Japanese Curry and Rice
Let's try this common Japanese recipe "Fait maison" : “kare-raisu” カレーライス “curry and rice.”
I am happy that my firend T.K. has accepted to write in my blog. To read more about how we met, go here in French but please take some time to translate it if you are really interested. But she is also explaining it a little bit in this post.
Thank you very much / Arigato Gozaimasù /ありがとうございます
Hajimemashite / はじめまして / Nice to meet you
I am Kanako, a friend of Ella’s. I met her in the Japanese class for the first time a few years ago. I was a teacher and she was one of my students. In those days, I was taking French lessons at a French school, and coincidentally she was working for the school. The more I talked with her, the more I found we had a lot in common. For instance, we had both moved to Canada because of marriage, we were both interested in other languages and cultures, as well as social issues such as gender and education.
Today, I am going to introduce a popular and common food among Japanese people that is often made at home. You might imagine sushi, tofu or tempura to be typical “Japanese food.” However, we often have meals at home that we call “Western food,” like spaghetti or gratin.
The food I’ll introduce is something I feel like eating more often since I moved to Canada, though it was not my favorite food when I was in Japan. It is called “kare-raisu” or “curry and rice.”
This food is originally from India as you know. At the end of the 19th century, it was introduced to Japan from the UK, and became popular among Japanese people after WWII.
Japanese curry is sweeter than traditional Indian curry.
It is a very simple recipe, thanks to the instant curry mix that you can buy in Asian shops or in the Asian sections of many grocery stores. Most Japanese families, especially those with children, always keep a couple of boxes in store for a quick and tasty meal.
When I was a child, my family had curry and rice for supper every Saturday. I guess that my mom who made all the meals for our family, wanted to take it easy on Saturday nights, but also because everyone liked it.
So let’s get started!
You need (10 servings):
- 1 box of curry sauce
- two carrots
- 3-4 onions
- 3 potatoes
- 1 lb meat (pork, chicken or beef)
Look on the back of the curry mix box. You can see the recipe and the instructions. There are several companies that sell curry mix such as S&B or Glico but the way to make it is the same.
1. Stir-fry the vegetables with meat in oil.
2. Add 6 cups of water and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down and simmer for about 20 mins.
3. Add the curry mix when the ingredients are tender. Make sure to dissolve the sauce well.
4. Serve hot over rice.
<Some other points>
- I start the rice in a rice cooker before I get started making the curry.
- You can use almost any vegetables you like.
(I used fewer potatoes than the recipe called for, but added Chinese eggplants instead.)
- the instructions don’t mention it, but you may see the scum when it boils. Please get rid of it.
- You can also enjoy this curry with noodles, nan or bread.
- It is just like a stew, so the next day it may be even tastier, I think. If it becomes too thick the next day, just add some water, milk or coconut milk to make it lighter.
- Curry sauce usually has three levels of spiciness: mild, medium or hot. I often use the medium one because my daughter does not like food that is too spicy. If you have small children or others who do not tolerate spicy foods, you should start with the mild one. My husband, on the other hand, will add curry or chili powder to his because he likes it hot.
That’s all. I hope you will enjoy making and sharing the taste of Japanese curry.
Bon appétit!
Just for you :
If you want to learn about some words related to food in Japan
“ Meshiagare / Itadakimasu / Oishii. -
召し上がれ（めしあがれ）／いただきます／おいしい”
Thank you very much for reading!
ありがとうございました
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