Japanese Curry Rice with Potatoes and Carrots

Curry rice was a go-to at the nearby "Santa Baby" restaurant in our city in northern Japan. I have looked at the "package" of curry mixture at a Japanese grocery story in Oregon, but the ingredients are not healthy. Hence...

ジャガイモとニンジンのカレーライス (Japanese)

/jagaimo to ninjin no karēraisu/

Serves 4-6

A. Stock:

5 organic onions, cut in half, sliced into half-round piece, save the peels

1-inch (2,5 cm) chopped ginger

4 organic carrots, cut ends off and save, cut into 2-inch (5 cm) lengths

herbs: parsley, thyme, or oregano

2 Tbs.  (30 ml) olive oil

1 tsp. (5 g) sea salt

1 Tbs. (15 ml) sesame oil

8 organic potatoes, peeled, cut into small  chunks

3 Tbs. (45 ml) soy sauce or gluten-free liquid aminos

2 tsp. (10 ml) garam masala

(i /long e/)

一 /ichi/ 1. In a saucepan, add the onion and carrot peels with the ginger.

二 /ni/ 2. Cover with water with some herbs.

三 /san/ 3. Bring to a boil, uncovered.

四 /shi/ 4. Heat the oil in a pot over high or medium heat.

五 /go/ 5. Add the sliced onions and salt, stir for about 20 minutes.

六 /roku/ 6. Stir in the ginger and sesame oil and remove from the heat.

 七 /shichi/ 7. Strain the stock into a pot. 

 八 /hachi/ 8. Add the potatoes and carrots, plus enough strained stock to cover the vegetable.

 九 /kyuu/ 9. Bring to a boil over high heat, lower to medium and cook uncovered until the vegetables are cooked.

B. Curry rice:

6 Tbs. (90 ml) olive oil

9 Tbs. (70 g) (gluten-free) flour

2 Tbs. (30 g) (homemade or not) curry powder or more to taste 

2 cups (500 ml) hot vegetable stock

cooked rice

pickled ginger

 十 /juu/ 10. Heat the oil over medium heat.

 十 一. Add the flour and mix into a paste.

十 二.  Cook for about 3 minutes. The flour should bubbled whiten little at the edges. 

十 三 . Add the curry powder and cook about another minute.

十 四 . Spoon the hot stock over the roux. Stir or whisk. Add more stock until it is creamy and simmer over low heat for about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat.

十 五. When the potatoes and carrots are half done, whisk in the curry roux sauce and continue to cook until the vegetables are soft. Add more stock if needed.

十 六. Add the soy sauce/liquid aminos and garam masala.

C. Serve: 

十 七. Plate the curry dish with rice and pickled ginger on the side. 

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Orange Tofu

Orange chicken taste great, but orange tofu is healthier. Chicken beast is slightly lower in fat, some saturated and cholesterol; tofu contains all monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, aka the "good" kind. 

橙汁豆腐 (Chinese)

/chéngzhī dòufu/

Serves 4

28 ounce (800 g) organic firm tofu

2/3 cup (85 g) cornstarch, potato starcher, or tapioca starch

lemon pepper

olive oil

2 tsp. (10 g) grated organic ginger

1/2 tsp (2,5 g) red chili flakes

2 Tbs. (30 g) minced organic garlic

1/2 cup (65 g) organic brown sugar

1/2 cup (120 ml) each organic: orange juice and rice vinegar

organic orange zest

6 Tbs. (900 ml) soy sauce or GF liquid aminos

2 tsp. (10 ml) each: fish sauce and sesame oil

chopped organic green onions

organic cooked rice

一 /yī/ 1. Drain the water from the tofu.

二 /èr/ 2. Tear the tofu into bite-sized pieces.

三 /sān/ 3. In a bowl, mix the tofu with the cornstarch and lemon pepper.

四 /sì/ 4.  Add the oil to a wok or large skillet on medium high heat.

五 /wǔ/ 5. Carefully lower the coated tofu into the oil and spread apart. Do no touch or move the pieces.

六 /liù/ 6. Allow the pieces to sear and form a golden crust, about 7 minutes.

七 /chī/ 7.  Remove and place on paper towel or a rack.

八 /bā/ 8. To the wok, add the ginger, red pepper chili flakes, and garlic. Cook about 30 seconds.

九 /jiǔ/ 9. Stir in the sugar, orange juice, rice vinegar, fish sauce, and soy sauce/liquid aminos. Cook about 5 minutes.

十 /shí/ 10. Add the tofu and coat with the sauce.

十 一 /shíyī/ 11. And orange zest and turn off the heat.

十二 /shíèr/ 12. Mix in the sesame oil.

十三 /shísān/ 13. Serve rice as a side dish or tofu over rice with the chopped green onions.

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