Ultimate Homemade Curry Rice with Store-Bought Curry Roux

Cut the peeled carrot into rangiri (irregular chunks). Cut it however you like.

Cut the peeled potatoes into irregular chunks as well.

Cut the onion into wedges. Standing the onion upright rather than laying it down lets you adjust the width to your liking.

Cut your meat of choice (pork belly here) into bite-sized pieces. Pork, chicken, or beef all work.

Add vegetable oil to a frying pan and heat over medium heat. We skip the step of searing the meat first and removing it, as done in more elaborate recipes.

Once the pan is thoroughly heated, add the cut carrot, potatoes, onion, and meat, sprinkle with salt, and sauté over medium heat for about 5 minutes while working the salt through evenly.

Switch to low heat, add the cooking sake, and work it through the ingredients while scraping up the browned bits stuck to the bottom of the pan.

Cover and simmer over low heat for 10 minutes (5 to 7 minutes is fine too). This is the trick here. Simmering in sake before adding water dissolves the umami, sweetness, and aroma of the ingredients into the sake.

Remove the lid, check the cooking liquid, then add water and simmer over medium-low heat for about 10 minutes. Skim off any scum that rises if it bothers you.

After about 10 minutes of simmering, turn off the heat, add 1/2 box of curry roux, and stir until it is fully dissolved.

Once the roux is fully dissolved, return to low heat and simmer for about 5 minutes.

Turn off the heat, serve the curry alongside the rice, and it's done.