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| Melt a square of mozzarella cheese on top for extra flavor. Serve with paratha (flaky indian flatbread) |
They are a Japanese simplification of the "Curry" that English Navy would serve on their boats (which was the bastard stepchild of a Portuguese interpretation of a spiced sauce from Goa named after "kari" the Tamil word for "sauce"), and was introduced to the Japanese Navy to prevent peri peri beriberi. They add honey and apples and it's now one of the most popular foods served in Japan.
The standard Japanese curry recipe takes stew meats, sautés them with potatoes, onions and carrots, stews everything till the meat is tender, then mixes in an appropriate amount of curry cubes into the cooked dish before serving. Sometimes garlic and ginger are used, as well as apples and honey.
We can add a serious amount of depth and richness to this dish by taking a page from how Singaporean / Malaysian curries are made, while maintaining the simplicity of this dish.
I like cooking this in a slow cooker or rice cooker on "warm" mode, overnight, as I find that this gives the stew meats enough time to properly tenderize. I prefer using Beef Shin meat, or Golden Coin Muscle, which is a tough piece of meat with a lot of connective tissue.
I do most of my prep after dinner, before washing up, and the curry is good to go the next day for a packed lunch with some toast or with some paratha (like puff pastry, buy this frozen).
Some people may be worried that their beef is too gamey. One way to deal with this is to soak the meat in salt water (low salinity, like 0.5% or lower) for an hour after slicing into thick coins (which is naturally against the grain). After the meat is soaked and drained, I'll drizzle some shaoxing wine (or sake, whichever is cheaper) on the meat and give it a rub while I preheat my pan.
Other ingredients used include Garam Masala, which is a blend of "warm spices" that usually include cardamom, black peppercorns, cumin and coriander seeds, cinnamon, mace, fennel seeds, star anise, and cloves, as well as others, depending on the maker. I prefer to find one without chili, so i can control my heat level. Pregnant / breastfeeding women should avoid anything that contain asafoetida.
I also use cream of coconut, inspired by beef rendang, which is a fantastic West Sumatra style curry that calls for cubes of beef fried in cream of coconut and rendang spices (similar to Indian style spices, but also with lemon grass, galangal, tamarind paste, kaffir lime leaves, toasted coconuts, and chili) - Recipe coming once I perfect the home cook version of the world's tastiest dish that doesn't require stirring a pot for 8-72 hours (It's named after the Sumatran word ‘randang’ which means slowly).
Coconut cream, or coconut concentrate is made by simmering shredded coconut meat and skimming the cream to extract all the (supposedly) healthy coconutty goodness (MCT).
INGREDIENTS
PREP (Done the evening before)
1) Slice beef into uniformly sized cubes. I usually aim for chunks around 3-4cm / 1-1.5inchs across.
2) Cut Onions / carrots / tomatoes and potatoes into similarly sized chunks. If you want a thicker sauce, you can also do a fine dice on three of your onions, so they will melt into the sauce.
3) Using some high heat oil (I use coconut oil, to stick with the theme), sear your meat cubes on all sides. This is your ONLY chance to get some browning on the meat, so take your time with this.
4) Turn down the heat, and push the meat onto the side of your pan, and bloom the garam masala onto the pan, with some more coconut oil. Once you you start to smell the spices (usually in a minute), toss the meats in the spices and oil, and transfer everything to your slow cooker / rice cooker.
5) Without cleaning your pan, brown your veg in the leftover oils and herbs (optionally, brown your veg in the oven while searing the meat), and add it to the slow cooker. OPTIONALLY add in a spoon of tomato paste with the veg for a deeper flavor.
6) Open your can / carton of coconut cream and dump the cream into the slow cooker. Then rinse out the can with some water, and add that water to your now empty frying pan.
7) Open one can of the Japanese curry cubes (different brands come in different sizes, just use one full pack) and add it to the coconutty water in your empty frying pan, stirring to help it dissolve as you bring the water up to a boil. Use this opportunity to deglaze your pan.
Extra flavor: Use stock instead of water.
8) Once that is fully dissolved, add it to your slow cooker / rice cooker, which by now should have some seared beef, browned veg, coconut cream, 1 dissolved block of Japanese curry. If necessary, add enough water so that everything is covered.
COOKING
1) Give everything a stir, then let everything come to a boil in the slow cooker, then set it to 65C /150F till the next day (8-12 hours)
2) Before serving, dissolve another block of Japanese curry in hot water, then stir that into your curry. As you stir, the curry will thicken slightly. Turn off the heat and serve with rice / bread / paratha.
3) If you feel it needs a little extra flavor, give it a dash of Garam masala right at the end. Alternatively, mix a little of your favourite spice powders with some hot oil and add it to the stew.
4) OPTIONAL: If you taste it and it seems a little flat or underseasoned, add in a hefty dollop of plain yogurt, and/or a spoon of miso sauce. My mom likes to add a small bottle of yakult.
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