Japanese Curry Udon (Kare Udon)

Heat a large pot on medium. Add 1 tsp cooking oil and arrange 150 g thinly sliced pork belly in a single layer. Fry until lightly golden, then flip and repeat on the other side.

Add 500 ml dashi stock to the pot with 3 tbsp Japanese soy sauce (koikuchi shoyu), 2 tbsp mirin and 1 tsp sugar. Mix and bring to a boil, once boiling lower the heat to a simmer.

In a small bowl, mix 3 tbsp Japanese style curry powder and 1 tbsp potato starch (katakuriko). Once combined, add 5 tbsp cold water and mix it into a smooth thin curry paste with a similar thickness to pancake batter.

Pour the curry paste mixture to the pot and whisk to incorporate it into the broth.

Add 50 g Japanese leek (naganegi) and 50 g mushroom of your choice to the pot. You can also add 8 slices kamaboko fish cake and 2 fried tofu pouch (aburaage) here if you are using them.

Simmer for about 10 minutes or until thickened, stir occasionally.

While the soup is simmering, cook 2 portions udon noodles in a separate pot following the instructions on the packaging. Once cooked, drain in a colander and rinse with freshly boiled water.

Transfer the cooked udon to serving bowls and pour the curry soup over the top. Garnish with finely chopped green onions and Japanese chili powder (shichimi togarashi) if you like. Enjoy!