Hawaiian Classic Loco Moco

I have a weakness for the kitchen; it is unquestionably my favorite space in the house. Fortunately, I enjoy eating as well—after all, who doesn’t? While dining at fine restaurants and stopping by your favorite fast food joint to grab that mouthwatering burger with lots of cheese are both enjoyable, there’s something about having a home-cooked meal that generally makes everything better.

Sometimes referred to as Hawaiian hamburger and egg over rice, this dish is a traditional and wonderfully cozy cuisine from Hawaii. It has a dish full of fluffy rice with a half-inch thick patties, brown gravy, and egg on top.

The dish is credited to Richard Inouye and his wife Nancy in 1949 at the Lincoln Grill restaurants in Hilo, Hawaii, which was my hometown, in response to young adult participants of the Lincoln Wreckers Athletics club who were searching for a fast and cheap sandwich substitute.

A homemade loco moco is really simple to make and far less expensive than purchasing a flight to the islands. This recipe will undoubtedly fulfill the yearning for classic Hawaiian flavors if a vacation to Hawai’i is not in the plans for the foreseeable future.

What is a Loco Moco

This Hawaiian dish really showcases the fusion of different cultures! The traditional version features a juicy hamburger patty on a bed of steamed rice, topped with a sunny-side-up egg, and smothered in savory brown gravy. It’s the ultimate comfort food!

What makes up a Loco Moco

Sticky white rice

burger made of thick, delicious ground beef

delicious brown gravy

An over easy egg

Apart from the conventional rendition that consists of a hamburger patty, there are other inventive variations of this cuisine that are offered around the islands. Following are some variations on the traditional loco moco filling:

Fried Portuguese sausage 

Fried Spam

 Kalua (shredded pork)

Short ribs 

 Chopped Steak

Pork chops

Vienna Sausage

Ingredients for Loco Moco

Rice

• Rice Pot
• 2 cups rice
• water

For the Burger

• 2 pounds ground beef
• 2 tablespoons mayonnaise 
• 1 egg
• Half and onion, diced
• 1/4 cup panko
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2-3 diced garlic cloves

For the Gravy

• 2 cups beef stock
• 3 tbsp cornstarch
• 1 tsp shoyu
• 1 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
• 1 cup sliced mushrooms
• Other half of onion sliced
• Salt
• Pepper
• Cornstarch

For the Egg

• Oil
• Egg

How to Make it

The rice should be done by the time you complete making the patties and sauce, so you can start by cooking the rice in the rice pot.

In a mixing bowl, mix ground beef, Worcestershire sauce, diced onion, and garlic.

Before cooking, form the meat into uniform patties and store them in the refrigerator.

The caramelized onion and mushroom gravy is a hallmark of this loco moco recipe. In your pan, start by caramelizing the onion slices with a little oil. Once done, leave them aside till the time comes for the final step making your gravy.

Use the same skillet to fry your burgers after that. There’s no need to light the grill. Once the burgers are done, place them on a dish and tent them with foil. In doing so, the patties will stay warm while you finish making the loco moco gravy.

Sliced mushrooms should be cooked till soft in the same pan. Add the beef stock, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, and caramelized onion slices that were set aside.

Add a little cornstarch to the broth for thickening. With soy sauce acting as the primary flavored ingredient and cornstarch being used to thicken, this gravy is unmistakably more Asian in character.

Fry a couple of eggs in another skillet while you complete the gravy.

When your Hawaiian loco moco is set to be assembled, place a scoop of rice on the bottom and a burger patty on top.

Place a fried egg on top and drizzle more of the mushroom-onion gravy on top after spooning some over the top.

Can also sprinkle some green onions on top!

Enjoy!