Japanese/Thai cooking: Curry
Everyone has favorite dish to eat. Curry is one of my favorite dishes of all time. Very easy to make,and tasty and, especially, Japanese curry has lots of vegetable in it.
When I was a kid, curry was #1 dish to eat, and I asked my mother to make it over and over again for dinner. It still is my favorite dish to make or to eat and, I make all kinds of curry.
As you know, there are so many variation of curry;Indian curry, Thai curry(red curry,yellow curry,green curry,Penang curry), Japanese curry.
Japanese curry is brown color when it is done and there are commercially made block of curry ruex. There are spicy,mild,sweet variety, and you can get them at World Market near you or at Asian stores. My favorite brand of curry ruex is S&B. Usually green colored box with curry dish picture on it. I normally use 2 kinds of ruex (Spicy ruex+mild ruex) mixed in. For me,sweet block of curry ruex is way too mild and,I do not like it. Then,I normally put diced potato,carrot,onion,apple, green/red pepper,diced tomato in curry. How it is made?? Here is how.
1. Put a sauce pan on stove top and start cooking rice.
**There are so many kinds of rice but for Japanese curry dish,I prefer making stickier (more starchy rice) kind.My favorite brand of rice is called "kokuho Rose Rice" and you can find them at local grocery store,international ail**
2. While rice is cooking, place another sauce pan on stove,pour some Extra Virgin Olive Oil (Cold press EVOO is tastiest of all. I use only cold first press EVOO for cooking) over medium high heat.
3. Peel potatoes,cut to dice, and put them into sauce pan
4. Peel carrots,cut to chunk and put them into sauce pan
5. Chop onion,dice tomatoes and green/red peppers and put them into sauce pan
6. Peel Fuji apple into quarter and chop quarter portion into dice and put them into sauce pan. Remained 3/4 of Fuji apple should be dipped into water that is added sprinkle of table salt to avoid it gets brown. Then,once dipped,the remained portion can be stored in fridge or eat as fruit desert after Curry dinner.
7. Add water to sauce pan and cook till potatoes and carrots are fork-tender. Then, add protein you like:chicken,pork,beef...
It is best to add pounded and sliced meat for tender meat in the dish. If you did not have meat mallet,use the back of knife to pound and cut to chunks and add to dish.
Then,add block of curry,stir well and set the heat to simmer and cover it and cook about 15-20 min more.
** Consistency of the curry should be about gravy sauce.Not too watery,not too thick. I usually eyeball veg,water and adjust amount of curry it yeild when I add block of curry**
8. After 15-20 min simmer, stir it again and pour it over cooked rice and voilà! You made Japanese Curry!! It probably takes 30-40 minutes from start to finish.
*** I have found that Japanese Curry ruex box states to add ginger or garlic wen you make curry but for me,it makes Curry off-taste and,I do not care for.
On talk of Curry, other type of curry is also easy to make if you know basic ingredients to go with.
For Thai Curry,I tend to make red curry more than any other Thai curry. I like all kinds but curry paste is not readily available at where I shop. You can order paste at amazon.com as well but I tend to reach hands to available Thai red curry paste.
Thai Red curry
1. For Thai curry, again start with rice. Cook Jasmin rice according to the direction on back of the package. My favorite brand is Della's.
2.Then, place sauce pan on stove top,add oil and add grated garlic,add vegetable of your choice. After vegetable is getting soft, add Thai curry paste. My favorite brand for Thai curry is Taste of Thai. Or Mae ploy brand.
3. After you smell fragrant curry paste, add unsweetened coconut milk and stir well. Then, add protein of your choice.
4. Add fish sauce (Available at Asian store,local grocery store ) add some dark brown sugar (Traditionally, Thai cooking use Palm sugar but as substitute,you can use brown sugar in pinch), and I tend to add Sriracha ( Thai version of hot sauce. ) to give the dish a little kick to it. Then,add grated lime zest (Authentic dish uses lime leaves) and,lime juice from fresh half lime and adjust flavor/spiciness.
