Last week I found the Japanese curry mix I had stashed away in my bottom kitchen drawer.  A few years ago, my Japanese friend introduced me to this type of curry mix during my first trip to United Noodle.  Lucky for me, I had selected this box of curry to save for a rainy day during a more recent visit.

I’m not exactly sure how to describe the flavor of this type of curry other than to say it’s very fragrant, warmly spiced, and cuminy.  I usually buy the mixes at United Noodle, but I believe they are also available in the International section of Cub Foods, and possibly at other major grocery stores.  This day, I used the Golden Curry brand’s “hot” variety.

The curry sauce comes packaged like a chocolate bar.  You can either make all five servings, or break the bar into five sections and made into smaller portions using any mixture of proteins and vegetables.

Today, I scavenged for whatever was in my kitchen and added the following.

  • 1 slice of bacon, cut into small pieces and rendered until crispy
  • 1/3 pound of ground beef
  • Red pepper flakes, to taste
  • 1/4 cup of sweet potato, diced into small cubes
  • 1/2 cup of onion, diced
  • Swiss Chard, stems cut into small pieces, leaves cut into bite sized pieces
  • 1/3 cup of black beans
  • 3 cups of water
  • Curry sauce bar
  • A couple drizzles of honey

First, I rendered my bacon, set aside when crispy, and reserved a small amount of fat.

Next, I began to brown the ground beef in the bacon fat.  When partially cooked, I added the red pepper flakes, onion, sweet potato, and pieces of swiss chard stem.  I sauteed the vegetables until coated and softened slightly.

I folded in the swiss chard leaves and black beans and added three cups of water.

Then, I dissolved the whole curry sauce bar and stirred until completely dissolved.  I brought to a simmer and added a couple drizzles of honey.

*My curry sauce tasted too salty, so I added more water than the directions called for.  To reduce the saltiness, I also added the honey, and threw a large chunk of sweet potato into the sauce while it simmered and reduced to the ideal consistency.  The addition of the sweet potato absorbed the excess saltiness.   

I served this curry over buttered egg noodles and it was delicious.  It seems that people either love or hate this style of curry and I was not sure how Jake would react.  However, he loved the curry enough to seek seconds.

Jeni’s disclaimer: For some reason, we both woke up with headaches the next morning.  During the night, I dreamed I had a headache and woke up with a pounding headache that lasted the whole day.  I have never concerned myself with MSG intake and rarely get headaches, but can’t help but wonder if this was a culprit?