Japanese Curry/Authentic Ingredients Question

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larry_stewart

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Im not a big Japanese food fan. partially cause I just dont like the flavor profile, and partially cause of my dietary restrictions.

That being said, my wife forwarded me a video recipe for a Japanese Curry.

First 3 ingredients were ginger, garlic and onion ( Made sense to me).

The next 3 ingredients had me scratching my head aa bit ( Cumin powder, Coriander powder and Turmeric powder).Chili powder and five spice powder were also added . All was fried together in oil.

White sesame paste, dehydrated sun-dried tomatoes, brown sugar , rice powder, salt, water were blended together to make a creamy produce and added toward the end

Sliced lotus root and mushrooms were lightly fried in oil, spinach was added, then the above curry ingredients ( and creamy mixture) were added.

It didn't look bad, I was a just wondering if cumin powder, coriander powder and turmeric powder were common ingredients in Japanese cooking .
 

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I guess it depends on what you consider traditional [emoji2] Curry powder containing those ingredients came to Japan via the British Navy in the 19th century. The British fell in love with it during their occupation of India.

https://metropolisjapan.com/the-origins-of-japanese-curry/

That makes sense. But, I had such a good giggle when I read, "So popular that, according to a recent survey, many Japanese people said that they ate curry more often than Japanese classics like tempura or sushi." They learned to make tempura from some Portuguese sailors in the 16th century (15 hundreds).

Peixinhos da horta (little garden fish)

I read about a Portuguese man sitting at a resto in Portugal. A couple of Japanese tourists tried one of the local dishes, the "little garden fish". "Oh, you learned about tempura from us." "Nope, you learned it from us, but you do it better."
 
...my wife forwarded me a video recipe for a Japanese Curry.
First 3 ingredients were ginger, garlic and onion ( Made sense to me).
The next 3 ingredients had me scratching my head aa bit ( Cumin powder, Coriander powder and Turmeric powder).Chili powder and five spice powder were also added . All was fried together in oil.
White sesame paste, dehydrated sun-dried tomatoes, brown sugar , rice powder, salt, water were blended together to make a creamy produce and added toward the end
Sliced lotus root and mushrooms were lightly fried in oil, spinach was added, then the above curry ingredients ( and creamy mixture) were added.
It didn't look bad, I was a just wondering if cumin powder, coriander powder and turmeric powder were common ingredients in Japanese cooking .
A few years ago, I was asked to give a food course on "Curries of the World". None, of course, were Indian, because they never use curry powder:LOL::LOL:, but there were some interesting variations from Zanzibar, Jamaica, Imperial Britain, Sri Lanka and Japan.
I concur with GotGarlic - the Japanese picked up the "curry" habit from the British navy.
Flavour-wise, Japanese curry is much sweeter, and milder than (for example) Madras curry,with the addition of cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg in the mixture. Japanese curry also involves making a roux, so the curry sauce is smoother and silkier. Often, honey or apples might be added, which makes the sauce sweeter.
Cumin, coriander and turmeric are the 3 most common ingredients in commercial curry powder, so it´s no surprise they´re there. You can make a delicious, authentic Indian meal with 1 tsp turmeric, 2 tsps cumin and 3 tsps coriander - just finish off the dish with a tsp of garam masala.
The Chinese 5-spice would add some of the spice ingredients of a commercial curry (cinnamon, cloves) but would probably be a bit heavy on the star anise, an unusual ingredient in India.
The sesame paste and the sundried tomatoes, I have to admit, is wierd, but each to his own.
As for the veggies, you can add what ever you like. Lotus root is a spectacular addition, if only for the visual effect.
 
Some Japanese people use cumin powder, coriander powder and turmeric powder. However, most Japanese people use Japanese Curry Mix from S&B Food or House Food since it's Easy and Tasty. I hope you will find fun eating Japanese curry rice.
 
Welcome, Makanai Japanese Cooking! I love Japanese cuisine, and lucky to have access to lots of great restaurants and ingredients so I can make my own.
 
Some Japanese people use cumin powder, coriander powder and turmeric powder. However, most Japanese people use Japanese Curry Mix from S&B Food or House Food since it's Easy and Tasty. I hope you will find fun eating Japanese curry rice.


Turmeric, coriander and cumin are definitely elements of traditional Japanese curry powder.

S&B is what I usually use.

It contains "'TURMERIC, CORIANDER, FENUGREEK, CUMIN, ORANGE PEEL, PEPPER, CHILI PEPPER, CINNAMON, FENNEL, GINGER, STAR ANISE, THYME, BAY LEAVES, CLOVES, NUTMEG, SAGE, CARDAMOM"
 
Why use sources from your own country? Most likely not to be correct. Same with Norwegian sources to recipes from outside our country almost all the time incorrect with the recipe from the homeland.
 
Interesting fact - many very good Japanese restaurants around the world (including in Japan) use the SB curry products. Japanese curry is very mild, to the point that you probably wouldn’t notice any heat at all. The SB condiment is genuine to the flavour that comes from making the sauce from scratch so it is widely used and very acceptable.
 
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