The "Ultimate Egg Bowl" Made by Folding a Runny Fried Egg Over Rice, and a Frank Verdict on a Sweet New Mayonnaise

At the start, Ryuji says that sponsorship aside, Pure Select Mayonnaise is the brand Ryuji normally specifies and uses. The reason is that it has little acidity and strong umami, so it goes well with any dish. Mayonnaise with strong acidity sometimes doesn't pair well with rice, so Ryuji's rule is to use Pure Select for cooking, while other mayonnaises are perfectly tasty for dipping. Recalling an earlier taste test against other companies' products, Ryuji says, "The taste was completely different."

The ingredients this time are eggs, rice, a can of tuna, bean sprouts, mayonnaise, and green onion if you have it. Ryuji introduces it as a recipe that is "super easy and looks super impressive."

First, drain the oil from the can of tuna. According to Ryuji, if you leave the oil in, the result becomes greasy since mayonnaise itself is oil, and you can't bring out the flavor of the mayonnaise. The drained oil is tasty in peperoncino or miso soup, so there's no need to throw it away.

Assuming one can of tuna makes two servings, add about 2 tablespoons (30g) of mayonnaise, Hondashi, and soy sauce. Ryuji says the flavor of Hondashi pairs extremely well with mayonnaise. Then, noting it's optional, Ryuji adds about 10 shakes of garlic powder and calls it "the ultimate garlic mayo." At this stage it's practically done, and it's delicious as an onigiri filling or simply spooned over rice. Ryuji also stresses that there's no waste, since you open one can and use half for each serving.

For the rice, Ryuji heats "supreme white rice" that was frozen right after cooking, for 3 minutes 30 seconds. Packaged microwave rice is fine too, but it's relatively expensive, so Ryuji recommends cooking extra and freezing it to keep daily food costs down.

Here the video digresses into Ryuji's days as an office worker. Ryuji worked at a company for 10 years, but after a year of hard work a raise would be only about 3,000 yen, and argues that since salaries rarely go up, cutting costs such as food is the quickest fix. The company prohibited side jobs, but Ryuji was writing cooking columns anyway. Once the column income reached about twice the salary, Ryuji thought, "Why am I even doing this?" and changed careers. Looking back, Ryuji says that at the time hardly anyone was sharing recipes online, and it was luck that made it possible to earn money from columns.

For the side dish, Ryuji uses bean sprouts as the "void vegetable." Put the sprouts in a heatproof container (a regular rice bowl is fine) and microwave for 2 minutes. A lot of water will come out, but you don't need to worry about it. After heating, cool them under running water and squeeze out the moisture. This step lets you eat right away without waiting for them to cool.

For seasoning, use a little more than 1 tablespoon of mayonnaise and Ajinomoto's Aji-Shio to taste. Ryuji says Aji-Shio is what pairs best with mayonnaise, and that it's delicious with just this. Adding about half a teaspoon of curry powder makes it "evolve into a new dish." The curry gets rid of the sprouts' odor and also goes well with rice.

The heart of the egg bowl is the cooking step. Heat oil in a smallish frying pan (Ryuji used rice oil from a company in the same group, but vegetable oil works too) and crack in two eggs. Ryuji repeats several times that "the number of eggs is important."

Spread the egg whites across the whole pan and let them set. A white film forms, and Ryuji uses this to turn the fried egg into a "crepe." Spread the tuna mayo over the egg, including over the yolks, and sprinkle with pepper, since pepper tastes better rolled inside. The heat is set to medium.

It would be delicious to put it on the bowl as is, but Ryuji says that wouldn't be interesting for a cooking expert. While the yolks are still runny, slide one side under and fold it over to make a "fried egg omelet." This is where the explanation ties together: with only one egg you can't close it up, so you need two. Cook it a little more so the inside is soft and runny, then place it on the rice.

