~Perfect for Fall JP Style Spicy Curry with Beef, Potatoes and, Carrots~

I like to eat curry best in the Fall and Winter time when temperatures start to drop. Nothing is as good as curry beef and vegetables on a bed of rice in a bowl.

Out of all the curries in the world, I find that I love Japanese Curry the best. It's just something about the spices they use: Turmeric, Coriander, Fenugreek, Cumin, Red Pepper, Black Pepper, Cinnamon, Ginger, Star Anise, Cloves, Cardamo, Fennel, Nutmeg, Laurel Leaves, Allspice and Garlic.

You must be thinking, "Oh my God, all those spices just to make Curry! I just don't have time for that. I don't want to buy all of those spices." Let's face it, good quality spices are not cheap.

Well I cheat! And you can, too! I use S & B Golden Curry blocks or Vermont Curry blocks. I get them from my local grocer.

I also go to my local Japanese Grocery store and get my curry, too! I love the flavor of these and I know I could not even come close to recreating the flavor and aroma.

So, I will show you the shortcut to great Japanese curry that you can get on almost every street corner restaurant in Northern Japan.

The Ingredients

4 oz (1 four piece block) of S & B Hot Curry (8.4 oz box)
*This recipe uses half the box of curry.

1 1/2 lb ground beef (80/20 fat percentage)

1/2 medium onion, chopped
3 celery sticks, chopped

2 large fresh carrots, sliced

2 medium sized par-boiled russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
1 cup frozen peas

2 tbsp of cooking oil
2 tbsp of butter

3 1/3 cups filtered water

2 cups dry rice

Makes 6 servings.

Putting it all Together

1. You will want to par-boil your potatoes, whole, ahead of time. I usually do mine the day before and put them in the fridge. I par-boil them for 5 to 8 minutes. Note: If you don't want to par-boil your potatoes, you can steam them with the carrots, see below #3.

2. When you are ready to start your curry, first, start cooking your rice according to the directions on your Rice box. I use a rice cooker for convenience.

3. While the rice is steaming, cut up your carrots into 1/4" slices, then steam or boil them until partially cooked. Crunchy, but doesn't break easily. Note: Steam your vegetable in a steamer pot. Get your water hot, place the vegetables into the steamer basket and steam until vegetables are firm. You don't want mushy vegetables, because they will be cooking more once added to the beef curry.

4. While the rice is cooking you can heat up your dutch oven on the stove top, and chop the potatoes, onions, and celery. Once your oil and butter is hot, saute on medium heat until onions are clear and celery is flexible.

5. Add your ground beef and cook until no longer pink. Drain off 80% of the fat. Put back on burner, turn to med-low heat. Add your carrots, potatoes, and peas to your ground beef. Cover.