Name: Japanese Chicken Curry
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Japanese
Ingredients: 2 tbsp rapeseed (canola) or peanut oil; 1 large onion, thinly sliced; 1 large potato, skinned and cut into small cubes; 1 carrot, cut into small bite sized pieces at an angle; 700g Chicken thighs or breasts, cut into bite sized pieces; 1 litre chicken stock; FOR THE ROUX; 2 tbsp unsalted butter; 2 tbsp plain (all-purpose) flour; 1 generous tbsp curry powder, (homemade or S&B); 1 tsp paprika or chilli powder; 1 tsp garam masala; 2 tbsp light soy sauce; 1 apple, grated and pounded or blended to a paste; 1 tbsp mirin (optional but authentic); 4 tbsp chicken stock

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If sweet and mild is your curry of choice, Japanese chicken curry could be your ‘go-to’ curry.

Japanese chicken curry is a lot different to those you find in India and South East Asia. It’s sweet with a thick sauce which is prepared by first making a roux. When my kids were growing up, they asked for Japanese chicken curry all the time. It’s makes a great after work meal as it can be prepared in about 30 minutes and kids love it.

If you like mild curries, this is one you’ve got to try.

Is curry popular in Japan?

This kind of curry is. Most Japanese people aren’t big fans of spicy dishes. But Curry rice which is what they call this dish is mild and real comfort food.

Not only does it look different to most South Asian curries, some would say it doesn’t taste much like a curry either. Though curry powder is used in the sauce so it ticks that box anyway.

My first time trying Japanese chicken curry…

During my senior year of high school back in California, I became good friend with a Japanese exchange student. We used to sneak off campus and buy beer and then take them back to one of our houses to drink the afternoon away. It was much easier to purchase alcohol under age back then than it is now.

If we went to my house, it was always Kraft Mac and Cheese on the lunch menu. If we went to his place, he would bring out a couple of the S&B curry kits he brought with him from Japan. I think he must have brought over a hundred.

It was certainly a different food experience for me but I like it. The curry packs he brought with him were the extra spicy version but they weren’t spicy at all.

I never thought about making a Japanese chicken curry from scratch until lately. This recipe brought back some great memories.

What is Japanese chicken curry?

It’s looks more like a stew and often has large pieces of carrot and potato in the thick sauce. It’s actually cooked more like a stew as well with that roux that thickens the sauce. In order to understand what Japanese curry is, you need to know a little bit about its history.

The History of Japanese curry…

Curries and indeed curry powder were introduced to Japan back in the 1800 by the British. At that time, the British had already been enjoying a good curry from time to time for a couple hundred years.

The original Japanese curries were simple stews which per mixed with curry powders that arrived on British naval ships. As time when by, the Japanese changed their curries to their own tastes by thickening the sauce with a roux and adding sweetening them with honey and blended apple among other things.

In the 1950, the company S&B started producing a ready-made curry roux which could be purchased by families to quickly whip up a curry whenever they wanted. Let’s just say that they wanted that curry a lot as curries like this recipe are made regularly in Japanese households.

Step by step photographs of Japanese chicken curry

Get all your ingredients together before starting. It’s a lot easier that way.

Make the roux by stirring the melted butter and flour together.

When creamy smooth and just beginning to turn a light brown, stir in the paprika, garam masala and curry powder.

When you do this, the roux will turn a milk chocolate brown.

Add the blended apple and continue cooking over a low heat. Add about 3 tbsp water or chicken stock, the soy sauce and mirin.

Continue adding a little water or stock at a time until you have a thick rough that is smooth and literally oozes off your spoon. Transfer to a plate for later.

Wipe your pan clean and add the oil. Then fry the onion over a medium heat for about 5 minutes or until soft

Add the potatoes first as they longer to cook. Cook for about 5 minutes.

Stir in the carrots and fry for another 3 minutes.

Now add the chicken and brown it for a couple of minutes.

Return the roux to the pan and add about 250ml (1 cup) chicken stock

DO NOT add the remaining stock all in one go. Just add it as required to cook the chicken, carrots and potatoes.

Continue cooking until the chicken and potatoes are cooked through. Then reduce the sauce to thicken to your preference.

Season with salt to taste or some more soy sauce and serve with white rice.

If you like this curry, you might like to try some of these too…

Bicol Express
Garlic Braised Pork Ribs
Chicken Kapitan
Nasi Goreng
Mee Goreng
Spicy Clams – Sambal Lala

Yield: 4