Finally, scatter green onion on top. Nori or any garnish you like is fine too. If you like strong flavors, drizzle with soy sauce and it's done. "You've never seen a dish like this, right?" Ryuji says, adding that the crispy-cooked whites are the key to its flavor.

Cutting it open and taking a bite, Ryuji praises the combination of the soft, runny center and the crispy, toasty outer parts. Ryuji says a bit more soy sauce would be good, and a sprinkle of Aji-Shio works too, giving it a flavor like tamago kake gohan (raw egg over rice).

Because the acidity of the mayonnaise is hard to detect, the flavor of the egg really stands out. Right after saying the eggs used were laid within the last three days, Ryuji gets a laugh by adding, "I was just thinking about the sponsor there" (the same phrase appears later in the description of the new product).

As for the mayo curry bean sprouts, Ryuji says the umami of Aji-Shio makes up for what the sprouts lack on their own, but revises the recipe: there could be more curry powder, and to make it to Ryuji's own taste, a full teaspoon would be better. No additional mayonnaise is needed.

After eating, Ryuji prefaces by saying that since becoming a cooking expert, Ryuji has eaten 50,000–60,000 yen course meals for things like staff birthdays, and then, acknowledging this might cause backlash, declares flatly: "Food you eat at home is the best." The reason is that you can make the flavors you like whenever you want and eat exactly the way you want.

When you're hungover or just not feeling motivated, and you want a hearty egg dish, you can make it immediately. Ryuji says that leads to happiness in life. Ryuji sums up that the reason for continuing the channel is also about "let's become people who can make delicious food." The recipe may look sloppy at first glance, but it's extremely delicious, so Ryuji urges viewers to try it.

At the end, an Ajinomoto representative brings in a new mayonnaise scheduled for release in August. It's a product with even less acidity and oiliness, made with fresh eggs laid within three days and honey. According to the representative, the idea that honey pairs well came up in a previous collaboration. Saying "I don't really like sweet stuff," Ryuji checks whether it's okay to speak honestly before starting the tasting.

For comparison, Ryuji tried them in order on cucumber: another company's mayonnaise with the name hidden, Pure Select, and the new product. The other company's was "sour and tasty," while Pure Select had strong umami and little acidity. The representative explained that the new product simply adds honey, with the other ingredients the same as Pure Select. It looks almost identical but is slightly more yellow, and Ryuji's verdict was "Tasty. Sweet and pretty rich," comparing the difference to that between regular soy sauce and Kyushu's sweet soy sauce.

The representative explained the aim as follows. About 40% of people don't yet buy mayonnaise, and among them are people who dislike its distinctive acidity and oiliness. For them, the company made a light, fluffy mayonnaise with reduced acidity that melts in the mouth and has a clean finish. They hope people will use it just like their usual mayonnaise.

Ryuji's assessment is clear. For dipping cucumbers, this one beats Pure Select, and it would probably go well with nuggets too. Ryuji added reasons: kids would definitely prefer this one, and in dressings that use a lot of oil, adding sugar makes them easier to eat. Ryuji acknowledges that as a mayonnaise, its deliciousness is top-class.

On the other hand, Ryuji points out that when used in cooking, the sweetness asserts itself, making it hard to use a single bottle for everything. Ryuji's view is that households basically keep only one bottle of mayonnaise, and having two side by side isn't realistic. "Half" differentiates itself with lower calories for people who want to use a lot, but this one is differentiated by flavor. Ryuji personally doesn't have a habit of dipping things in mayonnaise, and on hearing the price is almost the same, said Ryuji's own viewers would probably stick with Pure Select.

In conclusion, Ryuji says, "It's a good product, but it'll be tough unless people develop ways to use it." Ryuji also frankly remarks that Ajinomoto's new products are usually "really good, but the hard part is who's going to use them." Saying more ready-to-use applications are needed, Ryuji promises to think of ways to use it too, and wraps up with, "It tastes great, so it might be worth trying once."