Japanese Curry Rice

Ingredients

Curry roux

• 60 gbutter
• 60 gplain flour
• 3 tbspcurry powder
• 1 tbspgaram masala
• 1 tspground cumin
• 1/2 tspcayenne, to taste

Stew

• 700 gbeef chuck, in 4 cm cubes, or chicken thighs
• 2 tbspoil
• 2onions, sliced
• 3garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 tbspgrated ginger
• 3carrots, cut in chunks
• 3potatoes, cut in large chunks
• 1.2 litresbeef or chicken stock
• 1bay leaf
• salt and pepper

Secret additions

• 1apple, grated
• 1 tbsphoney
• 1 tbspsoy sauce
• 1 tbsptomato ketchup
• 1 tbspWorcestershire sauce
• 20 gdark chocolate, or 1 tbsp instant coffee

To serve

• steamed Japanese short-grain rice
• fukujinzuke pickles
• rakkyo pickled shallots

Directions

1. Melt the butter in a small heavy pan over a low heat. Stir in the flour and cook it slowly, stirring constantly. Cook it for fifteen to twenty minutes until it turns the colour of peanut butter. Keep the heat low, since a burnt roux is bitter and must be thrown away.
2. Take it off the heat and stir in the curry powder, garam masala, cumin and cayenne. Scrape it into a bowl and let it cool and firm up. Heat the oil in a large heavy pot over a high heat. Brown the beef in batches, four minutes a side, and set it aside. Now the onions, which need much longer than most recipes suggest.
3. Cook them for twenty-five minutes, stirring often. They should collapse and turn deep brown and jammy. Add a splash of water if they catch, and scrape the bottom. Add the garlic and ginger and cook them for two minutes. Return the beef with any juices and pour in the stock. Add the bay leaf and bring it to a simmer. Cover it and cook it gently for forty-five minutes.
4. Add the carrot and potato chunks after the forty-five minutes. Cut them large, since small pieces disintegrate completely. Simmer for a further twenty minutes until they are tender. Test the potato with a knife: it should slide in with no resistance.
5. Stir in the grated apple, honey, soy sauce, ketchup and Worcestershire sauce. Add the chocolate or instant coffee, which deepens the colour and the savoury edge.
6. Simmer for five minutes so everything combines. Now thickening, which needs care to avoid lumps. Ladle a cupful of the hot liquid into the bowl of roux. Whisk it into a smooth loose paste. Pour that paste back into the pot, stirring as you go. Never drop the solid roux straight into the pot, which makes lumps.
7. Simmer for ten minutes, stirring often, as it thickens. It will thicken more than you expect in the last few minutes. Let it stand off the heat for ten minutes before serving. Mound the rice on one half of a shallow plate.
8. Ladle the curry into the other half so it meets the rice at the edge. Do not pour it over the whole plate, since the rice should stay dry on one side. Put fukujinzuke pickles on the edge of the plate in a small heap. Serve it with a spoon rather than chopsticks.

Technique

• Cook the roux slowly to peanut-butter colour, since a burnt roux is bitter and unusable.
• Caramelise the onions for twenty-five minutes, which is where the sweetness comes from.
• Loosen the roux with hot liquid before it goes in, or it will lump.

Substitutions

• Shop-bought roux blocks, which is what most Japanese homes use.
• Chicken thighs in place of beef, cooked for half the time.

Variations

• Katsu curry, with a fried breaded cutlet on top.
• Seafood curry, with prawns and squid added at the end.
• Vegetable curry, with the meat left out and mushrooms added.

History

Curry arrived via the British Royal Navy in the Meiji era; the Imperial Navy served it weekly, and 1950s roux blocks made it a home staple.

Frequently asked questions

What is Japanese Curry Rice?

Japanese Curry Rice is a main from Japan: thick mild curry with potatoes, carrots and meat over rice. Curry arrived via the British Royal Navy in the Meiji era; the Imperial Navy served it weekly, and 1950s roux blocks made it a home staple.

How long does Japanese Curry Rice take to make?

Japanese Curry Rice takes 30 min of preparation and 1 hour 15 min of cooking. The recipe makes 6 servings. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Japanese Curry Rice?

Yes, within limits. Shop-bought roux blocks, which is what most Japanese homes use. Chicken thighs in place of beef, cooked for half the time.

What is the most important thing to get right in Japanese Curry Rice?

Melt the butter in a small heavy pan over a low heat. Stir in the flour and cook it slowly, stirring constantly. Cook it for fifteen to twenty minutes until it turns the colour of peanut butter. Keep the heat low, since a burnt roux is bitter and must be thrown away.