Japanese Curry: A Delicious Journey of Flavours and History

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Japanese cuisine is renowned for its diverse range of flavours and unique culinary traditions. Among the many beloved dishes in Japan, curry holds a special place in the hearts of both locals and visitors alike. Unlike traditional Indian or Thai curries, Japanese curry has its distinct characteristics and fascinating history.

Origins and Influences:

Japanese curry, known as “karē” in Japanese, has its roots in India and British colonial history. The British introduced curry to Japan during the Meiji era in the late 19th century, and it quickly became popular. However, the Japanese adapted the dish to suit their own palate, resulting in a milder and sweeter version compared to its spicier Indian counterparts.

What is the Japanese curry sauce made of and how does it taste?

Japanese curry sauce is made from a blend of spices, including turmeric, cumin, coriander, ginger, and garlic, which are cooked with onions, carrots, and potatoes. It also typically includes a roux, which is made by combining flour and butter or oil to create a thickening agent.

The sauce has a rich and savoury flavour with a hint of sweetness. It is less spicy compared to other curry varieties, making it more accessible to a wider range of palates. The texture is smooth and velvety, and it pairs perfectly with rice or noodles, creating a comforting and satisfying meal.

While the basic components of Japanese curry include onions, carrots, and potatoes, some numerous variations and additions make it even more exciting. Additional ingredients can include meat such as beef, chicken, or pork, as well as vegetables like bell peppers, mushrooms, or eggplant. Some regional variations even incorporate seafood, reflecting Japan’s coastal influence.

How does Japanese curry taste and is it spicy?

Japanese curry is rich and slightly sweet, with a mild level of spiciness. Compared to other curry varieties, such as Indian or Thai curry, Japanese curry is generally less spicy. It has a milder heat that is more accessible to a wider range of palates.

Japanese curry has become a staple in Japanese households and a popular comfort food. It is commonly served in schools, restaurants, and even at home. Its popularity is evident in the numerous curry speciality shops and the availability of instant curry roux in supermarkets.

Japanese curry has become an integral part of the nation’s culinary identity, offering a taste of home and nostalgia for many Japanese people. Overall, Japanese curry is known for its comforting and satisfying taste.

Serving Styles:

Japanese curry is often served with a bed of steamed rice, creating a harmonious balance between the rich curry sauce and the fluffy grains. It is also common to find curry served on top of noodles, such as udon or ramen, creating a fusion of flavours. Moreover, curry can be accompanied by pickles, shredded cabbage, or a side of Japanese-style fried chicken known as katsu.

Japanese curry is a fascinating dish that combines historical influences with unique flavours. Its evolution from its Indian and British origins to a beloved Japanese comfort food showcases the adaptability and creativity of Japanese cuisine. The rich flavours, diverse ingredients, and cultural significance make Japanese curry a delightful culinary adventure for both locals and visitors. So, next time you have a chance, embark on a journey through the flavours of Japanese curry and savour the delicious taste that has captivated hearts around the world.

Order your custom version and delivery right to your home now! Have fun!

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Japanese Breakfast? What is breakfast food in Japan?

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Japanese Breakfast at Y93

The Japanese diet is said to be one of the healthiest in the world. The traditional Japanese breakfast of rice, fish, and vegetables is often given as an example of an nutritionally balanced morning meal.

Where to find Japanese diner in Calgary? Try Y93 Japanese Cafe & Kitchen

The traditional Japanese breakfast is similar to the format of a Japanese meal — ichiju sansai (一汁三菜), or “one soup, three dishes.” A “one soup, three dish” meal normally consists of rice and pickled vegetables. In addition, for breakfast, miso soup is the most common soup. Other dishes could include grilled fish, egg dishes, nori (seaweed sheets), natto (fermented soybeans), and vegetable dishes.

Authentic Japanese Breakfast Foods: Fish

As an island country, seafood has long been the most readily available source of protein for Japanese people. While processed meats like bacon or sausage have become more common in the West today, fish is still a strong breakfast staple in Japan.

A common way to prepare fish for breakfast in Japan is to simply grill a smaller fish like mackerel or pike with simple seasonings like salt.

Japanese Breakfast Foods: Salads / Kobachi

Salads are another standard addition to a Japanese breakfast menu that surprises some visitors. A traditional Western breakfast might include some cooked vegetables like fried tomato or spinach with eggs.It’s unlikely you’ll encounter a garden salad before lunch in the West. Therefore, if you order a breakfast set meal or visit a breakfast buffet in Japan, you’ll likely come across some salads as standard. Any type of salad will served for breakfast, but common types include lettuce or cabbage-based mixed salads. Hijiki (a kind of seaweed) salads, or cucumber salads. Japanese people are known worldwide for having a long life. However, if you struggle to get your seven servings of veggies per day, why not take a leaf out of Japan’s book and add a side salad to your breakfast?

