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“Curry Rice” is one of Japan’s most popular comfort foods.  For those who have never tried it, the “Curry” is basically a type of stew made with pieces of meat (beef, pork, or chicken) slow simmered together with cut vegetables (potatoes, onions, and carrots).  The stew is mildly seasoned with Indian-style curry spices and is ladled on top of freshly cooked white rice.  A well-known version of Curry Rice is called 海軍カレー (Kaigun Kah-reh, "Navy Curry"), which is a symbolic food of Yokosuka City.  In the old days of Japan's Imperial Navy, some crewmembers on the ships would get sick due to a lack of vitamins/nutrition in their meals.  So, a curry recipe was borrowed from England's Royal Navy, and the Japanese crewmembers became healthier after eating it.  Of interest, today's Japanese Navy, called Japan Maritime Seld Defense Force (JMSDF) continues to prepare the traditional curry rice for its personnel, and it is served every Friday.  As part of a public relations campaign, JMSDF teamed with Yokosuka's local government to declare Navy Curry as an official food of the city.  Since then, it has become a popular item for Yokosuka's tourism business.  There are several restaurants in town which serve the dish, but a good place to start is the "Navy Curry Honpo" establishment, which is located close Keikyu Yokosuka Chuo Station -- it sells gifts & souvenirs on the first floor, with a restaurant on the second floor (see link below for more details).  We hope you will have the chance eat delicious Navy Curry while living in Japan.    Written by Goodfield

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LINKS:

Yokosuka Navy Curry Honpo

https://yokosuka-curry.com/en/

How to make Navy Curry

https://www.foodinjapan.org/kanto/kanagawa-en/yokosuka-kaigun-curry/