Dining on a Budget: Quick and Easy Japanese Curry with Shrimp

You might have seen this on the menu at your local Japanese restaurant and I have a little secret for you: it's really easy to make at home.

And cheap.

I had planned on making the curry paste from scratch when my husband let me know that no one in Japan actually does that. At first, I was a little reluctant to use a packaged curry, feeling a little "Sandra Lee." But, then I thought, "what the heck?" After all, I use the jarred Thai curries all the time and they taste great. So, I bought some Japanese curry at Wegman's (which was on special, by the way) and lo and behold, I had a delicious curry in minutes. They had several different brands on the shelf, but I went with the one that had the most Japanese writing on it. It's called S&B Golden Curry, and according to my hubby, it's the best one. Good thing I picked it!


Anyway, here's how you make it:


Finely chop one large onion and add to about 2 tablespoons of canola oil in a large, deep skillet. Saute about three minutes until the onions are a little soft. Add in about 1/2 cup of diced carrots and 1/2 cup diced, peeled potatoes (I used Yukon Gold, but any variety would be fine). Saute for three more minutes. Add 500 ml water (I think that's about 3 cups or so) and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes. Add the shrimp and stir to combine. When the shrimp is just pink, break up the curry paste mix and add to the pot. Stir constantly over low heat for about 5 minutes, or until the paste is fully combined.


Serve with a side of steamed short grain Japanese rice and veggies.