5.Simmer until curry gets thicker in consistency
6. Then,right before finishing,add chopped fresh basil.
**DO NOT add fresh herb when you still need to cook. Herb turns grayish greenish odd looking thing, and not looking vibrant green color in dish**
7.Pour curry over rice. Voilà! You made Thai curry!
8.Put the juiced lime skin into garbage disposal in kitchen sink. It becomes kitchen disposal freshener.
Other way you can enjoy curry any kind is that, you make curry sauce with no vegetable chunks,no meat chunks and when you cook skillet fish fillet or chicken breast etc,you can pour the sauce over the protein of your choice and serve it with steak style.
Got left over rice? You can keep them in tapper wear (not with curry sauce) if you eat it within 1-2 days and when you want to eat the rice, add about 1/4 Cup of water,put the lid on loosely and microwave it. By placing the lid over the container loosely,it creates steaming action in Microwave. So,you can eat soft rice again. If you don't eat it right away,keep them in freezer,and use it to cook Fried Rice.
You can also make rice pudding with left over rice. Curry is spicy side and sweet desert like rice pudding goes very well with dish. When I make Thai curry,I usually have leftover coconut milk. So,I use it to make rice pudding and make coconut rice pudding.
Enjoy!!
When I was a kid, curry was #1 dish to eat, and I asked my mother to make it over and over again for dinner. It still is my favorite dish to make or to eat and, I make all kinds of curry.
As you know, there are so many variation of curry;Indian curry, Thai curry(red curry,yellow curry,green curry,Penang curry), Japanese curry.
Japanese curry is brown color when it is done and there are commercially made block of curry ruex. There are spicy,mild,sweet variety, and you can get them at World Market near you or at Asian stores. My favorite brand of curry ruex is S&B. Usually green colored box with curry dish picture on it. I normally use 2 kinds of ruex (Spicy ruex+mild ruex) mixed in. For me,sweet block of curry ruex is way too mild and,I do not like it. Then,I normally put diced potato,carrot,onion,apple, green/red pepper,diced tomato in curry. How it is made?? Here is how.
1. Put a sauce pan on stove top and start cooking rice.
**There are so many kinds of rice but for Japanese curry dish,I prefer making stickier (more starchy rice) kind.My favorite brand of rice is called "kokuho Rose Rice" and you can find them at local grocery store,international ail**
2. While rice is cooking, place another sauce pan on stove,pour some Extra Virgin Olive Oil (Cold press EVOO is tastiest of all. I use only cold first press EVOO for cooking) over medium high heat.
3. Peel potatoes,cut to dice, and put them into sauce pan
4. Peel carrots,cut to chunk and put them into sauce pan
5. Chop onion,dice tomatoes and green/red peppers and put them into sauce pan
6. Peel Fuji apple into quarter and chop quarter portion into dice and put them into sauce pan. Remained 3/4 of Fuji apple should be dipped into water that is added sprinkle of table salt to avoid it gets brown. Then,once dipped,the remained portion can be stored in fridge or eat as fruit desert after Curry dinner.
7. Add water to sauce pan and cook till potatoes and carrots are fork-tender. Then, add protein you like:chicken,pork,beef...
It is best to add pounded and sliced meat for tender meat in the dish. If you did not have meat mallet,use the back of knife to pound and cut to chunks and add to dish.
Then,add block of curry,stir well and set the heat to simmer and cover it and cook about 15-20 min more.
** Consistency of the curry should be about gravy sauce.Not too watery,not too thick. I usually eyeball veg,water and adjust amount of curry it yeild when I add block of curry**
8. After 15-20 min simmer, stir it again and pour it over cooked rice and voilà! You made Japanese Curry!! It probably takes 30-40 minutes from start to finish.
*** I have found that Japanese Curry ruex box states to add ginger or garlic wen you make curry but for me,it makes Curry off-taste and,I do not care for.
On talk of Curry, other type of curry is also easy to make if you know basic ingredients to go with.
