8 minutes until the liquid reduces to a sticky glaze coating the beef. Set aside.
  3. In a separate pot, bring the dashi, light soy sauce, mirin and salt to a simmer for the broth. Taste and adjust salt.
  4. Cook the udon according to packet instructions, then drain and rinse briefly under hot water to remove starch.
  5. Divide the udon between two deep bowls. Ladle the hot broth over to cover.
  6. Pile the sticky beef on top of each bowl. Finish with sliced leek or spring onion and a pinch of shichimi togarashi.

Editor tip. Cook the beef separately and slide it on at the end; if you simmer the sugared beef in the broth, the whole bowl turns cloyingly sweet.

Common allergens: Gluten, Soy, Fish.