Japanese Beef Curry

• порції: 8 servings
• активний час: 10 minutes
• загальний час: 3 hours

Інгредієнти

2 onions (large; 1¼ lb, 567 g) 1¼ 567

2 Tbsp unsalted butter (divided)

2 Tbsp neutral oil (divided)

1 russet potato (11 oz, 309 g) 11 309

1 carrot (large; 8 oz, 230 g) 8 230

6 cremini mushrooms (2.6 oz, 80 g) 2.6 80

½ tsp ginger (grated, with juice)

1 clove garlic (minced)

1¼ lb boneless beef chuck roast

¼ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt

¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper

1 Tbsp all-purpose flour (plain flour)

½ cup red wine

½ Tbsp Japanese curry powder

1 Tbsp tomato paste (or ketchup)

4 cups beef stock/broth (1 QT; for lower sodium, use water only or half stock and half water) 1

⅛ apple (plus more for sweetness; I use Fuji apple; or substitute 1 Tbsp honey or mango chutney) 1

1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

2 Tbsp milk

1 bay leaf

1 package Japanese curry roux (7–8.4 oz, 200–240 g; or make my Japanese Curry Roux) 7–8.4 200–240

8 servings cooked Japanese short-grain rice (1–1½ cups, 180–270 g per serving)

fukujinzuke (Japanese red pickled vegetables) (optional; make my Homemade Fukujinzuke)

rakkyo (Japanese pickled scallion) (optional)

Напрямки

Gather all the ingredients.

To Prepare the Ingredients

Cut 2 onions into thin slices.

Preheat a large heavy-bottomed pot (I used a 5.5 QT Staub Dutch oven) on medium heat. When the pot is hot, add half of the 2 Tbsp unsalted butter, half of the 2 Tbsp neutral oil, and the onions to the pot. Stir to coat the onions.

Sauté the onions, stirring once in a while, for about 20–25 minutes. Meanwhile, move on to the next step (but stir the onions and keep an eye on them). When the onions are wilted, reduce the stove‘s heat to medium low (as they tend to burn quickly). Once the onions are tender, translucent, and a bit caramelized, remove the pot from the heat and set aside until the beef is done searing.

Peel and cut 1 russet potato in thirds.

Then, cut each piece in half or quarters. Soak the pieces in water for 15 minutes (or until added to the pot later on) to remove the starch. Drain and set aside.

Peel and cut 1 carrot diagonally while rotating it a quarter turn between cuts (we call this cutting technique rangiri in Japanese).

Clean 6 cremini mushrooms and cut them into thin slices. Tip: I use a pastry brush and avoid washing mushrooms as they absorb moisture. However, it‘s okay to quickly rinse them.

Grate the ginger (I use a ceramic grater) and measure ½ tsp ginger (grated, with juice). Set aside. Then, mince 1 clove garlic (I skip it here as I use a garlic press later).

Cut 1¼ lb boneless beef chuck roast into 1½-inch (3.8 cm) cubes. Tip: I recommend chuck roast for its tenderness and higher quality. You could use stew beef since it‘s slightly more economical; however, it‘s made up of bits and pieces leftover from carving the chuck roasts, so the meat is not as tender.

Lightly sprinkle the beef with ¼ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt and ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper. Then, lightly coat the meat with 1 Tbsp all-purpose flour (plain flour).

To Sear the Beef

Preheat a carbon steel pan (or cast-iron skillet) on medium-high heat. When the skillet is hot, add the remaining half of the oil and butter. Cook the beef in 2 batches. Add the beef cubes in a single layer, making sure not to crowd the skillet; otherwise, the excess moisture in the pan will end up “steaming“ the meat.

Sear the beef cubes (do not move them) on one side until brown and crusty, about 3–4 minutes, then turn them over to cook all sides. The meat will release itself from the pan when the surface is seared nicely. Transfer the seared meat to a plate and work on the next batch.

Once you‘ve seared and transferred all the meat, deglaze the pan. Add ½ cup red wine to the pan and use a wooden blunt-end spatula to release the flavorful browned bits (called the “fond“) that are stuck to the bottom of the pan. Turn off the heat and set aside this deglazed pan liquid temporarily.

To Cook the Curry

By now, the onions in the pot should be caramelized and ready for the next step. Reheat the pot on the stove over medium heat. Add the minced garlic (I use a garlic press) and grated ginger.

Add ½ Tbsp Japanese curry powder and 1 Tbsp tomato paste and sauté for 1 minute.

Add the seared beef, any juices from the plate, and the deglazed pan liquid to the pot and mix them all together. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 3 minutes, letting the alcohol from the wine evaporate.

Add the carrots and mushrooms and mix them all together. Add 4 cups beef stock/broth (or half stock/half water) to just cover the ingredients. Cover the pot with a tight-fitting lid and bring it to a boil. Tip: Compared to Le Creuset, I think Staub has a great seal on the lid and prevents evaporation.

Once boiling, skim off the scum and fat from the broth. 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 skimmer this way.

Grate ⅛ apple and add it to the broth. Then, add 1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce and 2 Tbsp milk.

Add 1 bay leaf and cover the pot with the tight-fitting lid. Simmer on low heat until the meat is tender, about 1 hour and 45 minutes. If you do not have a tight-fitting lid, you may need to add more beef stock or water, enough to just cover the ingredients. Tip: To get tender beef, 2 hours of simmering is standard.

When the beef is tender, add the potatoes, close the lid, and simmer for 15 minutes until the potatoes are cooked through.

When the potatoes are tender (and a wooden skewer can pierce through the potato), turn off the heat and discard the bay leaf.

Now, add 1 package Japanese curry roux: Put 1–2 cubes of roux in a ladleful of cooking liquid, slowly let it dissolve with a spoon or chopsticks, and stir it into the broth to incorporate. Repeat with the rest of the roux, 2 cubes at a time. Adjust the amount to your taste. You may not need to use all of it; reserve the extra for another use. After adding the curry roux, simmer on the lowest heat, stirring often, for 3–5 minutes until the sauce thickens. Be careful not to burn the curry sauce! If it‘s too thick, add water to dilute. If it‘s too thin and soupy, uncover the pot and simmer a bit longer.

To Serve

Serve the curry on individual plates over 8 servings cooked Japanese short-grain rice and top with optional fukujinzuke (Japanese red pickled vegetables) and rakkyo (Japanese pickled scallion).

To Store

Keep the leftovers in an airtight glass container and store it in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or in the freezer for a month. The texture of the potatoes will change in the freezer, so remove them before freezing. Defrost the frozen curry in the refrigerator for 24 hours before you want to reheat it. If you have any extra roux, keep it in an airtight container and store in the refrigerator or freezer for 1–3 months.

To Reheat

Leftover curry sauce will thicken into a paste as it cools, so it tends to burn while reheating. To avoid this, stir ½ cup (120 ml) water or more into the leftover sauce until loosened. Then, gently reheat it on low heat. If the sauce seems thin, continue heating with the lid off to reduce the sauce.

Харчування

• Калорії: 426 kcal
• Загальний жир: 20 g
• Насичений жир: 10 g
• Ненасичений жир: 9 g
• Трансжир: 1 g
• Холестерин: 73 mg
• Натрій: 938 mg
• Загальні вуглеводи: 28 g
• Харчові волокна: 4 g
• Загальна кількість цукру: 10 g
• Білок: 23 g