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Made with beef, potatoes, carrots, mushrooms, and curry roux, this savory and hearty Japanese beef curry make a fabulous introduction for new curry eaters. Adapted to Japanese taste, it’s milder, sweeter with a stew-like texture. Even children enjoy it thoroughly! You have to give this easy recipe a try.
Japanese Curry Rice or Karē Raisu (カレーライス) is an extremely popular dish for all ages in Japan and it is considered one of the country’s national dishes along with ramen and gyoza! This Japanese beef curry dish takes a bit of preparation but the end result is super delicious!
Watch How to Make Japanese Beef Curry ビーフカレーの作り方
Savory and hearty Japanese beef curry made with beef, potatoes, carrots, mushroom, and Japanese curry roux.
Curry was introduced to Japan by the British in the late 1800s in the form of curry powder, and it was adapted to Japanese taste. The flavor of Japanese curry is quite different from Indian or Thai curry. Japanese curry is thicker, milder, and sweeter and always served with rice. We don’t have the choices of yellow, red, or green curry like Thai curry, but instead, there are usually three degrees of spiciness indicating mild, medium hot, or hot.
This recipe uses a box Japanese curry roux, which can be found at Asian supermarkets or an Asian food aisle at your local grocery stores.
All the curry spices are packed in a form of solid roux resembling a block of baking chocolate. To avoid “out of the box” taste, mix up 2-3 different brands of roux and add your own condiments (e.g. Worcestershire Sauce) to enhance the flavor for the curry sauce. If you want to make curry roux base from scratch, I have the recipe for the Homemade Curry Roux.
Japanese curry usually includes a protein of your choice (usually beef, chicken, pork, or seafood), onions, potatoes, and carrots. For a vegetarian option, you can add firm tofu right before you serve just to heat it through. The recipe I shared today is for Japanese beef curry.
Just like a comforting pot of stew, you don’t need an expensive cut of meat for Japanese beef curry because of its long simmering time. One of the important steps is to brown the beef chunks to bring out the flavor. Once the sauce is thickened, you will be rewarded with a delicious curry with tender pieces of meat in a rich, velvety sauce. It’s absolutely heaven when enjoyed with steamed rice. This is also a freezer-friendly recipe so you can make a big batch to enjoy later.
If you want to skip the simmering time for curry, you can try out my Pressure Cooker Japanese Curry recipe.
If you are interested in other Curry recipes, check out 15 Japanese Curry Recipes You’ll Love.
Japanese Ingredient Substitution: If you want to look for substitutes for Japanese condiments and ingredients, click here.
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Made with beef, potatoes, carrots, mushrooms, and curry roux, this savory and hearty Japanese beef curry makes a fabulous introduction for new curry eaters. Adapted to Japanese taste, it's milder, sweeter with a stew-like texture. Even children enjoy it thoroughly! You have to give this easy recipe a try.
- 3 onions (2 lb 13 oz, 1.3 kg)
- 3 carrots (8 oz, 230 g)
- 1 russet potato (9.5 oz, 270 g; Or use 2 yukon gold potatoes if you want to keep the shape of the potatoes)
- 8 mushrooms (9.2 oz, 260 g)
- 2 lb boneless chuck roast (907 g; I recommend using chuck roast for better quality. You can use stew beef, as it's slightly cheaper, but it's made up of bits and pieces that were left over after the prettier chuck roasts had been carved so the meat is not as tender)
- kosher/sea salt (I use Diamond Crystal; Use half for table salt)
- freshly ground black pepper
- 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour (plain flour)
- 2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 knob ginger (1", 2.5 cm; grated; about 1 tsp)
- 1 Tbsp curry powder
- 2 Tbsp tomato paste (or ketchup)
- 1 cup red wine
- 8 cups beef stock (2 QT or 1900 ml; beef stock is seasoned (salted); therefore, for less sodium intake, use 4 cups/1 L beef stock + 4 cups/900 ml water or use even more water. Remember that premade curry roux has salt in it.)
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 box Japanese curry roux (7-8.4 oz, 200-240g) (My homemade roux recipe, click here)
- 2 Tbsp milk
- 1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- ¼ apple (I used Fuji apple; add more for sweetness; Or use 1 Tbsp honey, mango chutney, etc)
- Furkujinzuke (red pickled daikon) (to serve, optional)
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Gather all the ingredients.
- Cut the onion into thin slices. Cut the carrot diagonally while rotating it a quarter between cuts (in Japanese we call this cutting technique “rangiri”).
- Cut the potato in half, and then cut each piece into quarters. Soak in water for 15 minutes to remove the starch.
- Clean the mushrooms (I use a pastry brush and avoid washing mushrooms as they absorb moisture. However, it's okay to quickly rinse them.). Then cut them into thin slices.
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Cut the beef into 1 ½ inch cubes and lightly sprinkle salt and pepper. Then lightly coat the meat with the flour.
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In a cast-iron skillet, heat 1 Tbsp oil and 1 Tbsp butter on medium-high heat. Add the beef in the pan but do not crowd the skillet as you would end up "steaming" the beef. Make sure to cook in 2-4 batches. Sear the beef on both sides until brown and crusty, about 8-10 minutes, then flip (don't touch till then). The meat will release itself when the surface is seared nicely. Transfer the seared meat to a plate and work on the next batch.
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In a large heavy-bottomed pot or large pot, heat 1 Tbsp butter on medium heat and add the onion. Add 1 Tbsp olive oil and stir to coat the onion with the oil. Add ¼ tsp salt and sauté the onion until tender and translucent, about 20 minutes. If you have time, you can spend more time until the onions are caramelized, about 30-40 minutes.
- Add garlic, ginger, curry powder, and tomato paste and sauté for 2 minutes.
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Add the beef and the wine and stir, letting the alcohol evaporate, for 3 minutes.
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Add the vegetable and mushrooms and pour the beef broth (and water) just enough to cover the ingredients. Cover with the lid and bring it to a boil.
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Once boiling, skim off the scum and fat from the soup. I prepare a 2-cup measuring cup with water in it and clean my fine-mesh skimmer in the water. It’s easy to remove the scum/fat from the fine mesh this way.
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Add bay leaf, cover with the tight-fitting lid. Simmer (on the lowest heat) until the meat is tender, about 2 hours.
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Occasionally, skim the broth to clean the surface of the broth. Make sure the ingredients are under the broth, and if not, add the leftover beef broth (or water), just enough to cover the ingredients.
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Once the ingredients are all tender, turn off the heat and add the curry roux. With fork/chopsticks, let 2-3 pieces of curry roux dissolved completely inside the ladle and then release to the broth. Then add another few pieces. Adjust the amount of the curry roux to your taste (you may not need to use all the roux). That way, the undissolved roux won't end up in the broth. If the curry is too thick for your taste, add water to dilute. From this point, simmer on the lowest heat and stir often and be careful not to burn the curry!
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Add milk, Worcestershire sauce, and grated apple. Mix thoroughly and simmer till hot. If the curry is too soupy (probably you added too much broth/water), simmer, uncovered (no lid), stirring occasionally.
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Serve the curry with Japanese steamed rice and top with fukujinzuke (pickles).
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Remove the potatoes from the curry as they will change the texture once frozen. Freeze the leftover curry in an airtight glass container and freeze up to 1-2 months. Defrost 24 hours in the refrigerator and reheat in the pot.
Recipe by Namiko Chen of Just One Cookbook. All images and content on this site are copyright protected. Please do not use my images without my permission. If you’d like to share this recipe on your site, please re-write the recipe and link to this post as the original source. Thank you.
Editor’s Note: This post was originally published on April 15, 2011 and has been updated with new pictures/video and revised recipe instructions.
What kind of wine do you use? I have to admit I don’t know anything about wine. Can I use red or white cooking wine?
