Asian Recipes/ Condiments and Sauces/ Japanese/ Recipes
09/02/2022 (Last Updated: 22/04/2022)
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An aromatic spice mix, this homemade Curry Powder recipe is based off the popular Japanese S&B blend, so you can whip up your own Japanese curry in no time! Have a batch ready in less than 15 minutes!
Why We Love This
It’s so much fun making homemade curry powder and spice blends. The aroma from grinding and toasting spices will instantly fill your kitchen and fire you up to get cooking!
Making your own curry powder blend is like becoming an alchemist in your own kitchen, transforming everyday spices into a rich golden brown spice mix all your own. It’s a great afternoon activity on a rainy day, and will make you extra proud when you use it in your next batch of curry.
Today’s curry powder recipe is super adaptable. Tweak the ratios to deepen the flavour from your preferred ingredients, reduce the chilli powder to make it milder, or leave out the spices you don’t enjoy.
Related: Katsu Curry / Curry Udon
Whole Spices vs Store-Bought Ground Spices
Whole spices contain more oils than ground spices, giving them a much stronger, richer flavour. especially compared to ground spices that are starting to get a bit old in the pantry. Use whole spices and grind them yourself for the best, most intense flavour (along with a little incidental exercise!) or use ground spices for the convenience factor.
It’s totally up to you.
What is Curry Powder?
Curry powder is traditionally made from a blend of savoury and sweet spices. A British creation, intended to recreate Indian flavours similar to garam masala, curry powder is nowadays found in recipes from many cuisines around the world.
Surprisingly curry powder doesn’t contain curry leaves. Instead it’s usually made from some key ingredients like turmeric, cumin, coriander seeds, and black pepper to name just a few.
Some store-bought blends will be hotter than others, depending on the ratio of spicy ingredients. Milder blends will often contain black pepper or ginger for heat. Hotter blends usually include chilli, cayenne or hot paprika for extra heat. These stronger, spicier blends are often referred to as ‘madras’.
Todays’ blend is an all purpose curry powder inspired by S&B Curry Powder from Japan. However you can use it across all your favourite recipes that call for curry powder, from Japanese curry udon to Vietnamese chicken curry, Malaysian mee goreng and even Australian curried sausages.
Don’t forget – you can tweak the spicy ingredients to make it spicier or milder to suit your taste!
What You’ll Need
- Spices – All of these spices are probably already in your pantry or at your local supermarket in both whole and ground varieties.
- Herbs – You want to make sure your herbs are dried, as you don’t want any moisture in your curry powder. This includes sage, thyme and your bay leaves.
- Dried Orange Peel – This was the hardest ingredient for us to locate commercially, luckily though, it couldn’t be easier to make at home. Grab an orange and zest the skin with a fine grater. Spread it out on a lined baking tray and pop it in your oven on the lowest setting (sometimes called Keep Warm) at around 50°C / 120°F. Check it every 10 minutes, and break up any lumps as you go. You’ll start to feel it dry out, and instead of feeling oily or bouncing back when squeezed, it will crumble between your fingers. This is when you know it’s ready to use in your curry powder! It can take anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour for this process. Zest from one medium-large orange should yield the 2 tsp required for this recipe once dried.
How to make homemade Japanese S&B style Curry Powder:
- Grind any whole spices you’re using in a mortar and pestle (or spice grinder) from largest to smallest. Putting in 1-2 at a time, grinding to a powder, then add more. For us, this wasstar anise,cardamom,bay leaf,fenugreek seeds,thymeandsage.
- Scoop out the ground spices from the mortar and place into a small bowl alongside the remaining ground spices. In our case, this wasturmeric powder,ground coriander,cumin,dried orange peel,black pepper,chilli powder,cinnamon,fennel,ground ginger,ground clovesandnutmeg.
- Mix spices all together until well combined.
- Spread out the curry powder on a medium saucepan on the lowest heat setting possible. Dry toast for 1-2 minutes to bring out the flavours. Stir as you go, so the curry powder is evenly toasted and heated through.
- Remove from the heat and allow to cool before storing in an airtight container in your pantry.
Wandercook’s Tips
- Quality – Use fresh spices if possible, as they will have the strongest flavour. Even better, use whole spices and grind them yourself for the freshest homemade curry powder. That said, it’s totally fine to use whatever ground spices you have ready to go in the pantry.
- Grinding Spices – You can use a mortar and pestle to grind the spices manually, or use an electric spice grinder or coffee grinder to make it easier. If using a coffee grinder, make sure to thoroughly clean out the machine before grinding your next batch of coffee!
- Storage – Always store your leftover spice blend in an airtight container in a cool, dark place, such as a drawer or pantry, to maintain flavour and shelf life.
FAQs
Do I need to toast the spices?
In our opinion – yes! Toasting the spices really brings out the full flavour and deep golden brown colour, so we don’t recommend skipping this step. Just be sure to use the lowest heat possible and allow the spices to cool down completely before storing in an airtight container.
What’s the difference between curry powder and curry paste?
Despite sharing a similar name, curry powder and curry paste are (and taste) very different! Curry powder is a dry ingredient made from dried and ground spices, while curry paste is usually made from a blend of spices, finely chopped and ground herbs, and sometimes other ingredients like fish sauce or shrimp paste, depending on the country of origin.
