Japanese curry

Curry originates in Indian cuisine and was brought to Japan from India by the British. The Imperial Japanese Navy adopted curry to prevent beriberi, and now the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force's Friday menu is curry.[4] It is also nutritious, and easy to cook in mass quantity.[5] The dish became popular and available for purchase at supermarkets and restaurants in the late 1960s. Since the introduction of curry, it was reinvented to suit Japanese tastes and ingredients.[6] Japanese curry has little resemblance to curried dishes from other regions.[1] It was changed and adapted so much that it stands on its own as uniquely Japanese.[6] It is so widely consumed that it can be called a national dish.[1]

First curry rice recipe of Japan by Kanagaki Robun, 1872

"Navy Curry" authentically reproduced based on a recipe from a Japanese Navy cookbook published in 1908

Curry was introduced to Japan during the Meiji era (1868–1912).[6] At the time the Indian subcontinent was under British colonial rule.[6] Anglo-Indian officers of the Royal Navy brought the spice mix called curry powder to Japan.[6] It was classified as yōshoku (western food) since it came from the west.[6] The word curry was probably adopted into the Japanese language as karē in the late 1860s, when Japan was forced to abandon its isolation (sakoku) and came into contact with the British Empire.[7] By the 1870s, curry began to be served in Japan, and became a staple within the Japanese diet.[8]

Karē is commonly eaten as a rice dish in Japan, karē raisu (curry rice). The oldest mention of a dish called raisu karē (literally 'rice curry') - but in the misspelling taisu karē - on Japanese soil is in Japanese cookbooks of 1872.[6] It was also described in an 1872 report, according to which foreign experts ate this at the Tokyo branch of the Hokkaidō prefectural government. However, the word was popularized by US - Professor William S. Clark who was employed at the Sapporo Agricultural College (now University of Hokkaido) in 1877.[9][10] For 1873, there was a dish called Kare raisu (curry rice) on the menu of the Imperial Japanese Army Military Academy.[7] Since its introduction it was reinvented with ingredients from Japanese cuisine to make it suitable for Japanese tastes.[6]

It was not until the early twentieth century, when curry was adopted by the Japanese Navy and Army, that the dish began to become popular with the Japanese.[11] After its favorable reception within the Japanese Army and Navy, it later became common in school cafeterias.[12] By 2000, curry was a more frequent meal than sushi or tempura.[12] The fame of the dish in Japan is mainly due to the Imperial Japanese Navy, which was modelled after the Royal Navy, whose sailors ate a meat stew with curry seasoning and bread as a side dish for their voyages, which was also provided by the Japanese Navy. This was called the Kaigun Kare ("Navy curry") of beef or chicken meat, potatoes, onions, carrots, rice and curry roux and a chutney of pickled vegetables (tsukemono) as described in the 1888 Cookbook Kaigun Kappōjitsu (海軍 割烹術, "marine cooking techniques"). The Maritime Self-Defense Force took over this tradition after the war and serves it every Friday with a salad,[13][14] [15] with each ship having its own variant.[16]

In the civil sector, curry was particularly popular at the beginning of the Meiji period (1868–1912), as it first had to be imported, and was still an exclusive dish that could only be eaten in expensive restaurants specializing in Western cuisine. In the Taishō period (1912–1926), the dish became affordable for the general population, especially towards the end, with the introduction of domestically produced curry mixes.[17]

Today, karē is one of the most popular daily dishes among the Japanese. In 2013, production totaled 7,570 t of curry powder and 91,105 t of ready-made sauces, and sales in 2008 amounted to 7 billion yen for curry powder and 86 billion yen for ready-made sauces.[18]

Curry similar to that served in the Indian subcontinent is known as Nakamuraya curry. It was introduced to Japan by Rash Behari Bose (1886-1945) when he began to sell curry at Nakamura Bakery in Tokyo.[19]

Curry sauce (カレーソース, karē sōsu) is served on top of cooked rice to make curry rice.[20] Curry sauce is made by frying together curry powder, flour, and oil, along with other ingredients, to make roux; the roux is then added to stewed meat and vegetables, and then simmered until thickened.[21] Pressure cooking can be used as well.[20] Adding potatoes to curry sauce was introduced by William S. Clark of the Sapporo Agricultural College, due to rice shortages at the time.[22]

In Japanese homes, curry sauce is most commonly made from instant curry roux, which is available in block and powder forms, and contains curry powder, flour, oils and various flavorings. Ease of preparation, and the wide variety and availability of instant curry mixes, has made curry rice very popular, as it is very easy to make compared to many other Japanese dishes. Pre-made curry is available in vacuum-sealed bags that can be reheated in boiling water. For those who still make their curry roux from scratch, there are also curry powders specially formulated to create the "Japanese curry" taste.[23]

