How to Make Japanese Curry Roux (Video) カレールーの作り方

Learn how to make Japanese Curry Roux from scratch. Only five ingredients! This easy recipe will help you cook up many delicious pots of Japanese curry.

Japanese curry (also known as Curry Rice/Kare Raisu/カレーライス) is the ultimate comfort dish. It is the staple meal for many Japanese households because it’s so easy to make at home.

The convenience comes from the readily made Japanese Curry Sauce Mix or curry roux (カレールー), which allows you to cook up the stew-like curry consisting of meat & vegetables in the shortest time.

What is Japanese Curry Roux?

The curry roux in block form was first introduced by S&B Foods in 1956. It refers to a solidified mixture of sauce, made with fat, flour, and curry spices as the base flavor.

These days we can even find many varieties of instant Japanese curry roux in the Asian aisle at American supermarkets.

The boxed curry roux often comes in a distinctive block that resembles a thick chocolate bar, where you break off individual cubes for the portion you need to make. Some of the common brands include S&B’s Golden Curry, House’s Vermont Curry, Java Curry, and Torokeru Curry.

Homemade Japanese Curry Roux

Although the boxed stuff may spare you some time in the kitchen, you’ll be surprised at how easy it is to make your own Japanese Curry Roux at home. And just like all curries, curry roux is best made from scratch. The other good reasons for homemade roux?

No chemical seasonings, preservatives, artificial flavors, and other food additives, which are commonly found in boxed mixes.
You can customize the flavor, spice level, and thickness to your preferred taste each time you make it.

How to Make Japanese Curry Roux

Ingredients You’ll Need

My recipe for Japanese curry roux requires only five ingredients that you will have in the pantry. They are:

Unsalted butter
All-purpose/plain flour
S&B Japanese curry powder
Garam masala
Cayenne pepper (optional for spice)

You can use salted butter for making the curry roux. If you do, adjust the amount of salt in the curry recipe you’re making. I use unsalted butter and add salt to taste as I cook.

Why Do We Combine Curry Powder and Garam Masala?

I have made homemade curry roux with just the S&B Japanese curry powder in the past, and it works great.

However, I wanted to make my own curry roux blend without having to buy all kinds of spices that I won’t necessarily use for my daily cooking. One day in my pantry, I found a bag of garam masala I purchased from my local Indian grocery store and I just mixed that into my curry roux. Garam masala added a wonderful fragrance and depth to the roux!

Since then (for the past 10 years), I’ve been using these two spice blends as my base for my curry roux. You can play around with the spices I listed on my pantry page for Japanese curry powder. Make your own blend for fun!

You’re probably wondering about the curry powder and garam masala, so I’ll cover these topics later in the post.

Overview: Cooking Steps

The roux is made with butter and flour that helps to thicken the broth. For the curry roux, we start by cooking the butter and flour mixture for a long time until it turns brown, somewhat chocolate color, for about 25-30 minutes.

When you add the curry powder, garam masala, and cayenne pepper to the roux, you’ll get delicious homemade curry roux.

The butter gives a rich sweet flavor and the toasted flour brings nuttiness. Feel free to modify the amount of the spices to your preference.

How to Store Homemade Japanese Curry Roux

The roux can be made ahead and stored in the refrigerator for a month or in the freezer for 3-4 months. I recommend cutting the block of roux into cubes. Then, you can add pieces as you need in your curry recipe.

Japanese Curry Powder

The most notable Japanese curry powder is the S&B brand that comes in a tiny red can. It has a slightly sweet and rounded flavor, and it is the most common curry powder that many Japanese homes and restaurants use in making their curry dishes.

Listed ingredients for the curry powder include turmeric, coriander, cumin, fenugreek, pepper, chili, orange peel, and spices.

You can use other brands of curry powder. However, to achieve the authentic Japanese flavor, I strongly recommend using S&B Curry Powder for making the homemade curry roux. These days you can buy the S&B Curry Powder on Amazon.

Can’t find S&B Curry Powder?

To learn how to make your own Homemade Japanese Curry Powder, visit this pantry page.

What is Garam Masala?

Garam masala is a warming spice with a sharp and pungent flavor and this spice blend is used to add flavor and color to dishes. Depending on spice shops or home recipes, the blend varies. It typically contains:

Cardamom
Cinnamon
Clove
Coriander
Cumin – nice to add more for curry
Mace
Mustard seeds
Nutmeg
Peppercorns
Red chili pepper

Some of the spices overlap with Japanese curry powder and that’s okay. You can always tweak your own homemade curry powder blend as you like through trial and error.

