Japanese Curry

Since moving to Japan we have been very eager to not only try the local cuisine at nearby restaurants, but also try making them ourselves at home. We had been told before moving that Japanese curry was out of this world and different from the curries we have tried in the United States. We ate our first curry here a couple of weeks ago and it was delicious! Dark brown colored and very spicy, even though I ordered mild. I got mine with all veggies but hubby got tempura beef. Even though mine was excellent, I have to say, his was better! We enjoyed the curry so much that we decided to try our own at home. The groceries stores here carry Japanese curry sauce mixes such as Golden Curry, the one that I bought. 

I believe if you look in the international section at your local grocery store you should be able to find this brand too. Just look on the box and make sure it's from Japan!  

I used chicken in mine, but you can also use shrimp, beef, or lamb. I served it on udon noodles at hubby's suggestion. Udon noodles are thick, chewy Japanese noodles made from wheat flour.  

Although the box also said to serve over noodles or rice, I really think rice would be better. Plus at the curry restaurant they served it on rice, so I am sure that is more authentic.

Japanese Curry
Recipe from Golden Curry Box
Printable Version
Ingredients
1 pound chicken breasts
1 onion, chopped finely
3 tablespoons cooking oil
Several carrots, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
1/2 package of tofu (this was another addition I added on my own!)
1 cup of water
3/5 ounces Golden Curry Sauce Mix
Noodles or rice for serving
*I also garnished each dish with chopped green onion

Directions
Cut the meat into cubes. Add oil to a large pan and stir-fry meat and onions until onions are slightly browned. Add carrots and red pepper (celery and/or potatoes is also recommended). 

Add water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until meat is tender, approximately ten minutes. Remove from the heat and break the curry sauce into pieces, then add them to the skillet.

Stir until curry is completely dissolved. Stir in tofu gently. 

Simmer five minutes, stirring constantly. 

Serve hot over rice or noodles. 

Miso Soup

For my second post from Japan, I decided to go with Miso Soup. I've always enjoyed Miso Soup when dining at Sushi restaurants in The States. I love it's subtle taste and the different textures from the seaweed and tofu. It is very healthy and hubby even says he thinks it has "healing powers". Not so sure about that, but when I looked it up on Wikipedia, it did say that some researchers believe it it can reduce the risks of breast cancer. 

It was fun shopping for the ingredients for the soup and guessing as to what things were. I was proud that for my first time I found all the correct items. I think I went a little overboard on the seaweed, mushrooms and tofu, so next time I will scale it back a little. This recipe makes 4 one cup servings.

Miso Soup 
From my Japanese Food Explorers Guide, given to us at our orientation :)
Printable Version
Ingredients
6 ounces tofu
2 1/2 tablespoons Miso (fermented soy bean paste)
3 cups Katsuo dashi (fish soup stock)
1 green onion
1/2 cup small mushroom or seaweed (I went with 1/2 cup of each and it was too much)

Directions
Cut tofu into 1/2 inch cubes. 

Chop green onions. Heat soup stock in a sauce pan. I did this by heating 4 cups of water and adding in the Katsuo dashi (fish stock). Bring to a boil. Add green onion. Mix miso into soup stock. Add tofu cubes, seaweed, and mushrooms and bring to a boil. 

Remove from heat and serve in small bowls.