For Thai Curry,I tend to make red curry more than any other Thai curry. I like all kinds but curry paste is not readily available at where I shop. You can order paste at amazon.com as well but I tend to reach hands to available Thai red curry paste.
Thai Red curry
1. For Thai curry, again start with rice. Cook Jasmin rice according to the direction on back of the package. My favorite brand is Della's.
2.Then, place sauce pan on stove top,add oil and add grated garlic,add vegetable of your choice. After vegetable is getting soft, add Thai curry paste. My favorite brand for Thai curry is Taste of Thai. Or Mae ploy brand.
3. After you smell fragrant curry paste, add unsweetened coconut milk and stir well. Then, add protein of your choice.
4. Add fish sauce (Available at Asian store,local grocery store ) add some dark brown sugar (Traditionally, Thai cooking use Palm sugar but as substitute,you can use brown sugar in pinch), and I tend to add Sriracha ( Thai version of hot sauce. ) to give the dish a little kick to it. Then,add grated lime zest (Authentic dish uses lime leaves) and,lime juice from fresh half lime and adjust flavor/spiciness.
5.Simmer until curry gets thicker in consistency
6. Then,right before finishing,add chopped fresh basil.
**DO NOT add fresh herb when you still need to cook. Herb turns grayish greenish odd looking thing, and not looking vibrant green color in dish**
7.Pour curry over rice. Voilà! You made Thai curry!
8.Put the juiced lime skin into garbage disposal in kitchen sink. It becomes kitchen disposal freshener.
Other way you can enjoy curry any kind is that, you make curry sauce with no vegetable chunks,no meat chunks and when you cook skillet fish fillet or chicken breast etc,you can pour the sauce over the protein of your choice and serve it with steak style.
Got left over rice? You can keep them in tapper wear (not with curry sauce) if you eat it within 1-2 days and when you want to eat the rice, add about 1/4 Cup of water,put the lid on loosely and microwave it. By placing the lid over the container loosely,it creates steaming action in Microwave. So,you can eat soft rice again. If you don't eat it right away,keep them in freezer,and use it to cook Fried Rice.
You can also make rice pudding with left over rice. Curry is spicy side and sweet desert like rice pudding goes very well with dish. When I make Thai curry,I usually have leftover coconut milk. So,I use it to make rice pudding and make coconut rice pudding.
Enjoy!!
Posted by yassy at 9/27/2009 12:59 PM 
Categories: Asian cooking 911
Tags: curry japanese cooking thai cooking food
Categories: Asian cooking 911
Tags: curry japanese cooking thai cooking food
I've never had curry as I understood that it was VERY spicy and I thought that it might burn my mouth. I use up to medium Salsa's though and so maybe different curries (I gathered from your article) would have different heat values and I might like them. I will have to see if I can find an Asian market or see what is available in some of the stores around here.
I always like to try new foods, and with these recipes, I will have a list of ingredients to hunt for when I go shopping so that I CAN try some.
I've always loved rice pudding, to, and had never thought about using coconut milk, but I'll bet that would be great!
As usual, your post is very informative, interesting and sounds like something I'd love to try! Thanks again, Yassy!
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Curry is spicy. Thai curry is spicy too but you can make it mild by adding either adding more coconut milk (unsweetened) or adding more brown sugar. Traditionally, from my understanding, primary sugar they use in cooking is palm sugar.It is different taste than brown sugar, but brown sugar can be substitute. You can get Palm sugar at Asian stores. If the Thai curry tasted salty,then,you have added too much fish sauce. Fish sauce is very salty and you need just a bit to give your curry their characteristics.
Japanese curry is spicy but not same spicy to Thai curry. If you put too many number of ruex to your curry,it will come out very salty. What you are looking for is about same consistency as gravy:not too watery,not too thick. If you have found Japanese curry too spicy,add a bit of Yogurt (this makes curry creamy texture ) or add jam to sweetened it up.
Enjoy!
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