It was exciting to see so many of you trying our new, handcrafted Japanese Curry Powder!
If you make our from-scratch recipe for Japanese Chicken Curry, use the leftovers the next day to make a quick Japanese Curry Udon. Just add some broth or water to the leftover curry to give it a soupier texture, heat it up, pour it into a bowl of cooked udon noodles, garnish it with scallions, and then you’re ready to enjoy.
If you make our from-scratch recipe for Japanese Chicken Curry, use the leftovers the next day to make a quick Japanese Curry Udon. Just add some broth or water to the leftover curry to give it a soupier texture, heat it up, pour it into a bowl of cooked udon noodles, garnish it with scallions, and then you’re ready to enjoy.
Those are two fun dishes to make in the fall when the weather starts to cool. The aroma of the spicy roux just warms you right up.
In the summer, I love to use Japanese curry powder to make a much lighter, quicker version of Japanese Curry Udon by skipping the soup and stir-frying instead.
This Japanese Curried Udon Noodle Stir-Fry is a great way to use up some of your summer vegetables from the garden or farmer’s market. Try baby bok choy, yellow squash, spinach, napa cabbage, carrots, sweet corn kernels, sugar snap peas, and scallions. Sweet veggies work especially well to balance the flavor of the curry.
For protein, I used pan fried tofu to keep it a vegetarian dish, but you can easily swap the tofu with chicken or seafood.
A little goes a long way with our fragrant Japanese Curry Powder, so start out with just a couple of teaspoons for this recipe, and then add in a little more if you want a bolder flavor.
Japanese Curried Udon Noodle Stir-Fry makes a delicious weeknight meal with whatever medley of vegetables you have ready in the kitchen. And it’s easy to keep it vegetarian because the chewy udon noodles give the dish a meaty bite.
Japanese Curried Udon Noodle Stir-Fry
by Season with Spice
Serves 4
Ingredients:
4 servings (about 13oz) dried udon noodles*
Toasted sesame oil, or vegetable oil
1 block extra firm tofu – pat dry, and cut into small cubes
2 garlic cloves – finely chopped
1 yellow onion – sliced into thin strips
1/2 zucchini – sliced into thin strips
1 small red bell pepper – seeded, and sliced into thin strips
1/2 cup sweet peas
Sea salt, to season (try our Curry Spiced Sea Salt)
For the curry sauce:
2 tsp melted butter (optional, but it adds richness to the sauce)
2 tsp of Season with Spice's Japanese Curry Powder
1/2 cup vegetable or chicken broth
1 tbsp of honey
1 tbsp soy sauce or tamari
1 tbsp mirin (or dry sherry)
1 tbsp ketchup & 1 tsp of Worcestershire sauce**
Method:
1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add in the udon noodles, and cook according to the package instructions. Cook just until al dente. Drain and rinse well with cold water. Set aside inside the colander.
2. In a small bowl, add in all the ingredients for the curry sauce. Whisk well to combine.
3. In a large skillet or wok, heat about two teaspoons of toasted sesame oil over medium heat. Add in the tofu cubes. Spread out in a single layer and cook on one side for about 3 minutes until edges are browned and firm. Flip them over and cook for another few minutes, until edges are golden. Remove the tofu and set aside.
4. With the same skillet, reheat another tablespoon of oil. Add in garlic and stir-fry quick until fragrant. Add in onion, and cook for about 3-4 minutes until softened and translucent. Add in the zucchini and red bell pepper, and stir-fry for another 2-3 minutes, or until they begin to soften. Add in the sweet peas, and cook for another 1-2 minutes. Return the pan-fried tofu to the skillet, and give everything a quick toss to combine.
5. Next, add in the noodles to the skillet (if the noodles stick together, loosen them up with some cold water). Season with salt, and stir to combine everything together. Turn heat up to high, and pour in the prepared curry sauce. Mix well and continue to stir-fry for another two minutes, or until the everything is heated through and the sauce is cooked down. Serve immediately.
Notes:
*I used dried udon noodles for this recipe, which are thinner than the fresh udon noodles. Feel free to use either.
**Chuno Sauce is a Japanese condiment that is commonly used to enhance the flavor of Japanese curry. As a homemade substitute, I used a mix of ketchup and Worcerstershire sauce to give the curry sauce a deeper, tart, tangy flavor.
- If you are using different vegetables, add them in at different cooking stages according to their density. Vegetables such as baby bok choy and spinach should be added later as they cook much faster.
by Season with Spice
Serves 4
Ingredients:
4 servings (about 13oz) dried udon noodles*
Toasted sesame oil, or vegetable oil
1 block extra firm tofu – pat dry, and cut into small cubes
2 garlic cloves – finely chopped
1 yellow onion – sliced into thin strips
1/2 zucchini – sliced into thin strips
1 small red bell pepper – seeded, and sliced into thin strips
1/2 cup sweet peas
Sea salt, to season (try our Curry Spiced Sea Salt)
For the curry sauce:
2 tsp melted butter (optional, but it adds richness to the sauce)
2 tsp of Season with Spice's Japanese Curry Powder
1/2 cup vegetable or chicken broth
1 tbsp of honey
1 tbsp soy sauce or tamari
1 tbsp mirin (or dry sherry)
1 tbsp ketchup & 1 tsp of Worcestershire sauce**
Method:
1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add in the udon noodles, and cook according to the package instructions. Cook just until al dente. Drain and rinse well with cold water. Set aside inside the colander.
2. In a small bowl, add in all the ingredients for the curry sauce. Whisk well to combine.
3. In a large skillet or wok, heat about two teaspoons of toasted sesame oil over medium heat. Add in the tofu cubes. Spread out in a single layer and cook on one side for about 3 minutes until edges are browned and firm. Flip them over and cook for another few minutes, until edges are golden. Remove the tofu and set aside.
4. With the same skillet, reheat another tablespoon of oil. Add in garlic and stir-fry quick until fragrant. Add in onion, and cook for about 3-4 minutes until softened and translucent. Add in the zucchini and red bell pepper, and stir-fry for another 2-3 minutes, or until they begin to soften. Add in the sweet peas, and cook for another 1-2 minutes. Return the pan-fried tofu to the skillet, and give everything a quick toss to combine.
5. Next, add in the noodles to the skillet (if the noodles stick together, loosen them up with some cold water). Season with salt, and stir to combine everything together. Turn heat up to high, and pour in the prepared curry sauce. Mix well and continue to stir-fry for another two minutes, or until the everything is heated through and the sauce is cooked down. Serve immediately.
Notes:
*I used dried udon noodles for this recipe, which are thinner than the fresh udon noodles. Feel free to use either.
**Chuno Sauce is a Japanese condiment that is commonly used to enhance the flavor of Japanese curry. As a homemade substitute, I used a mix of ketchup and Worcerstershire sauce to give the curry sauce a deeper, tart, tangy flavor.
- If you are using different vegetables, add them in at different cooking stages according to their density. Vegetables such as baby bok choy and spinach should be added later as they cook much faster.