Hi Justin! Any red wine would be great but the general rule of thumb is to use something you are willing to drink. You can drink the same wine with the dish as well.
My suggestion is burgundy and zinfandel. It adds a deep flavor. A good cab, Pinot, Shiraz is also a good choice.
I’m not sure about white wine – usually beef with red wine. 🙂 Hope this helps!
I skipped the wine and couldn’t tell. Didn’t want to open a wine bottle for this when I was going to do a Japanese beer with it. Just add an extra spoon of the worcestershire sauce. DON’T use white wine, not the right profile
Tried this recipe and the homemade curry roux recipe. Turned out amazing! Will make this again. Your recipes are amazing. Thank you for sharing.
Hi Joy! I’m so happy to hear that you enjoyed this recipe with the homemade curry roux! Thank you for your kind feedback! 🙂
Cooking is definitely my passion, and I followed this recipe of yours about a year ago. It was literally the most delicious dinner I’ve ever made. I grew up on my (Vietnamese) Father’s chicken curry, but it couldn’t hold a candle to this.
When my friends come home for the holidays, I’m planning on making this for them and also trying out your Nama Chocolate recipe!
Also, have you considered trying to recreate Royce’s Matcha or Strawberry Nama Chocolate flavors? The Matcha version intrigues me so much. Recipes like yours are the only way I can try something like that. I appreciate your blog soooo much! <3
Hi Aubrey! I’m so happy to hear you made this before and will make it again (especially my pictures are not so great…). Thank you for trusting the recipe and trying!
Matcha is always my favorite. Maybe one day I’ll try and share. There are so many other dessert recipes that I need to and want to share (and so little time!). Thank you for your suggestion. I put it down on my list. 🙂
Aubrey,
I love Vietnamese curry! Have you tried cooking it yourself? It is amazing!
This is my second time making Japanese curry. Cooking now in the instant pot! Waiting for it to finish! Can’t wait for dinner!
Hi Nami,
Really like your recipes, tried it and it is delicious. Just one small question. How come your caramelized onion looked so white? I thought it should be brown.
Hi Ken! Thank you for your kind words and I’m happy to hear you enjoy my recipes. 🙂 I changed the word to “translucent”. The reason why they are not brown is that I did not let them alone enough to brown, meaning that I stirred them too often. I changed it to “translucent” because I think it doesn’t have to be brown, I want onions to be cooked long enough that they become soft and sweet before cooking other ingredients. Hope this helps. Thank you for noticing my incorrect choice of words. 🙂
Glad I stumbled upon this. I’m fairly new to cooking, but I really wanted to make Japanese beef curry. Thanks for this, Nami. I’ll get to work on it immediately. 🙂
Hi Ali! Thank you so much for writing. I need to update this bad picture so that it will look more delicious… though thank you for giving it a try! 🙂
Hi Nami, when you boil it for 2 hours, are you cooking it with the lid on or off? I’m not sure if I’m supposed to let it evaporte
Hi Jessica! Put the lid on to keep the liquid. You can open the lid after you put curry roux and the liquid is too thin (let evaporate water so the curry will be thicken). Hope that helps! Thanks for trying this recipe! 🙂
Dear Nami,
Really enjoyed yr foodblog.
I have 3 questions. (1) Why do use both the Japanese curry spicemix (rouge) & also another curry powder? (2) Can the wine be ommited? (3) How can I make a meatless curry gravy base that I can use for serving with different kinds of meats on different meals.
TQ& look forward to hear.from you.
Hi Hank! Thank you for your kind words. 🙂 Here are my answers to your questions.
1) Roux and curry powder are a bit different. Even though you use “spicy” level of roux, it still lacks the multiple layer of spice kicks. You don’t have to use curry powder, and it’s completely okay. But after you make the curry with same curry roux for a few times, you will want to make some changes by adding more complex flavor. Curry roux will always give the same flavor, if you know what I mean… 🙂 So, it’s optional. 🙂
2) Sure, you can omit the wine, and it won’t hurt. It adds bold flavor to the beef. But again, I’m trying to make the regular beef curry a bit more complex and go beyond regular curry with curry roux (meaning, someone else who makes with the same curry roux will have the same flavor… and I just want to make it more original).
3) You make the curry without meat. Then on the side, you cook beef/chicken/pork/seafood in a frying pan. You can either scoop some curry out to a small pot to cook with one kind of meat further, or you can just add the meat when you serve.
Hope that helps! 🙂
Hi….please help. i really want to try this, since my husband loves Japanese Curry.
Can i replace
Apple Sauce with grated apple?
Wine with Sake?
Can i freeze the left over (omitting the potato for sure)?
regards and many thanks
Mira
Hi Mira! Yes, you can use grated apple. And yes you can use sake. Yes, I always freeze leftover (minus potatoes). 🙂 Hope you and your husband enjoy this.
Why can’t you freeze potatoes?
Hi Bobby! The potato changes the texture when it’s frozen. 🙂
Hi Nami!
I’m trying this curry because my husband loves japanese curry but I have a question regarding the meat. Instead of beef chuck, can I replace it with beef shabu shabu or beef sukiyaki? I’ve eaten japanese beef curry with really thin slices of beef before and I was wondering if I could just replace it in this dish or would it change the cooking process?
Thanks and hope to hear from you soon!
Hi Hui Fang! Sure! I also make with thinly sliced beef too (very fast to cook!). 🙂
Hi Nami,
What kind of wine did you use? Red ? White? Sweet? Dry? I’m going to make this with chicken cause I have some in my freezer. Next time, I’ll definitely make beef cause beef curry is my favorite too 🙂
Thanks!
Hi Yuko! Thank you for letting me know – I updated with the wine info (Usually red is used for beef). For chicken recipe, I recommend the following recipes for chicken curry:
https://www.justonecookbook.com/recipes/simple-chicken-curry/
https://www.justonecookbook.com/recipes/chicken-curry/
Thank you! 🙂
I’ve always wanted to try this dish, but I can’t use potatoes (allergy–seriously). What would work as a substitute?
Hi Aquaria! Don’t include the potatoes. It’s okay without it. 🙂 If you want similar texture, you can add kabocha. But really, not necessary. 🙂 I hope you enjoy!
I love the addition of the grated apple at the end. My mouth is salivating! I love curry and this is the perfect recipe to introduce it to my family. Thank you for sharing!
Hi Terri! Thank you for your kind comment! In Japan, the addition of apple, honey, milk, yogurt, etc to the curry roux is very common as we don’t want to make the curry very commercialized curry that’s out of the box. I hope you enjoy this recipe! 🙂
Hey, nice recipe!
You mentioned here “For vegetarian option, you can add firm tofu right before you serve just to heat it through.” but it’s a bit misleading since store-bought roux typically contains lard or beef/chicken extract.
As a vegetarian, I was happy to find your home-made curry roux recipe! Will definitely try it!
Hi Lily! Thank you so much for your helpful input. It’s true, we should be careful with what’s in the store-bought roux. We love the homemade curry roux too! Hope you enjoy. 🙂
Thanks for sharing this recipe, and the video looks fabulous! =) I haven’t had curry in the longest time, and now I’m definitely craving some. I’ve never tried adding milk or grated apple at the very end (though I usually buy the “riingo” flavored curry roux), so I’m excited to see how that tastes the next time I make a big batch.
Hi Kimmi! Your roux must be Vermont Curry? 😀 In Japan it’s very common to add apples, yogurt, milk, honey, etc to make the roux/curry not so out of box. 🙂 Hope you give it a try! Thanks so much for your comment. 🙂 xo
You must know all the brands! 😉
Hi! Love how you provide homemade recipe for those of us who are trying to reduce use of processed ingredients. If I am to use the homemade roux, how much should I make or use?
Cheers
Siow Fong
So sorry for my late response! I just found your comment in my inbox! If you make homemade roux using my recipe, you need to use all of roux you make. 🙂 I apologize for my late response!