What to Make with Japanese Curry Roux

With the homemade curry roux, you will be eager to start cooking a myriad of Japanese curry dishes at any time. Here are some delicious recipes you can make with homemade curry roux:

Japanese Chicken Curry
Instant Pot Japanese Curry
Soup Curry
Japanese Beef Curry
Katsu Curry
Curry Udon
Japanese Seafood Curry
Cold Curry Udon

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How to Make Japanese Curry Roux

4.68 from 781 votes Learn how to make Japanese Curry Roux from scratch. Only five ingredients! This easy recipe will help you cook up many delicious pots of Japanese curry. Print Pin

Video

Prep Time: 5 minutes Cook Time: 30 minutes Total Time: 35 minutes Servings: 1 block (8 cubes per block; 7 oz, 200 g; enough for 4 cups liquid)

Ingredients US CustomaryMetric 1x2x3x

▢ 3.5 oz unsalted butter (7 Tbsp)
▢ 3.5 oz all-purpose flour (plain flour) (about ¾ cup; please weigh your flour; click the Metric button for weights; or learn how to measure flour with a measuring cup; use GF flour or rice flour for gluten-free)
▢ 4 Tbsp Japanese curry powder (I recommend S&B Curry Powder; available on Amazon)
▢ 1 Tbsp garam masala
▢ ½ tsp cayenne pepper (optional)

Japanese Ingredient Substitution: If you want substitutes for Japanese condiments and ingredients, click here. Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

Before You Start: I highly encourage you to weigh your flour and butter using a kitchen scale. For weights, click the Metric button above. If you don't have a scale, here's how to measure flour with a measuring cup: Fluff the flour with a spoon, sprinkle it into the measuring cup, and level it off. Otherwise, you may scoop more than you need.
Gather all the ingredients.

To Make a Brown Roux

In a small saucepan, melt 3.5 oz unsalted butter over low to medium-low heat (you can cut the butter into small pieces first).
When the butter is completely melted, add 3.5 oz all-purpose flour (plain flour). With a blunt-end wooden spatula, stir to combine the butter and flour.
Soon, the butter and flour will fuse and swell. Cook for 20–25 minutes over low heat. Stir constantly because the roux burns easily. If the roux starts separating, switch to a whisk and mix vigorously.
The roux will turn golden brown. You can even go for a bit darker color (watch my video).

To Make the Curry Roux

Add 4 Tbsp Japanese curry powder, 1 Tbsp garam masala, and ½ tsp cayenne pepper (optional) to the roux. Tip: If you can‘t find garam masala, you can add more curry powder or (individual garam masala spices) in its place.
Cook and stir for 30 seconds and remove from the heat. You can use the roux immediately (see the instructions below) or mold it into a block.

To Mold into a Block (overnight)

Transfer the roux to a glass or metal container lined with parchment paper. Let it cool completely on the kitchen counter, then refrigerate to solidify overnight.
The next day, take out the curry block from the container. If the curry block gets stuck to the container, release it with a butter knife or an offset spatula.
With a sharp knife, cut the block into 8 cubes, about 1 x 1 inch (2.5 x 2.5 cm) each. Transfer the curry roux squares to a glass container.

To Store

Store in the refrigerator for 1 month or in the freezer for 3–4 months. Use them soon for the best flavor and aroma.

To Use in a Curry Recipe

Very important! Please season your final dish with more salt, as the homemade roux is unsalted. I usually add 2–4 tsp salt per block to the broth of my curry sauce recipe. Store-bought curry roux is quite salty, so you may want to add more salt to achieve a similar taste.
Add the roux cubes or curry roux mixture (before it solidifies) to the broth of your curry recipe. Follow the recipe instructions on when to add it. Try it in recipes like my Chicken Curry, Instant Pot Curry, Vegetarian Curry, Beef Curry, Keema Curry, and Curry Udon.
How much roux should we use? Roughly 6–7 cubes of this recipe are equivalent to one box of store-bought curry roux (that requires 4 cups or 1L of broth/water). Simmer over low heat for 5–10 minutes. Heat will thicken the roux.
If the curry flavor is lacking or the curry does not thicken, add more roux. When you add meat and/or veggies, they release more moisture to the broth; therefore, you will need to adjust the amount of roux you use according to what you’re cooking.

Equipment

chef's knife
parchment paper
wooden spatula
small saucepan
Digital Kitchen Scale
glass container
meal prep containers
offset spatula

Nutrition

Serving: 1 block (8 cubes) · Calories: 1175 kcal · Carbohydrates: 92 g · Protein: 15 g · Fat: 86 g · Saturated Fat: 52 g · Polyunsaturated Fat: 4 g · Monounsaturated Fat: 22 g · Trans Fat: 3 g · Cholesterol: 213 mg · Sodium: 26 mg · Potassium: 520 mg · Fiber: 13 g · Sugar: 1 g · Vitamin A: 3132 IU · Vitamin C: 4 mg · Calcium: 155 mg · Iron: 12 mg Author: Namiko Hirasawa Chen Course: Condiments, How toCuisine: JapaneseKeyword: curry roux ©JustOneCookbook.com Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any website or social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.

Editor’s Note: The post was originally published on March 18, 2013. The video and new images were added in August 2018. The recipe was revised and the post was updated with new images and blog content in October 2021.