Japanese Breakfast Foods: Rice / Onigiri / Chawanmushi / Egg

It goes without saying that rice is the heart of any traditional Japanese meal. While it may seem a little labor-intensive to prepare rice for breakfast, especially for many households in the West that normally cook rice on the stove. Most Japanese households have rice cookers that make cooking up a batch a relatively simple, hands-off process. Some households simply microwave rice left over from the batch cooked night before for breakfast, too.

A bowl of plain rice, with dishes like fish, eggs, or vegetables for breakfast. Tamago-kake gohan, which is a hot bowl of rice with a raw egg on top, is a common breakfast dish. Some western people may concerns of salmonella. However, in Japan their stringent quality standards when it comes to their eggs, so most Japanese people do not fear eating eggs raw. Another popular one-bowl breakfast dish is natto on rice. In Japan, adding some natto makes for a perfectly balanced dish that covers all your nutritional needs.

On busy mornings, many Japanese people also opt for onigiri from the convenience store as a portable and affordable breakfast.

After all, is it time to try one, now you can find authentic Japanese breakfast at Y93 in Calgary. How to get there, click here!

Author: SAVOR JAPAN / Y93 Kitchen (Y93 Sushi Crave Japanese Cafe)

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Chirashi Don or Kaisen Don?

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Chirashi Don (assorted sashimi on top of sushi rice) is a festive dish eaten on Girl’s Day or other celebratory events in Japan, with a generous serving of seafood such as tuna, salmon, salmon roe, and scallops placed on top of rice. Though traditionally a homemade dish, as more people favor eating out nowadays, many restaurants offer it as well. Nevertheless, kaisen-don is another rice bowl dish with seafood placed on top, commonly seen in restaurants. Is it the same as Chirashi Don? Or are they vastly different? Let’s find out!

Two major types of Chirashi Don

There are two major types of chirashi sushi in modern Japan: gomoku sushi and Edomae sushi. The former has a long history and can be traced back to the Kamakura period (1158-1333). It is a traditional Japanese family cuisine, usually prepared for celebratory purposes or on Girl’s Day when the family dines together.

The latter, Edomae sushi, is a new variation evolved from Edo nigiri sushi (hand-pressed sushi) which was popular in the Kanto region. It is characterized by the prodigious amount of sashimi covering the vinegared rice, sometimes with the addition of rolled omelet, shiitake and dried gourd. It looks as if the ingredients are randomly sprinkled onto the rice, thus the name chirashi sushi.

Edomae chirashi sushi and Edo nigiri sushi both originated from the Kanto region; to differentiate from the traditional gomoku chirashi sushi, locals would simply refer to the former as chirashi sushi, and the latter as gomoku chirashi sushi.

Having read about the types of chirashi sushi, how do you tell it apart from a kaisen-don?

Kaisen-don is actually a rice bowl dish inspired by the Edomae chirashi sushi. It made its debut after WWII, and was prepared by putting a variety of sashimi on plain hot rice.

Today, the basic recipe of kaisen-don varies from place to place. It is commonly served in restaurants, and the rice is not necessary hot nor plain, as sometimes vinegared rice might be used instead. As such, apart from the rice, the dish might be identified by its container.

Chirashi sushi is often presented in a rectangular bento box or cylindrical container, whereas kaisen-don would be in a typical bowl. Do pay attention to the rice and container next time you enjoy a Japanese meal!

Besides the container, the timing of having chirashi sushi is equally important to Japanese people. As mentioned above, the dish is eaten during festivities or when a special guest has come to visit, whilst kaisen-don is just another item on the menu of a restaurant. Therefore, if a friend invites you home and prepares chirashi don for you, it means that you are a dear friend to them!

Author: SAVOR JAPAN (Full article please visit savorjapan.com

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To read the full article, please go to: https://savorjapan.com

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We have been featured at Culinaire Magazine March/April 2023 issue

Home » Japanese Lifestyle

Do you ever hard of Hambagu (Japanese Hamburger Steak)?

Japanese Hamburg Steak, or Hambāgu (ハンバーグステーキ) as it’s known in Japan, is a single served meatloaf with a tender, juicy patty that’s loaded with flavour and glazed with a sweet and savoury sauce. It is very popular in Japanese households and in Japanese styled western restaurants. Simple to make, affordable and versatile. Chef Alan is going to teach you how to make it at home!! Don’t forget to grab the latest March/April issue of Culinaire Magazine. Lots of interesting stories about Japanese food you can find too!