Hi Frieska! Thank you so much for following my website and I hope you enjoy this curry rice recipe! 🙂
quick question on chicken vs beef curry: I tried your curry recipe with chicken and it came out great but wanted to switch to beef this time figuring I could do exactly the same, just switching out chicken ingredients for beef (meat and stock). However, the beef recipe seems quite different! For example, you cook the beef separate and then add it to the stew pot, whereas with chicken you cook the meat in the stew pot after cooking the onions. Is there a special reason for this? I can see why you would add some red wine and mushrooms to beef and not chicken curry, for flavoring, but some other ingredients simply seem to go in a different order and I am not sure why? ちょっとばかな質問を聞いてすみませんがよろしくお願いします！
Hi April! 大丈夫ですよ！なんでも質問してください。 🙂
There is no specific way to make curry. So you can make Beef Curry using my chicken curry recipe (that’s very basic curry recipe). If you have time, I highly recommend to cook on low heat for a long time, too. I like to sear the beef cubes which helps trap umami inside the beef. There are different ways/steps to enhance the flavors depending on ingredients. In general, you have to cook from hard texture ingredients first and veggies that cook fast should be added later on (depending on how long you plan to cook). Meat should go in earlier to adds more flavor to the stock. If you want to keep the texture of veggies, you have to decide when to add. Some prefer onions to be melted while others prefer to keep the shape, etc. Please write me back with any questions you may have if I didn’t answer your questions. 🙂 Hope this helps!
Would love to make this for my family tonight. Your beef curry recipe asks for 1 box (7-8.4 oz, 200-240g) Japanese curry roux . Instead of using the boxed curry, I will try your curry roux recipe. Your beef curry recipe asks for 1 box (7-8.4 oz, 200-240g) Japanese curry roux . What is the amount of homemade roux needed?
Thank you
Hi Shirley! The homemade curry roux is good enough for 4 cups of liquid. This beef curry requires 8 cups if you follow the recipe exactly (same amount of ingredients). Hope this helps. 🙂 I apologize for my late response due to my travel.
Hi Nami – just to confirm, so the homemade roux would only make half of this beef curry? If I want to use the homemade roux recipe in this beef curry recipe, I should double the homemade roux ?
Hi Mel! Yes, I’d double the recipe to be safe. This beef curry recipe makes more – when you add curry roux, gradually add in and taste. 🙂 Hope you enjoy!
i never knew it needed so much work. I always just brown my meat and throw in veg and just throw in the roux. no wonder mine taste so boring…
Hi Ivy! If you follow the directions on the package, everyone will be able to make a standard Japanese curry. There are always ways to improve the curry with additional steps and ingredients. 🙂
Just made this recipe and it tasted soo good! The step-by-step photos were really helpful. Looking forward to trying more of your recipes!
Hi Audrey! So glad to hear you enjoyed this dish! I’m happy to hear you liked the step by step instructions! Hope you enjoy other recipes from my blog. 🙂 Thank you for writing!
I’ve found your recipes recently and I must say that I’ve fallen in love! Two years back I visited Japan on a trip with 24 other classmates and I don’t think a single one of us regretted going. It was an amazing experience and I miss all of the kind people I met along the way most of all. With cooking as my passion, I knew I wanted to take back some of the delicious flavors of Japan. It was my first time trying curry, let alone cooking it. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed all of the recipes I’ve tried so far. You do amazing work; Thank you so much for giving us all a little piece of Japan! I can’t wait to impress everyone with it! 🙂
Hi Tay! Thank you so much for writing! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed your trip to Japan! I’m glad my recipes came out well too. Thank you for trying them and writing your feedback! xo 🙂
Greetings from Australia, Melbourne to be exact, thanks for recipe. I do love curries and now I have excuse to try a Japanese one, as I mostly cook Indian and Thai 🙂 Fzntastic 🙂
Hi Sylvia! Thank you for stopping by to leave a comment. I hope you enjoy my blog! Japanese curry is not as spicy as Thai or Indian, but it’s more influenced by the British as we use curry powder to make curry. 🙂
Nami,
Today, I made this recipe with the following modifications.
1. Used lamb meat instead of beef.
2. Omitted the wine. No wine for our grand children.
3. Used a Granny Smith apple instead of Fuji.
4. Did not serve Fukujinzuke.
It was great. Next time I will used the Mild Hot Curry. Lovely recipe and delicious. Thank you!
Thank you Steve! I’m glad to know lamb works for this recipe too, so others who love lamb can enjoy this recipe. Thank you very much for writing your kind feedback and I’m happy that you enjoyed this recipe. Thank you!! 🙂
This is the best curry I’ve ever had, and I love your recipe! My entire Korean family goes nuts when I cook it this way, thank you!
Hi Aelu! Thanks so much for your kind feedback! I’m so happy to hear you and your family enjoyed this recipe! 🙂
Simmering my curry as I type. Left out milk and butter because I can’t eat much dairy. Can’t wait until it’s done.
Hope you liked the curry! 🙂
Good recipe.
…But did anyone else find that 32oz of broth is plenty?
Hi Garry! Haha yes… When I make a curry that takes more time than my simple curry (put all ingredients and cook in one pot), I usually make a big pot so that I can freeze it. 🙂
Hello! I’ve recently got into cooking curry and I’ve noticed a lot of recipes calling for thinly sliced onions (by the way, what is the best type of onion to use in your opinion?) but I’m not that partial to onions in that form. Would cutting them up in a different way mess with the overall curry?
Hi Omo! Yes, onions are always included to make curry because we rely on the sweetness coming out from cooked onion. 🙂 And the texture that adds thickness to the sauce. I use yellow onion (most of the time) and sometimes sweet onions. I love the texture of the onion but if you don’t like it, you can cut anyway you like. It’s better than completely omitting it. Hope this helps! 🙂
Thank you! I shall try it then.
Also, do you know why the meat is to floured? Does this do something to the overall flavor of the meat?
Sorry I have so many questions!
Hi Omo! We use flour to trap and absorb the juice and umami when you cook the beef. If you don’t use the flour, all the good flavor will go away. We use this technique for making stew etc. Hope this helps!
Awesome! Thank you so much for answering my questions! Okay one more: does the type of rice one uses matter when eating it with curry?
Hi Omo! You’re welcome! Being a Japanese person, the type of rice used for Japanese cooking matters a lot. However, if you are used to other kinds of rice, I think it’s okay to use it for curry rice. I highly recommend you to use short grain Japanese rice when you make sushi though. It has to be Japanese rice for sushi recipes. 🙂
Should I omit the red wine if I’m not using beef? What about the broth?
I’m going to make tonkatsu curry, so I’m making it without the meat, then serving it with the meat cut up next to it.
Hi Joshua!
My beef curry recipe takes a longer time and requires extra steps. If you don’t use beef, I recommend using my other curry recipe.
https://www.justonecookbook.com/simple-chicken-curry/
You can omit chicken if you like. Use vegetables or chicken broth (or water) in that case. :). Hope you enjoy!
Hello, Nami!
I really love Japanese curry!! I’m going to try to make your version of beef curry, but I don’t consume alcohol. Is there any substitute for the red wine? or is it alright just to rule it out from the recipe?
Thank you!
Hi Dian! It’s okay if you omit it. It adds depth to the flavor and it’s just nice addition. But I understand your situation and don’t worry about the red wine in the recipe. You’ll need to add more stock to balance out the liquid that’s going to be missing. 🙂 Hope you enjoy!
Grape juice works really well as a red wine substitute. Hope that helps! 🙂
Good recommendation! 🙂
Hi Nami,
I love all your recipes!!
I’m looking to entertain friends for an authentic curry dinner, and wondering if this recipe has the authentic Japanese ‘Kare’ flavor…with the wine and bay leaves I wonder if it tastes different. Also, if I prepare your homemade roux, do I need to double that recipe for your beef curry recipe?
