I really love hearty breakfasts and this Loco Moco with Mushroom Gravy recipe is very high on my list of favorite meals to eat! The first time I had Loco Moco was when I went to Hawaii with my family, years ago. I initially ordered it because I liked the name of the dish as well as the idea of a hamburger patty over rice. I ended up totally falling in love with this ‘stick to your ribs’ dish.

Our version uses basmati rice because I love the fragrant rice, but you can use a more traditional steamed white rice. We also top our version with furikake seasoning because I love the umami flavor it adds to the dish, but you can easily omit it for an equally delicious Loco Moco dish!

What is Loco Moco?

Loco Moco is a local Hawaiian comfort food dish consisting of steamed rice topped with a hamburger patty, fried egg and finished with gravy.

Origins of the Dish

The origins of the dish is up for debate, but most can agree that it was invented in 1949 at either the Lincoln Grill restaurant, or Cafe 100, both in Hilo, Hawaii. The story goes that the dish was created for local teens that had come in for breakfast. They requested something unique from a typical sandwich and not as time consuming as asian food to prepare.

Why is it called ‘Loco Moco’?

Another question asked a lot is “What does Loco Moco mean?” The name of the dish came from the nickname of one of the teens ‘Loco’ and ‘Moco’ was simply added because it sounded good together. It became a popular staple of the restaurant and slowly spread throughout the islands.

How to Make Our Loco Moco Recipe

Process

Mushroom Gravy

Melt some butter in a saucepan and saute garlic and mushrooms. Once mushrooms have caramelized, melt more butter into the mixture.

Add flour and whisk together until no lumps remain. Stir in stock and continue to stir together until gravy has thickened enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon. Season with salt and pepper.

Hamburger Patties

Mix seasonings into ground beef.
Divide mixture and form into two patties.

Hamburger patty ingredients in a bowl with seasonings.

Cook the patties in a skillet until desired doneness.

Hamburger patties being cooked in a skillet.

Fried Eggs

Melt butter in a skillet over medium-high heat. Crack eggs over melted butter. Fry eggs until edges are crisp, whites have set, but the yolk is runny.

Assembly

Place rice in the bottom of two bowls or plates. Top rice with hamburger patties. Ladle gravy over patties and rice. Top gravy with fried eggs and top with more gravy. Sprinkle Loco Moco with furikake and sliced chives.

Variations

Ground turkey can be used in place of the ground beef to make turkey patties.
Slices of spam can be fried up and served in place of the hamburger patties as well!
We use shiitake mushrooms for our gravy, but you can use any mushrooms of your choice, based on personal preference!
Caramelized onions can take the place of the mushrooms for a caramelized onion gravy.
Brown rice can be swapped in for the white rice.
Green onions can be used to garnish the dish, instead of chives.

Is This a Traditional Version of the Dish?

Our recipe has all the components of a traditional loco moco (like rice, hamburger patties, sunny-side up eggs, and gravy), but the specifics are a little bit different.

The traditional dish uses short grain white rice, but we use basmati rice, because I just love the fragrance and flavor! The traditional dish also has a much richer brown gravy, primarily consisting of beef broth, beef patty drippings, flour, and a teaspoon or two of soy sauce (and/or a teaspoon Worcestershire sauce). We make a mushroom gravy with chicken stock and no burger patty juices, for a lighter gravy overall.

Loco Moco is traditionally garnished with sliced green onions or no garnish at all. We added a sprinkle of furikake seasoning and sliced chives to finish our dish off!

Tips and Tricks for Success

Prep ingredients ahead of time to save on time when cooking. I always try to prep as much ahead of time as I can, when I cook. For this recipe you can slice the mushrooms and mince the garlic up to 2 days ahead of time and form the burger patties up to 12 hours ahead of time.
Use beef stock instead of chicken stock if you want a richer, more traditional gravy.
Add the egg to a hot pan to get a nice, crispy crust around the edge and to set the whites while maintaining a runny yolk.