Japanese Curry

I lived in Okinawa, Japan for three years. I went there not knowing what to expect and left with many "loves" of the island, the people, the food, and more. When I lived in Michigan, I found a great Japanese/Asian store a few miles down the road from where I lived. The store carried some of the food items that I missed. Now with living in Austria, there are times when I also miss something from Japan.

At a mall across town, I found an Asian shop that carries a variety of products. When I was there last week, I decided to buy some Japanese Curry. It's been sounding good for a while. The package was quite small - when I lived in Japan, I would have never bought such a little box (100g) and it wasn't exactly the best price.

Side Note: there is also a small shop in Vienna that carries British and American products. Some foreigners find comfort in going there and buying a box of Rice Krispies for $10, a can of Root Beer for $1.50, or a small can of pumpkin for $6. I've been in there twice, and come out both times empty-handed. I can't seem to justify spending that much on items from home.

Going into the Asian shop is a little like that for me. On one hand, I can't imagine paying $11 for soba noodles, $2 for a yogurt soda drink, or $4.50 for the small box of curry. But then again, it is not an often thing to purchase and it ends up being a special treat. In the 2.5 years we've lived in Vienna, this is the first time I've purchased curry at the Asian shop.

So, what is Japanese Curry? Eric likes to describe it as a stew. It kind of is, but definitely does not have the taste of stew. I've only prepared it with onion, potatoes, carrots, and cooked chicken or turkey, boiled in a couple cups of water. Then, the curry paste is added, so that it is a thick consistency. To serve, the curry is served a top rice. It is a satisfying meal by itself. Whenever curry is served, there are usually leftovers (good thing our microwave is back in service!).

To the right is a photo of our meal last night. I really enjoyed our meal of japanese curry for dinner. As I slowly savored the taste, I thought of times that roommates and I would cook the meal for dinner or when we'd visit CoCo Curry House - yum, yum, yum!