Thank you!
Mizue
Hi Mizue! Thank you so much for following my blog! If we use the premade curry roux from the store, everyone will think it’s “familiar” taste, even though you add wine and bay leaf. They just add layers of flavors, but the curry is still from the block. If you make your own curry roux, they won’t be “familiar” curry roux taste. The premade curry roux has all the unnatural ingredients so you can’t really copy it… but instead, the flavor is really wonderful and many readers told me they prefer making their own roux now. If you make your roux, make sure you get extra just in case. WIth other ingredients (vegetables), etc, the volume of your curry may be different from mine and you might need more roux at the end. So it’s safe to make extra or keep the premade curry roux handy so you can add in case it’s too watery. Hope this helps….
i have never cooked a curry before and it was delicious.But i think it could have been more spicier
Hello! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed this dish! Thank you so much for trying my recipe. Japanese curry is usually not as spicy as Thai or Indian curry (it’s consider mild curry), so please add more spices as you like! 🙂
Can i just skip the red wine part, nami? Because, well, i’m a muslim and alcohol is forbidden for me. Or can i replace it with something similar? Good quality cranberries juice maybe? Hehe.. anyway, i’d always wanted to taste japanese kare, since it always looks delicious in manga or anime.. and yours really looks appetizing ,way more what i’ve imagined… .. thank you again nami for sharing this great recipe to us ☺
Hi Hikari! Sure! Alcohol (in this case, wine) is for beef and umami in the flavor. You can’t really replace the alcohol without non-alcohol in this recipe, but you’ll be okay without it. 🙂 It’s just good to have. 🙂
There are other Japanese curry recipes on my blog (search “curry”), and I hope you get to see how we eat Japanese curry! 🙂
I also don’t drink or use alcohol. I’ve used grape juice as a substitute for the red wine and I think it’s worked really well. Still tastes just as amazing! 🙂 Hope that helps!
If we already have the curry roux, why do we need to add curry powder? Can I skip the curry powder then?
Hi Minh! You don’t have to – but if you just follow the directions of curry roux box, everyone using it has the same flavor of curry. But instead, you can personalize it by adding spices, seasonings and other ingredients to make it to your own curry, even with using curry roux. 🙂
Hi Namiko,
Thanks a lot for sharing the recipe! I made this and it was awesome!!!!
I used the old recipe last time and It’s great to see a new recipe that has less cooking time 🙂 I’d love to try this out some time, but have some questions:
1. The old recipe only uses 2 cups of beef broth and 2 cups of water while the new recipe calls for 8 cups of beef and with less cooking time. Was wondering if the the curry is more runny and salty with the updated recipe?
2. Is 10 minutes enough to caramelize the onions ? Just asking this because it used to be an hour before and want to make sure it still gives the same taste 🙂
Thanks again for sharing this great recipe!
ChelC
Hi ChelC! So happy to hear you liked this recipe!
1) I don’t remember the amount of beef and veggies I used for the old version of this recipe. Was it less, or same? As you see, this recipe requires quite a bit of ingredients, and 2 QT is what I used (added more liquid while cooking). It’s hard to say about how runny it can be – as it is based on how much water veggies release and how much water evaporated during cooking process, but 8 cups is what was required to cook this time. If you cook for a longer time, the curry will be reduced and thicker, so it depends on when you stop cooking as well.
2) I love how I spend hours to slowly caramelize the onions. SO good. If you have the time, I’d highly recommend that. But I know most people don’t want to spend that much, so I updated with shorter cooking time (I wrote: “sauté the onion until it’s soft and translucent.”, not caramelize it). If you have time, please take extra time…. adds wonderful flavors!
Hi Nami,
I was surprised to see this comment down here. I’m making this now, and had I not read through all the comments I wouldn’t have known about this additional caramelization step I could’ve used to improve my curry.
I understand you want people to not feel the time constraint, but I believe people also want to make great curry. I feel like it would be best to mention these kinds of things somewhere in the recipe, perhaps as an addendum, note, whatever – anything better than a sub-comment
Hi Richard! Thank you so much for your feedback and I really appreciate it. I’ve added the option in the recipe step by step so if someone has extra time to spend, they can saute until the onions are caramelized. Thanks again for writing! Hope you enjoyed the curry! 🙂
After adding the bay leaves, how long do you typically let it simmer before adding the roux? The first time I made this, the curry turned out perfectly, and I can’t remember how long I let it simmer… and the second time I made it, it had a hard time thickening after I added the roux. I’m wondering if I didn’t let it simmer long enough. I tried adding more roux, and ended up having to add some cornstarch to get it to thicken some. Still tasted great though.
Hi Rebekah! The amount of liquid changes based on the stock and vegetables. Vegetables release water too, so it can be more than usual sometimes. Cook until the vegetables are tender – then you can add curry roux (don’t add the roux before – it’ll take a long time to cook, and curry tends to burn on the bottom, so not recommend to cook for a longer time after curry is added). So, if you’re worry, start with minimum amount of liquid that coves enough for the ingredients to cook. Then once vegetables and beef are tender, add the curry. If specified curry is added and too thick, you can always add more broth to dilute. It takes a longer time to evaporate when curry is loose. So that’s one trick you can do. Soon you’ll kind of know how much curry roux and broth you’ll need based on ingredients. Hope this helps!
Made your curry a few hours ago and loved it!! Will kee this recipe whenever i need to do it again!! For how long can you conserve the curry if you made a lot?
So happy to hear that! Thanks for trying my recipe! I’d recommend to freeze it. It tastes better than keeping in the fridge. Put it in a glass container (plastic – curry will stain) and freeze for up to a month. Remove potato because it will be different texture once frozen and defrosted. Hope this helps!
Do I have to add beef stock and red wine? Or can I use water for beef stock and cooking wine for red wine?
Hi Minh! It’s good to use them for more flavors – add more dimension and depth. But you can try with replacement if you can’t get them. Try with beef stock and wine next time and compare. 🙂
Terrific results & a hit with the family but I need clarification; I doubled your recipe for your homemade curry roux because the beef curry calls for 8 cups broth & the roux recipe says it yields enough for a 4 cup liquid curry dish. Using taste as a guide, I ended using about 1 roux batch for the stew as it was plenty strong. Now I have more roux for another curry dish, yum!
Hi Priscilla! Even though we use 8 cups of broth, it should reduce a lot during the simmering process. The Japanese curry is thicker, and the roux for the curry is not enough to thicken more than 4 cups of liquid to the thickness most people prefer. But this is really a personal preference, so it is okay that you are okay with the thickness. Thanks so much for trying this recipe. So happy you and your family enjoyed it! 🙂
Hi Nami! I just wanted to thank you for this wonderful recipe. I made it for my family last summer and they absolutely loved it. This week, my Japanese teacher is moving on to other pursuits, so my classmates and I wanted to throw her a party with her favorite curry (she likes vermont). Anyways, I’ll be making this recipe, since it was so amazing. Thanks again!
Hi Joey! So happy to hear you liked this recipe! I hope your Sensei will enjoy this curry as well! 🙂
Hi Nami, I just wanted to tell you, that I love your recipes. Its difficult to find good japanese recipes in Germany, most of them are “germanized”.
Since I live near Düsseldorf, I have the luck to have various japanese grocery stores around me.
I bought a box of S&B curry roux last week and found your recipe, so I decided to make your version today, the curry on your pictures look soo mouth watering that I can’t wait to be home and start to prepare this.
I tried a few of your recipes now and all of them were awesome.
Im trying your Won Tons this sunday 😉
Greeting from Germany.
