Jingisukan is Hokkaido's iconic grilled lamb dish paired with tender vegetables and a tangy fruit-forward soy dipping sauce. This authentic recipe guides you through making the sauce from scratch and layering flavors with strategic grilling.
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Roughly cut 75 g apple, 15 g carrot, 25 g onion and 15 g pineapple into small chunks and place them in a food processor.
Add 1 tsp lemon juice, ½ tsp honey, ½ tsp chili powder, 1 clove garlic, 5 g ginger root, ½ tsp ground sesame seeds and ⅛ tsp rice vinegar to the food processor, then blend everything together until no more large chunks remain.
Take a small saucepan and add 3 tbsp Japanese soy sauce (koikuchi shoyu), 1 tbsp water, 1 tbsp red wine, ½ tsp light brown sugar, ½ tsp mirin, 1 tsp toasted white sesame seeds along with the contents of the food processor.
Place the pan on the stove and bring the sauce to a boil while stirring continuously to prevent burning.
Once boiling, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 3 minutes. Then, remove the pan from the heat and allow the sauce to cool down. If you have time, place it in the fridge until serving.
Heat the pan/grill on a medium heat. Once hot, place a few slices of lamb in the center and sprinkle with a pinch of salt a pepper. If using a frying pan, move the lamb around the pan to season the surface.
Flip the lamb and cook on the other side. Once cooked, remove from the pan. (You can eat it now or save it for later.)
Add more lamb, then the vegetables, starting with hardier vegetables like kabocha, carrot and onion first as they take longer to cook. As they shrink, make space and add the eggplant and mushrooms, then finally the cabbage, bell peppers and bean sprouts. Make sure all the vegetables are touching the fat and juices from the lamb to flavor them, flip occasionally for even cooking. Grill in batches if there isn't enough space.
When the meat and vegetables are cooked, dip the ingredients in the homemade sauce and enjoy with rice. Continue to cook in batches until all of your ingredients are used up. Enjoy!
Store cooled sauce in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Cooked lamb and vegetables are best eaten fresh; reheat gently in a pan with a splash of sauce.
food processor · small saucepan · flat grill or large frying pan
Yes. After simmering for 3 minutes and removing from heat, cool the sauce completely. Store in the fridge until serving for best flavor development.
Lamb shoulder sliced thinly (about 2 mm) is traditional. Ask your butcher for thin slices, or partially freeze the shoulder and slice it yourself.
Beef or mutton work as regional alternatives, but lamb is traditional. Keep slices thin and cook quickly over medium heat.
Pineapple → kiwi fruit (already listed as option); zucchini → eggplant; butternut squash → kabocha (already listed). Avoid soft vegetables if grilling first.
A flat grill or large frying pan works. A dome-shaped jingisukan pan is traditional but not required for this recipe.