Find it online: Culinaire Magazine March/April 2023

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All about Ramen — Reveal the Secret of Y93 Ramen Broth

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At Y93 Sushi Crave Japanese Cafe, we served various Japanese comfort food. One of the specialty comfort food that we served is Ramen. We are proud to be one of the authentic ramen in Calgary SE. Customers love our ramen, especially in love with our broth. To be proud to tell you, we make our broth and tare in-house. Today, we are going to reveal the secret of our authentic ramen broth to you.  — Y93 Japanese Cafe & Kitchen (Ramen & Curry House).

Tonkotsu Broth
Continue reading “All about Ramen — Reveal the Secret of Y93 Ramen Broth”

Tea Time Special Available

It’s always fun to try something new and special. We now offering new items during TEA TIME. We have Pocket Sushi, Tonkatsu, and Vegan Mapo Tofu. All items only available on Tuesday to Friday 2pm to 4:30pm!

Starting from $12 each set. Also come with your choice of Japanese Tea.

Pocket Sushi Options: California, Spicy Salmon, Tempura Shrimp, Seaweed Salad.

Aburi Style Nigiri

Home » Japanese Lifestyle

Many of you may wonder why some sushi got torched? This is actually a different style of nigiri sushi. Its special name is called “Aburi Nigiri”.

Aburi Style Nigiri means “flame-seared” when the flame is applied to sushi, the heat changes the sushi’s flavor to create new textures while enhancing its natural flavors.

Some of our customers may already try Aburi Nigiri. The interesting thing is different chef will have their “secret” to create their own favor. With the mixture of Y93 chef’s special sauce, the flame caramelizes the sauce, it will release a smoky aroma and bringing out the finest flavors of each piece of sushi.

We are happy to include Aburi Nigiri on our menu now!

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Decorated Sugar Cubes

Home » Japanese Lifestyle

I know the spring is just around the corner ….but it doesn’t feel like it.

I have had enough snow and grey weather for this winter!
I miss seeing the lush green hills and colorful flowers.

I can’t wait for my garden to start blooming again. Which inspired me to make my own garden in the kitchen!

Have you ever made a Gingerbread house and decorated it with Icing Sugar? The concept with these sugar cubes is the same, but I find it so much more satisfying!

I started to decorate my sugar cubes after my family went to bed which meant I could decorate the sugar cubes all night long.💕

These spring decorations definitely brightened up my kitchen.

To make Royal Icing Sugar it is very simple! All you need is three ingredients: Icing sugar, Egg whites, and water. If you do not want to use raw egg, you can use meringue powder instead.

Sugar cubes are probably the smallest canvas I have ever “painted” on, so it was very exciting to do. You can use piping bags or even use Ziploc bags to decorate the flowers onto the sugar cubes!

Pink Roses are my favorite type of flowers, so I made a hundred roses within 10 minutes💕💕💕

These cute flowers will definitely make your day brighter especially during those dreary mornings. 💕
-Marimo

Yes, we WON!! ——————— Champion of “Calgary’s Best Fish n Chips Award”!

In December, we jumped out from our comfort zone and challenged ourself to join the “Calgary’s Best Fish n Chips Award” competition hosted by Culinaire Magazine. Although Fish n Chips isn’t our specialty; we still decided to accept this challenge.

We accepted because we also love Fish n Chips. We have been to few different places to find the best one. The most memorable one was in Montreal Old Port. That dish is memorable because they used Salmon, not many places used salmon in Fish n Chips. More surprising was the seasonings, it has a touch of curry favour in it. It’s crispy, delicious and also different from others. So we loved it.

Although we are not specialty in Fish n Chip; we also want to SHOW Calgarian there may be another way to enjoy Fish n Chips too. That’s the reason we created the Y93 Japan cultural infused Fish n Chips and join this competition.

Joining the competition is a fun and valuable experience. It’s also an learning process too. We need to find the best balance in ingredients, taste, sides, presentation, original creativity, innovative, affordable. and more. But the most important part is the judges’ overall experience. This involved suggested pairing drinks, adding fun & surprise factor to the dish, and how easy for them to enjoy. We want to let our diners know, we used our heart on each creation. We care about every single details. This is also our promised. Every customers are invited guests to Y93 home enjoy the best we offered.

It’s our honour to be the champion of “Calgary’s BEST Fish n Chip” Award in contemporary category. It’s definitely the best news we’ve got in the beginning of year 2021.

We are thankful that our CEO is guiding us and walking through with us in every single step. Ask us for more journey with God story when the dine-in option open up. It’s very real and we would love to share that with you, hope it could also inspire you.

In the future, we will keep being innovative. Creating lots of different delicious and fun Japanese food to all of you. We promised will do our best in every creation. We approved, you approved!

For the full details on the other best Fish n Chips in Calgary and more information of this award, please go visit Culinaire Magazine official website or simply get a free copy of the magazine.

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