Hi Sunny! Thank you so much! I’m so happy to hear you enjoy my recipes and thanks for your kind feedback. I know, a lot of Japanese food here in the States is Americanized too. It’s hard to bring very authentic food without having the customers who can appreciate it, and I still think it’s good that more Americans try Japanese food (even though it’s a bit different)…and I hope that one day they will crave for the REAL thing! And it’s wonderful that you have good Japanese grocery stores near you! Hope you enjoy wontons next! Thanks again! xo
Just tried your recipe, and it totally hit the spot! Definitely worth the extra time, and it made enough for me to eat for the rest of the week!
Hi Jasmine! I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you for trying this recipe! Make curry udon with your leftover too! 🙂
Hi Nami,
Am I able to freeze the leftover curry? If I can, how long will it keep in the freezer? Thank you!
Hi Kim! Yes! If you put it in an air-tight container, I’d say it’ll still taste great for at least a month. However, potato will change the texture. So I usually take it out (or try to finish eating) before freezing. If you don’t mind, you can of course freeze potatoes too. 🙂 Hope that helps!
Hi! Making this for the first time this evening. I’ll need to find another box of curry, as I did not notice that it was only a 100 gram size box when I purchased it yesterday while in another city. I’m certain I can get it locally though. 🙂 BTW: I asked you on YouTube about making Udon noodles with a pasta machine. I can report that the Atlas Trenette attachment makes noodles that are almost exactly the same size and shape after cooking as the packaged pre-cooked Udon noodles I’ve bought. 😀
Hi Jim! I am so sorry for my late response. Were you able to find it last minute? American grocery stores carry the Japanese curry roux in Asian/International food isle but maybe because I’m in California…
Oh! I remember your comment on YouTube! Thank you so much for feedback. It’s on my wish list… I have so many cooking gadget that I have to make sure I’ll use it… he hee. Hope I can make pasta with that too! Good to know I can use it for udon too. I really appreciate your feedback. Thank you!!!
Hi Nami,
Can I make this with tofu? I’m not a big meat eater generally.
Thanks
Nisha
sorry, just saw the description!
Thanks for this site. I love Japanese cuisine so much and this site is like a dream come true!
Hi Nisha! No problem. Sorry for my late response. I’m happy to hear you like Japanese food! 🙂
Hello. I made you curry recipe tonight. It came out delicious. It was the perfect spiciness, creaminess, and thickness. I also made the homemade roux. Although I followed that recipe as written, after cooking the roux for 20 minutes mine never thinned out like yours did in the photo where you add the curry, garam masala, and cayenne. Either way the end result was delicious. My fiancé and I and both had seconds. Thank you for sharing such a wonderful recipe
Hi Keke! I’m so happy to hear your fiance and you enjoyed this recipe! I’ll make a video for the curry roux one day. 🙂
Macaroni salad is indeed typical in Hawaii! I came to your website because I am making macaroni salad and wanted chicken katsu curry as well! Thank you for sharing your recipes.
Hi Wika! Interesting! We eat Macaroni salad sometimes too. Japanese people love mayo based salad too! 🙂
This was really great, thank you for sharing!
Oh, and I added a can of corn (my daughter loves corn) and it was perfect!
Hi Sunnie! Aww I’m so happy to hear your daughter enjoyed this recipe! Great idea to add corn. My kids love it too! 🙂
I made this today (and homemade roux too). It has rich and spicy flavors, smooth consistence and easy to make it. We love it! Thank you for the recipe!
Hi Majacica! I’m so happy to hear you liked this recipe! Thank you for your kind feedback! 🙂
This is absolutely delicious. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Simon
So happy to hear you liked this recipe! Thanks for trying this recipe! 🙂
Hi Nami! I just finished making this recipe (first time even cooking a meal myself!) and it turned out absolutely amazing. My dad, who’s the cook in the family, is pretty critical about other people’s cooking and he loved it a lot! I’m even more surprised everything turned out well because I substituted the red wine for cranberry cocktail juice! Thanks so much for sharing, definitely enjoyed making it and eating it.
Hi Claudia! Aww! I’m so happy to hear you liked this recipe, and even your dad too!! YAY!!! Great choice for wine sub. 🙂 Thank you for your kind feedback. xoxo p.s. continue cooking more Japanese foods. 😉
Hello Nami,
Thank You So Much for this recipe. I found your website not too long ago and this was my first recipe I decided to make and it was a hit with the whole family 🙂 Looking forward try the other yummy looking foods you post. <3
Hi Susan! I’m so happy to hear your family enjoyed this recipe! Thank you for your kind feedback. And welcome to my blog! 🙂
Where do I add in the box of curry mix ? I’m wondering if I missed it somewhere but I couldn’t find it.
Hi Henry! At step 13. I edited the recipe and added “curry” in front of the roux. 🙂
This was so fantastic. Reminds me of the time I spent in Japan. Great recipe.
Hi Paul! I’m so glad you liked it! Thank you so much for your kind feedback! 🙂
Do we use the whole box of curry roax?
Yes, I used 1 box (7-8.4 oz, 200-240g) of Japanese curry roux. 🙂
Hi Nami-san,
Made your Beef Curry last night. Yummy. I have 2 suggestions though.
1) Beef Broth which can be very salty plus Boxed Curry Roux which has MSG in it create an overly salty flavor. I would suggest either low sodium beef broth or a combination of Beef Broth and water. Homemade roux is pretty easy to make so I will do that in the future. Not a big fan of MSG
2) The beef needs more time to simmer for tenderness. I would simmer the beef for 30-40 minutes before putting in the vegetables. Beef and vegetables should come out similarly in tenderness. Of course you could try the new Instant Pot Method for similar results.
Hi Richard-san! Thank you so much for the suggestion!
1) I use Trader Joe’s beef broth and by far I like that best (in the similar price range beef stock, not one from a gourmet grocery store). If you have a TJ near by, give it a try, it’s not too salty like other brands in my opinion. Otherwise, I think you have a great suggestion! So thank you!
2) True, pressure cooker makes it really easy for cooking the meat part. Thank you very much for your great suggestion! 🙂 Arigato!
Hi Nami,
Never knew it was this complicated… Would you know how many curry roux I will need to cook for 2-4 people? Wondering if its about 2 blocks of curry per person. Thanks!
Hi Terrence! This particular beef curry is a special one – you will need to spend more time caramelizing onions etc, but you’ll notice the taste difference from a regular curry recipe like this. If you want a quick version, try this recipe with beef and beef stock (you can use chicken broth too).
https://www.justonecookbook.com/simple-chicken-curry/
Hi Namiko-san,
I was wondering if it would affect the dish if I were to cut out the red wine from the recipe. Does it make a difference? Big/small, or not at all?
Hi Irene! Red wine or alcohol always gives depth and so much flavors after alcohol is being evaporated. However, if you have to skip, that’s okay. It is just an extra. The curry will be good without it, but if you add and compare, you might notice. 🙂
Hello! Instead of English Worcestershire sauce (Lea & Perrins), which I have just run out of, can I use Japanese Worcestershire sauce (Bulldog)?
Yes you can use Japanese Usuta-sosu. 🙂
CAN YOU ADAPT THIS RECIPE FOR THE INSTANT POT
You can definitely adapt this curry for instant pot. I have posted 2 Pressure Cooker Japanese Curry recipes. The basic concept is the same, cook the beef first and take out, cook the onion (you don’t have to cook that long for IP), add all the ingredients (except for potatoes), and pressure cook. Add potatoes later and pressure cook again. Let me know if you have a question. 🙂
I was curious how long you should pressure cook before and after adding the potatoes?
Hi Caroline! Stew beef only takes 20 minutes to pressure cook, and potatoes 3 minutes. If you don’t want to pressure cook twice (which takes longer time), I would cut the potatoes into larger chunks (so some parts may dissolve or break but you may see some shapes) and cook for 20 minutes total. 🙂
Nami-San,
ありがとうございました & Thank you so much for sharing recipes that improve our soul! Can you please provide and show an Instapot version of this recipe instead of a few tips in response to specific questions? Unfortunately, I’m learning to cooking and require very explicit, clear, step by step instructions (like you kindly & expertly) provide elsewhere.