Instant curry roux was first sold in powder form by House Foods in 1926, and in block form by S&B Foods in 1956. In 2007, Japanese domestic shipments of instant curry roux was 82.7 billion yen.[24] Market share for household use in 2007 was captured almost entirely by House Foods (59.0%), S&B Foods (25.8%) and Ezaki Glico (9.4%).[25][26] Curry is marketed to children utilizing characters from video games and anime.[27]

Vacuum-sealed curry sauce, prepared by heating the retort pouch in hot water or the microwave, is also popular. As of 2007, curry sauce is the largest single category of vacuum-sealed foods in Japan, making up over 30% of sales.[24]

Japanese curry rice is served in anything from a flat plate to a soup bowl. The curry is poured over rice in any manner and amount. Japanese short-grain rice, which is sticky and round, is preferred, rather than the medium-grain variety used in Indian dishes. It is usually eaten with a spoon, as opposed to chopsticks, because of the liquid nature of the curry. Curry rice is usually served with fukujinzuke or rakkyō on the side.[28]

Karē-pan (curry bread)

Japanese curry rice with shredded beef in Singapore

Katsu curry from Manten (まんてん) in Jinbōchō, Tokyo

Ichibanya

• Katsu curry (katsu karē, カツカレー): Curry rice served with a breaded pork cutlet on top.
• Dry curry (ドライカレー, dorai karē): Curry-flavored fried rice, or curry rice with a drier, mince meat curry sauce.
• maze karē (混ぜカレー): Curry rice, served with the sauce and rice already mixed. Popularized by the Jiyūken (自由軒) curry restaurants in Osaka.
• karē don (カレー丼): Curry sauce, thickened and flavored with mentsuyu or hondashi and served on top of a bowl of rice, to give the curry a Japanese flavor.
• aigake (合がけ): Rice served with curry sauce and hayashi sauce (fried beef and onion, cooked with red wine and demi-glace).
• yaki karē (焼きカレー): Curry rice, topped with a raw egg and baked in an oven. Originally from Kitakyushu.
• ishiyaki karē (石焼きカレー): Curry sauce with rice served in a heated stone bowl, in a similar way to dolsot bibimbap.
• Soup curry (スープカレー, sūpu karē): Soup curry, a watery, broth-like curry sauce served with chunky ingredients such as a chicken leg and coarsely-cut vegetables. Popular in Hokkaido.

In the late 1990s, a number of regional specialty curries emerged, popularised as vacuum-sealed curry sauces. These include:

• Hokkaido sika deer curry (えぞ鹿カレー, ezoshika karē) from Hokkaido.
• Scallop curry (ほたてカレー, hotate karē) from Aomori Prefecture.
• Mackerel curry (サバカレー, saba karē) from Chiba Prefecture.
• Apple curry (リンゴカレー, ringo karē) from Nagano Prefecture and Aomori Prefecture.
• Nattō curry (納豆カレー, nattō karē) from Mito, Ibaraki.
• Nagoya Kōchin chicken curry (名古屋コーチンチキンカレー, Nagoya kōchin chikin karē) from Aichi Prefecture.
• Matsusaka beef curry (松阪牛カレー, Matsusaka gyū karē) from Mie Prefecture.
• Whale curry (クジラカレー, kujira karē) from Wakayama Prefecture.
• Oyster curry (牡蠣カレー, kaki karē) from Hiroshima Prefecture.
• Nashi pear curry (梨カレー, nashi karē) from Shimane Prefecture.
• Black pork curry (黒豚カレー, kurobuta karē) from Kagoshima Prefecture.
• Bitter melon curry (ゴーヤーカレー, gōyā karē) from Okinawa.

Local curries are also marketed to help boost tourism. Some varieties of this include Yokosuka navy curry (よこすか海軍カレー, Yokosuka kaigun karē), sold in Yokosuka to promote its heritage as a naval base,[29] and Zeppelin Curry (ツェッペリンカレー, Tsepperin Karē) in Tsuchiura to promote the Zeppelin landing in 1929.[30]

• Rice and curry
• Gyūdon

• Eston, Elizabeth (2019). "The Footprints of the Indian Revolution in Japanese Food Culture". Rash Behari Bose: The Father of the Indian National Army, Vol. 1. Tenraidou.
• All Japan Curry Manufacturers Association (1 March 2019). "The World of Japanese Curry". Foodies Go Local. All Japan Curry Manufacturers Association.
• Ewbank, Anne (25 October 2018). "How Curry Became a Japanese Naval Tradition". Gastro Obscura. Atlas Obscura.