Rice, hamburger, brown gravy, and egg all combine to make this delicious, hearty meal.

Loco Moco is a typical Hawaiian dish that is incredibly filling. According to Hawaii Magazine, it was created around 1949 in a Hilo restaurant and is named after one of the kids who ordered something filling and cheap. By making it from scratch, you can add your own personal touch like furikake on the egg or extra soy sauce in your burger patties.

Loco Moco Recipe: (makes 4 servings)

Ingredients:

• For the burgers:
  • 1 lb. ground beef
  • 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
  • 1/2 tsp. onion powder
  • 1 tsp. soy sauce
  • 1/4 tsp. black pepper
  • 1/4 tsp. Accent (optional)
• For the gravy:
  • 1/2 cup thinly sliced sweet onion
  • 2 cups prepared brown gravy
• For the fried eggs:
  • 1 T. butter
  • 4 large eggs
• For the garnish:
  • Furikake or sesame seeds (optional)
  • chopped scallions (optional)
  • Black pepper to taste
  • Hot sauce to taste
  • 4 cups of cooked jasmine rice

Method:

1. If you don't have any leftover rice, get your rice going in the rice cooker or on the stovetop. Set a cast-iron skillet to heat up over medium heat while you prepare the burgers.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the ground beef with the spices and mix well. Form into 4 large patties, somewhat on the flatter side (they'll contract as they cook). Fry them in the skillet for 5 minutes on each side. Set the cooked burgers aside and pour off most of the grease.
3. Return the skillet to the burner and gently sautée the sliced onion for about 1 minute, until fragrant and translucent. Add the brown gravy to the skillet and stir. Put the burgers into the gravy and let them simmer gently for about 10 minutes, turning once at the midpoint.
4. In a separate frying pan, melt the butter and make 4 sunny-side-up eggs, or over easy if you prefer the whites more well done. Assemble each portion of loco moco with a cup of rice, a burger patty, a generous portion of gravy, and the fried egg (in that order). Garnish with fresh black pepper, scallions, furikake, and hot sauce if you'd like.

Variations:

• This recipe is unapologetically made for meat-eaters. Sure, you could do a Beyond Burger or other meatless patty, but what would you possibly use to substitute the sunny-side-up egg?
• Brown gravy can absolutely be made from scratch, but the prepared stuff in a jar or powdered mix is fine for this recipe. It is just one component that you elevate with the sautéed onion.
• Add a bit of extra oomph with some sliced mushrooms when you fry the onions. Plain white button mushrooms or baby Bellas would be great in this recipe.
• Furikake is a Japanese seasoning that you sprinkle on rice. The most basic versions have just chopped nori and sesame seeds for a bit of salty crunch, but you can use any variety you can find.

Have you ever had loco moco? What do you think of this Hawaiian dish? Sound off in the comments!

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