Thank You, again for the recipes and tips. Everything always turns out great.
Hi Stephanie! Thank you for your feedback. I’ll add to my list and try it one day. I’m glad my recipes work for you. Thank you for your kind words!
What kind of red wine did you use?
Hi Matthew! I am so sorry for my late response. Any red wine is good and will work. So pick one that you want to drink later. 🙂
What type of red wine do you use for this recipe? Thanks
Hi Nga! ANy red wine is great and will work. We usually pick the one that we’re going to drink afterwards. “)
I am new reader from Taiwan. I like your recipe very much and tried several dishes …so great. I just followed recipe to make beef curry..that’s so amazing and wonderful taste. I recommend your website to my friends which we cannot read Japanese but want to learn Japanese dishes.
Hi Iris! So happy to hear you enjoy my recipes and thank you for recommending my blog to your friends! Glad to hear you enjoyed this recipe. Thank you for your kind feedback!
This is the biggest over complication ever… If you’re going to do all this just make your own roux. All you really need is beef, onion, potato, carrot, water, roux.. No broth, wine, milk… At this point you have basically made a second and possibly even third sauce within the curry….
True, this recipe takes extra long compared to my other curry recipes on my site (which use just simple roux + ingredients). However, it’s not about roux here that matters. You can use homemade roux too, but the point is that you saute onion for a long time, sear the meat separately… it’s all about extra step that gives more flavor (not the curry flavor) to the dish. Like I mentioned in the post, this is not a quick and easy Japanese curry dish. But even with the store-bought roux, end result is pretty amazing. Hope it makes sense. If you were looking for simpler curry, here is the recipe:
https://www.justonecookbook.com/simple-chicken-curry/ (with roux or homemade roux)
Can I use the medium hot box curry roux for this recipe?
Hi Jessica! Sure! Any spice level is good, and up to you. 🙂 Hope you enjoy!
Hi Nami-chan (If I may have the liberty to call you so),
Is there something you can substitute the wine with? I don’t drink alcohol due to my religion.
Arregato Gozaimasu
Hi Yasmine! Sure, you can call me so. 🙂
You can add same amount of beef/vegetable broth/water instead in Step 10. 🙂
So if I were to use your homemade roux recipe would I need to make 2 batches of it for the curry one since it says that the roux recipe is only for 4 cups of liquid and there’s 8 cups of beef broth? Or does the seasoning in the Curry one mean that only one batch of roux is necessary?
Hi Alvina! I would make two batches for this curry, just because it requires more liquid, and you don’t want to make the curry roux later on when you don’t have enough… 🙂
Hey Nami! Thanks a lot for your recipe! It seems to me like you use kind of a double concentration here, right? You got full beef stock as liquid + the curry roux. In the recipe of the curry roux they are only talking about adding water as liquid, no? This is not meant as a critique, I’m just wondering how you came up with this. Is the curry roux not strong enough? All the best!
Hi Joshua! I’m so sorry for my late response. Yes, curry roux box requires just simple water, and you can use water too if you like. Or you can make it more flavorful with beef/chicken/vegetable stock based on your protein. The roux is made in a way that water will work. However, beef stock has much more flavor than water and you can enhance the curry that way… try both and see which one you like it. The curry roux recipe does not require wine etc either. I don’t want to make curry by following the box because nothing special about it (everyone will end up with same curry). 🙂
Hi, Nami! Thank you so much for this recipe – it’s the best Japanese Beef curry I’ve found. My daughter loves curry as much as I do, and I’ve looked hard for the perfect recipe. I love your site, and hope you continue to make wonderful dishes!
Hi Vikki! I’m so sorry for my late response. Thank you for trying this recipe and I’m so happy you and your daughter liked this recipe! Thank you for writing your kind feedback. Yes, I’ll continue to share more recipes! Please subscribe or come back often. xoxo 🙂
The recipe is excellent!!
I made my own roux and garam masala mixture.
Thank you very much!!!
Hi Daniel! Thank you for trying tis recipe and I’m so happy you enjoyed it. Thanks for the kind feedback. 🙂
I plan on making curry for the first time. I need to make 2 batches: a vegetarian one with fake meat and a regular beef one for my husband. Mine needs to be mild, but his needs to be spicy. What can I add to his to make it more spicy in flavor?
Hi Danielle! I am sorry for my late response. If you are using Japanese curry roux, you should use “Hot” labeled one for your husband. BUT Japanese spicy level is “nothing” compared to Thai or Indian curry level… so if that’s the case, you can make it spicier with chili peppers and other hot sauce of his choice. 🙂
Hi Namiko,I cooked kemma curry it was delicious.I cooked with ground beef instead of ground pork.I’m cooking beef with curry now.I love your videos and your step by step, instructions.Arigato Ramon
Hi Ramon! I’m glad to hear you enjoyed my Keema Curry recipe! HOpe the Beef Curry came out well. Thank you for your kind feedback!
I followed this recipe exactly and it was a complete waste of time. It was the worst curry I’ve had and it was inedible.
Hi Kerry! I’m sorry this recipe didn’t work out for you.
This recipe is SO good! I think I have a new cool-weather favorite recipe!
Hi Bryan! Thank you so much for trying this recipe!!
Best Curry I’ve made so far!
Hi Jesse! Thank you for trying my recipe! I am so happy to hear you enjoyed it!
Hello! Can I make this in my instant pot? I saw you had a chicken curry recipe for the instant pot but I’d like to try beef instead.
ありがと‼︎
Yes you can use the Instant Pot. Use less liquid, since liquid won’t evaporate in the pressure cooker. 🙂
I’ve made this recipe twice already and I’m making it tonight for Christmas dinner with my family, it’s this good.
It’s a little lengthy which is great to put everyone to work as we listen to holiday tunes and sip on hot glogg!
Thanks for the recipe and happy holidays.
Hi Damien! Thank you so much for trying this recipe again! Hope you and your family had a wonderful Christmas with this recipe. 🙂
Hi, I tried your recipe and my curry came out much darker! (Was still delicious) Was wondering if you could give some timings on a few things… Since the total cook time is 1hr and 40 minutes… but only 12 minutes of cooking are actually accounted for!
Hi Ollie! Thank you so much for your feedback! I added some minutes to several steps that may be helpful. 🙂 Regarding the color of curry, do you think it’s the brand and spicy level of curry roux? Mine in this is mild curry in this recipe. I know that medium spice (Now my kids can eat 1/2 mild 1/2 medium) is darker roux I think…
Hi Nami. Great thanks! I’m only starting out with cooking so sometimes it’s a bit of a struggle if things aren’t black and white for me. I think the reason my curry came out darker maybe due to the rich beef stock I used instead of the normal stuff (lack of normal beef stock at my local supermarket). For my roux I just followed your roux recipe. I imagine it’s probably down to the stock difference! Either way it came out tasty and that’s all that matters!
Hi Ollie! I understood. When I shared the recipe, I was new to writing recipes too, and I hope my writing/recipes have improved. Thank you for your feedback. It helps my writing, and I hope to go back to old recipes and give more information as well. 🙂
And thanks for letting me know about the broth. Sounds like you had a wonderfully delicious rich broth! 🙂
This is so good! I always use this recipe without modification when making Japanese curry.
Hi Kate! Thank you so much for trying this recipe and for your kind feedback! I’m glad you enjoyed it. 🙂 xo
I want to try this recipe with your scratch curry roux but I’m scared to try because the red wine, bay leaf and worcestershire sauce seem unusual for curry ingredients… May I ask if sake would be an ok alternative to the red wine?
