My husband + I fell in love with Japanese Curry while stationed at Yokota AFB in Tokyo Japan. If you’ve never had Japanese Curry before, take a mild Indian curry like Butter Curry; add some aromatic cardamom, sweet Fuji apples + bitter dark chocolate + you have Japanese Curry. The consistency is typically thicker + has the heartwarming abilities of stew here in the US.
Since it is very popular in Japan + the Japanese excel at efficiency + convenience you can find the curry base many places online + in grocery stores in the US. Iron Chef Morimoto suggests using “Vermont Curry Mild” while I prefer the “Vermont Curry Hot” to add a little kick. Don’t be intimidated by the use of the word “Hot” here. It is by no means hot. Think Buffalo Wild Wings Medium or even Mild for an appropriate spice comparison.
In Japan at Curry Houses you can find this savory dish served alongside rice + topped with a filet of lightly breaded pork, chicken or beef. Traditionally the leftovers are served over “chubby Udon noodles” per Morimoto-san.
(Cooking advice, tips/tricks)
That’s where we pick up the Curry Udon Recipe. Our first taste of Curry Udon was in the famous shopping district of Roppongi. I foolishly chose not to get the Curry Udon + went with another Udon dish. I found myself stealing bites of my husband’s dish every time he turned his head. A yearning for Japanese food + a curiosity pointed towards my ability to find all the ingredients in West Texas led me down this journey earlier this week. We have one Asian market in town so my hopes were low to say the least. Surprisingly I found nearly all my ingredients at the local grocer, HEB + the base Commissary.
The recipe I used is linked
I chose it based on high reviews + my knowledge of what traditionally goes into the Curry base. Since you likely won’t find Shabu Shabu (thinly sliced raw meat) at your local grocer, I suggest finding very thin cut pork chops like I did, or asking your butcher to cut them as thin as he can.
Below are the ingredients hardest to find + where I found them.
Shabu Shabu/thin pork chops
Any local Grocer (ask the butcher)
Vermont Curry Base
Commissary in the Asian section
Udon
Asian Market
HEB
Bonito Flakes
Asian Market
Hon Dashi
Happy stewing!
Xo, Mary
-WAF at Dyess AFB-
Hello WAFs!! I’ve been apart of the WAF world for 2 years + am currently stationed at Dyess AFB in Abilene, TX. I’m passionate about cooking (obviously 😉), volunteering in the community, young professional organizations, gardening, camping + traveling!
