Homemade Japanese Curry

When we went to Japan over the summer, one of my favorite meals was Japanese curry. I’d never had (or even heard of) Japanese curry before this trip and oh. my. goodness, was it YUMMY!

One of the things I loved about Japan was the wide variety of traditional foods we got to try. I thought we’d be sick of sushi by the end of the week, but that could not have been further from the truth.

Here’s what it looked like…

So I set out to make a homemade version of this yummy dish with more veggies and less deep frying. I tried it all different ways and even consulted our cooking teacher from when we were there (via email—thanks Keiko!).

Here’s the final version I came up with… very similar to what we remember! I did use chicken stock when testing, but I think subbing beef stock would make the sauce even darker in color like the original. I love how this comes together quickly enough to be a one-dish weeknight dinner. Enjoy. :)

Homemade Japanese Curry

When we went to Japan, one of my favorite meals was Japanese Curry. Here's my homemade recipe for this yummy dish with more veggies and less deep frying.

4.9 from 8 votes

Prep Time: 10 mins

Cook Time: 1 hr

Total Time: 1 hr 10 mins

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Japanese

Method: Freezer Friendly

Diet: Egg Free, Peanut/Tree Nut-Free

Print Recipe

Servings: 6 people

Ingredients

  

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For the meat and veggies

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 onion minced
• 6 medium carrots peeled and cut into small dice
• 1 Yukon Gold potato cut into small dice (no need to peel)
• 1 1/3 pounds pork tenderloin or boneless, skinless chicken thighs cut into 1″ cubes
• 4 cloves garlic minced
• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger minced
• salt to taste
• pepper to taste

For the sauce

• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1/4 cup whole-wheat flour
• 1 tablespoon curry powder
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 3 cups chicken broth or beef
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• salt to taste

For serving

• brown rice cooked

Instructions

 

To make the meat and veggies

• Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the onion, carrots, and potato while stirring until the onions begin to turn translucent, about 5 minutes. 
• Season the pork with salt and pepper to taste and then add to the pan along with the garlic and ginger. Cook while stirring until the meat is cooked all the way through (no longer pink in the middle) and the veggies are soft when pierced with a fork, 5 to 10 minutes.

To make the sauce

• In a medium saute pan, melt the butter over low heat. Whisk in the flour and continually stir until the mixture darkens in color but does not burn, 4 to 5 minutes. Whisk in the spices until well combined.
• Pour in the broth/stock and whisk vigorously until the sauce comes together. Turn the heat up to medium and lightly simmer while whisking occasionally until the sauce thickens to the consistency of a gravy.
• Whisk in the soy sauce and simmer for another couple minutes to regain the thick consistency. If needed, salt to taste.

To serve

• Evenly distribute the brown rice in bowls (or on plates), spoon a serving of the meat and veggie mixture next to it, pour the sauce over top, and serve warm.

Notes

We recommend organic ingredients when feasible.

Nutrition Facts

Nutrition Facts

Homemade Japanese Curry

Amount Per Serving

Calories 146 Calories from Fat 99

% Daily Value*

Fat 11g17%

Saturated Fat 4g25%

Cholesterol 15mg5%

Sodium 987mg43%

Potassium 267mg8%

Carbohydrates 10g3%

Fiber 2g8%

Sugar 1g1%

Protein 3g6%

Vitamin A 200IU4%

Vitamin C 12.8mg16%

Calcium 33mg3%

Iron 1.8mg10%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!