Hi Snoopylover! Sake is okay, but red wine and beef is a golden combination for rich deep flavor, so I recommend using it (buy a smaller bottle: 4-pack Sutter Home® Cabernet Sauvignon – each bottle only contains 6.3 oz/187 m. Very convenient for cooking!). Japanese curry varies from boxed curry roux to more complex curry… it’s really up to what you want at the end. 🙂
Thanks, I made it with sake, and forgot to put in the Worcestershire sauce but it turned out great! Thank you for being my #1 resource for Japanese recipes! I’ve loved everything I’ve tried so far: Azuki, Nikuman, Omurice, Kombudashi, Saraudon, Wafu Hambagu, Mapo Tofu and more that I can’t remember.
Hello Snoopylover! I’m glad to hear yours came out well! Thank you very much for your kind feedback. And I’m happy to know that you tried many of my recipes. Thank you so much!
I lived in Iwakuni, Japan from 1994-1997 while my husband was on active duty there. At first, living there was a culture shock but, a good one. The people there are so friendly and accepted us with open arms. I made a lot of friends there and still communicate. My favorite time there was camping and hiking, seeing the sights and enjoying the food. The Japanese people are very proud of their cuisine and show it off in a display, making it easier for tourists that do not speak Japanese to choose their item. Our favorite is Curry. The recipe here is the most authentic I have found in years. I make this about three times a month. My family loves it. We serve it with Sake.
Thank you for posting this delicious meal.
Hi Iris! I enjoyed reading your story and I’m so happy to hear you had such a fond memory living in Japan. 🙂 Thank you for making this recipe and I’m glad you enjoy it! Thank you for the kind feedback. xo 🙂
I did it! I did it! I made this! And my family devoured it! My son who’s a picky eater demolished 2 plates of it. My daughter who’s 8 and not a meat fan LOVED it. Thank you for this recipe so much!
Hi Matthew! I’m so happy to hear your family enjoyed this recipe and thanks so much for trying this recipe. Your kind feedback made my day! 🙂
Hello! I love all your recipes and have tried quite a few recently. I have a question for you. I am trying Japanese curry for the first time this weekend and am trying to decide which protein (chicken/beef/pork) to try first. What would you say is the most common or your favorite protein for curry?
Hi Wendy! Thank you so much for trying my recipes! I make chicken often because it’s easier to eat/chew for my kids since they were small. Mr. JOC likes beef curry. I rarely make pork curry. 🙂
Hi!
I would like to know if I could replace the all-purpose flour with potato starch in this recipe?
Hi Jefuri! Sure you can do that. 🙂
Hi, Nami! I actually like Japanese curry better than Thai curry because of its flavor. The fact that I can make it at home is great! However, I don’t if my cooking skills are as good as yours. The steps look pretty hard. But I’ll try my best!😊
Hi Ashlynn! This curry is a luxury curry as I spend extra time cooking… but my other curry is very easy to make. Check out this post (you can use beef if you prefer).
https://www.justonecookbook.com/simple-chicken-curry/
Hello what kind of curry powder do i have to use?
Hi Alana! I used to use Japanese S&B curry powder (just like how they use to make Japanese curry roux) but lately, I use curry powder from the local Indian grocery store. 🙂
Nice recipe but will use unsalted broth next time. I used Golden Curry brand sauce and it was way too salty
Hi Amy! Thank you for your feedback!
I just made this for dinner tonight and both me and my man loved it. It was the first time we had this dish and it wont be the last. I did purchase and use the curry roux, golden curry (the green version), but it was very expensive in our asian market and they only had one brand. I’m gonna make it from scratch as soon as our pakket is finished. Thank you for the recipe.
Hi Saskia! Thank you so much for trying this recipe! I just bought the box today and it was $3.50 or so at a Japanese market. If it’s more than that, it is not worth paying for it… I hope you will enjoy my homemade curry roux recipe! 🙂
Hi Nami,
I love your website! I have a question: when I made this, 20 minutes was not nearly enough time to cook the beef – it was still very chewy even after 45 minutes. Usually stew beef takes at least 2 hours to tenderize and become fully cooked. Did I miss a step in the recipe? Should I have cut my beef smaller? It’s about 1 inch by 2 inches or 1 inch by 1 inch. How long do you cook your beef once it’s in the curry?
Hi Harold! Thank you for your kind words! If your beef cubes are bite-size, it’s the same size as mine. I always cut stew beef into half at least. You can cook it for longer, but the only issue is that if you don’t cut the potatoes bigger, it melts away after 2 hours. So you probably want to cook the meat first then add the vegetables. 🙂
How long does the meat simmer overall? Thanks
Hi Denise! At step 7- 20 minutes. 🙂
Thanks for your reply. I tried with almost 1 hour simmering but the meat was not tender… I guess I should cook it longer as I do with my Italian recipes. Also, I only used half of the pre-bought roux and I found it spicy enough. The recipe was great, maybe next time I’ll use chicken or try to cook it longer.
Hi Denise! Thank you for your response and feedback. 🙂
This recipe is awesome. I didn’t have any apples on hand so I dropped in a few spoons of citron tea I had on hand and it added a really delightful sweetness to it. Thanks for this and your other delicious recipes here.
Hi Nom! Thank you for trying this recipe! I love the citron tea, great idea! Thank you for your kind feedback. 🙂
Do you use store bought or homemade curry roux yourself? Can we skip the red wine for kids? What extra curry powder do you add will it be too spicy for kids?
Hi El! I make curry with both – homemade or roux, depending on time and feeling. 🙂 You can reduce the amount of curry powder. My kids are 13 and 11 and they are okay with my recipes, just FYI. 🙂
How long should I cook the meat?
Hi Ely! The searing takes time, but it depends on your frying pan size (you don’t want to crowd the pan which ends up steaming instead of searing). It will take me 15 mins minimum with this amount of meat. And the meat will be cooked through when you’re simmering.
Should I cook the onion on high or medium heat?
Hi Ely! Medium heat would be better. 🙂
Just made this tonight! Great recipe! It tastes exactly like what I’ve had in Japan! Thank you! This will be a staple for my weeknight dinner recipes for my family! Thank you!
P.s. I used the S&B curry brand. I followed the recipe… I didn’t use meat (*we’re pescatarians) no red wine, and used vegetable broth.
Hi Jill! Wonderful! Thank you so much for your kind feedback! I’m glad you liked the recipe! 🙂
I’ve tried making this just yesterday, it really taste spicier rather than just using the roux only and tossing meat and veggies in it. I ate it with rice and tried pasta as well. It taste better than other Japanese curry I’ve eaten out in some local restaurants in my country. Thanks for the recipe! ❤❤
Hi Bayou! I’m so happy to hear that you enjoyed this recipe! Thank you for your kind feedback and encouraging words! xoxo
I came across this recipe when I was looking for how to make Japanese beef curry. Tried it and it turned out very well! I didn’t have apples so didn’t include that, but it was still very good. Much better than the first time I made Japanese curry and only used the boxed roux. Thanks for sharing this recipe! I’m planning to make it again tonight :).
Hi Redge! Thank you so much for your kind feedback. I’m so happy you enjoyed the recipe! 🙂
I’ve been looking for a recipe that compares to curry I used to order from a restaurant in Kailua and this is it. I made exactly as written, caramelized onions and store bought Golden Curry. Thank you!
Hi Ryan! I’m so happy to hear you liked the recipe. Yay! Thank you so much for your kind words and feedback, Ryan!
The best japanese beef curry I have done. Thank you very much
I am thai but japanese dishes are amazing, I love them.
Hi Withasaya! Thank you so much for your kind feedback. Glad you enjoyed this recipe!
My husband loves this beef curry recipe, He’s part Japanese and loves the bits of ginger, garlic, and veggies. I followed the exact directions but didn’t have red wine. I just added more broth in place of it. Nice and hearty dish. It turned out delicious, even without the red wine. Thank you we loved it!
Hi Matilyn! I’m so happy to hear your husband enjoy this beef curry recipe. Thank you so much for your kind feedback!!! 🙂
When I made this the timing was kind of weird. It tastes good, but was weirdly sweet before I even put the apple in so I decided to add a little bit more Worcestershire sauce and some chili flakes. Toned down the sweetness some but still had the refreshing taste from the apple. This was my first time ever making curry or even tasting it. I think i did alright 😀 This was good for beginners like myself. Super simple and easy to follow, just think the timing needs to be adjusted for how long you are boiling and simmering towards the end. I kinda went with my gut and boiled it for about 35 minutes and simmered for another 20 and low cooked it with the roux for about 20 minutes while the rice cooked.
Hi Fine! Thanks so much for trying my recipe! Japanese curry is probably the “sweet” curry you ever taste among all the curry. Kids eat it growing up and it’s not considered spicy at all compared to Indian or Thai curry. It’s for the Japanese level of spicy-level (pretty much “none”). 🙂 It might be a very strange taste for you if you haven’t tried Japanese curry before. 😅 There are 3 levels of curry roux spice level, in case you are not familiar yet. Mild, Med-Hot, and Hot. You can definitely go for Hot if you’re used to spicy food in general. 🤗
Made this twice, my cook time at low heat is 2 hours – this gets the beef really tender.
I would suggest as one other person pointed out, use LOW SODIUM beef broth, the salty flavour is the only complaint I get on this and that change in the broth addresses it. I use a Hachi power roux in a sleeve/foil pack vs the cubes and find it does a richer brown curry and flavor to what I would expect in a beef curry without the intense heat of the Java style roux cubes. If you have the time make your own roux even
Hi Nick! Thanks for trying this recipe, and for your detailed feedback!
Loved your menchi katsu recipe! I did have a question about this beef curry recipe. Is it anything close to Coco ichibanya’s beef curry? I was stationed in Okinawa for 2 years and needless to say I became addicted to Japanese curry!!!!
Hi Evan! I’m glad to hear you enjoyed Menchi Katsu recipe. Thanks for trying it. Now Coco Ichibanya… I’m not too sure how exactly it’s made. I heard their curry is made in the central factory and the recipe is secret! 🙂
I’m Hispanic but I love Japanese recipes and they’re culture just finish making this and I love it, I made one recipe when I was 12 but it doesn’t taste as good as this. Made it for dinner it’s so delicious I got the Vermont curry voux the mild one because even though I’m into spice I didn’t want the spice taking over the flavor. Thank you very much Nami will make again.
Hi Wendy! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed this recipe and thank you so much for your kind feedback. Glad you enjoyed the Japanese curry! 🙂
Delicious! Mother-in-law is from Japan and husband always wanted curry rice like his mom used to cook. This was a huge hit with both of them!
Hi Tammy! Yay! So happy to hear your curry came out well! Thank you so much for your kind feedback! 🙂
I made this for the first time for my parents tonight and they absolutely loved it (as did I!). At first, when I told them I was making them curry, they were afraid. I think they were expecting a really spicy Indian one haha. I used the Medium Hot S&B Golden Curry roux, but it wasn’t spicy at all, just had a gentle kick I think with the help of the ginger. I’m also so glad I used this recipe instead of the simpler one on the box. There was really an amazing depth of flavor and it was worth all the extra time and effort. 🙂
Hi Kendra! So happy to hear you and your parents enjoyed this dish. Well, Japanese people don’t eat really spicy food, so even medium hot is probably not spicy for many people. LOL. Thank you for taking the time to write your kind feedback. I really appreciate it!
Hi Nami,
Need some professional advice from you. I am new in cooking.
For your Japanese curry chicken, you cooked the onions, ginger and garlic first before putting in the boneless chicken thigh.
For your Japanese curry beef, you cooked the beef first before putting in onions, ginger and garlic.
May I know the differences and reasons? Thanks!
Hi Geoffry! For the beef, it tastes really well when the meat is seared and browned (kind of like steak). So we spend time searing the meat first. You can’t sear the meat with onions and other veggies in it. So it depends on the ingredients. 🙂
Thanks for the good advice. I appreciates.
You’re welcome! 🙂
Hello, Nami! Thank you for sharing this recipe. It’s great and easy to understand! Will cook this for the weekend 😀
I have one question, do you marinade the meat? If not, will it work with marinated meat? Thank you <3
Hi Can you tell me how to make curry beef with the instant pot? I have tried the chicken version but was unsure if it can used the same for beef.
Hi Quynh! You can use the same method, except that I would sear the beef as I did in this recipe. The caramelized and well-seared beef adds so much flavor that you don’t want to miss that. Cooking time should be 15-20 minutes, so make sure the vegetable chunks are slightly larger so they don’t get mushy. You don’t want to cut them too small that they become all mush. So sear the meat in batches (so you won’t “steam” them) and take them out. Add the onion in…saute a bit, and add the rest of veggies and beef. Follow the same way as my IP curry recipe, with beef stock. 🙂
https://www.justonecookbook.com/pressure-cooker-japanese-curry/
Best beef curry! Thank you
Hi Ashley! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed this recipe! Thank you for trying it and for your kind feedback. xo
In your recipe instruction below I think you meant to say 2 minutes saute with options for 3 ~ 4 minutes?
“In a large heavy-bottomed pot or large pot, heat 1 Tbsp butter on medium heat and add the onion. Add 1 Tbsp olive oil and stir to coat the onion with the oil. Add ¼ tsp salt and sauté the onion until tender and translucent, about 20 minutes. If you have time, you can spend more time until the onions are caramelized, about 30-40 minutes.”
Hi YJ! No, I’m not talking about just quick stir-frying, I really meant 20 minutes. Caramelizing onions takes a long time. 🙂
Love the way you presented your recipes with clear and easy to follow photographs and clear instructions. Can I use mince beef instead of chuck roast? Thank you.
Hi Paula,
Thank you very much for your kind feedback. I’m so glad to hear you enjoyed Nami’s blog!
Yes. You may use mince beef as well. I hope you would like them too!
Fantastic recipe – its one of my boyfriend’s favourite receipes and he grew up with Japanese curry as his comfort dish. Thank you so much for publishing such a detailed recipe.
One tiny change I made from a tip from my Japanese friend is to add a dashi bag to the pot before simmering. I feel like this gives a nice extra umami depth to the whole thing.
Hi Tamara,
Thank you for sharing your tip with us! We are so happy to hear it worked out and you and your boyfriend enjoyed the Curry!
Thank you very much for trying this recipe and for your kind feedback.😊
Hello, Nami. I am excited to try this recipe, along with your homemade curry roux recipe so I can make it gluten free. I love how glossy this sauce looks, I think it will be a great winter meal. One question, though. I was able to buy some frozen lotus root for the first time recently, and was wondering if this is a suitable vegetable for a slow-cooked dish like this.
Hi Kelly,
We are so glad to hear you are excited to try this recipe! We hope you will like this curry.
As for the Lotus root, Yes, you can add if you wish. But it will add the earthy taste to the curry.
Here are the recipes that Nami has for Lotus root.
https://www.justonecookbook.com/search/?q=lotus%20root
We hope this is helpful!☺️
Thank you for the recipe! I’ve made it countless times and love the flavor but always run into the same issue – the meat is never even near done when the veggies are done. It’s still super tough! Then if I keep cooking it the veggies seem like they will be mush and the cook time is way beyond what you have, so I feel like I’m doing something wrong. I get chuck roast each time and it’s good quality. Where am I going wrong?
Hi Chelsea!
Thank you very much for trying this recipe many times!
To balance out the texture of meat and veggies, How about cut the meat smaller than you normally cut and cut veggies bigger?
We hope this helps!