We also wouldn’t recommend substituting one for the other, as the flavour will be totally different than you would normally be going for in the main recipe you’re making.
Can I use this for Indian recipes?
Curry powder is actually not a traditional Indian ingredient (Indian curry recipes usually call for garam masala instead). While you can use curry powder as a substitute for garam masala, it won’t have quite the same flavour due to the different mix of spices used.
If you’re looking to replicate a specific curry flavour (such as x or y), you should use the relevant spice blend to suit that recipe if possible.
How else can I use it?
Use it as an all purpose seasoning or as a table condiment in place of salt. Add it to marinades, sauces, batters or coatings (such as air fried chicken karaage). Mix a sprinkling into Japanese beef burgers, in crispy fried spring rolls or even over homemade takoyaki. It also goes amazing in Sri Lankan pumpkin curry.
Variations
- Make it Spicier – Add more chilli powder, cayenne pepper or even gochujang chilli flakes to your blend to make it spicier, more like a madras curry powder.
- Transform it into a Roux – Use your curry powder blend to make up a batch of Japanese curry roux, which you can then freeze to use later in Japanese beef curry!
Put your Curry Powder to good use with these popular recipes:
★ Did you make this recipe? Please leave a comment and a star rating below!
Homemade Curry Powder – Japanese S&B Style
An aromatic spice mix, this homemade Curry Powder is based off the popular Japanese S&B blend, so you can whip up your own Japanese curry in no time! Have a batch ready in less than 15 minutes!
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Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 2 minutes minutes
Total Time: 12 minutes minutes
Course: Basics, Condiment
Cuisine: Japanese
Servings: 1 Jar
Calories: 177kcal
Author: Wandercooks
Cost: $5
Equipment
1 Mortar and Pestle Sub with spice grinder
Ingredients
- 6 tsp turmeric powder
- 4 tsp ground coriander sub 6 tsp coriander seeds
- 3 tsp fenugreek seeds
- 3 tsp ground cumin
- 2 tsp orange peel dried
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp chilli powder sub Korean chilli flakes or cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground fennel
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 star anise sub 1 tsp ground anise powder
- 1 tsp thyme dried
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/2 tsp ground cloves
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp sage dried
- 1 cardamom whole, sub 1/2 tsp ground
Instructions
Grind any whole spices you're using in a mortar and pestle (or spice grinder) from largest to smallest. Putting in 1-2 at a time, grinding to a powder, then add more. For us, this was star anise, cardamom, bay leaf, fenugreek seeds, thyme and sage.
3 tsp fenugreek seeds, 1 star anise, 1 tsp thyme, 1 bay leaf, 1/2 tsp sage, 1 cardamom
Scoop out the ground spices from the mortar and place into a small bowl alongside the remaining ground spices. In our case, this was turmeric powder, ground coriander, cumin, dried orange peel, black pepper, chilli powder, cinnamon, fennel, ground ginger, ground cloves and nutmeg. Mix it all together until well combined.
6 tsp turmeric powder, 4 tsp ground coriander, 3 tsp ground cumin, 2 tsp orange peel, 1 tsp black pepper, 1 tsp chilli powder, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp ground fennel, 1 tsp ground ginger, 1/2 tsp ground cloves, 1/2 tsp nutmeg
Spread out the curry powder on a medium saucepan on the lowest heat setting possible. Dry toast for 1-2 minutes to bring out the flavours. Stir as you go, so the curry powder is evenly toasted and heated through.
Remove from the heat and allow to cool before storing in an airtight container in your pantry.
Video
Recipe Notes
- Quality – Use fresh spices if possible, as they will have the strongest flavour. Even better, use whole spices and grind them yourself for the freshest homemade curry powder. That said, it’s totally fine to use whatever ground spices you have ready to go in the pantry.
- Grinding Spices – You can use a mortar and pestle to grind the spices manually, or use an electric spice grinder or coffee grinder to make it easier. If using a coffee grinder, make sure to thoroughly clean out the machine before grinding your next batch of coffee!
- Storage – Always store your leftover spice blend in an airtight container in a cool, dark place, such as a drawer or pantry, to maintain flavour and shelf life.
- Make it Spicier – Add more chilli powder, cayenne pepper or even gochujang chilli flakes to your blend to make it spicier, more like a madras curry powder.
- Transform it into a Roux – Use your curry powder blend to make up a batch of Japanese curry roux, which you can then freeze to use later.
Nutrition
Nutrition Facts
Homemade Curry Powder – Japanese S&B Style
Amount per Serving
Calories
177
% Daily Value*
Fat
6
g
9
%
Saturated Fat
1
g
6
%
Polyunsaturated Fat
1
g
Monounsaturated Fat
2
g
Sodium
66
mg
3
%
Potassium
801
mg
23
%
Carbohydrates
32
g
11
%
Fiber
14
g
58
%
Sugar
1
g
1
%
Protein
7
g
14
%
Vitamin A
824
IU
16
%
Vitamin C
16
mg
19
%
Calcium
240
mg
24
%
Iron
17
mg
94
%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
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About Wandercooks
Wandercooks is an Australian recipe site reaching over 9 million views annually. Our recipes are here to inspire you with fresh and exciting food ideas from a range of Asian, European and Australian cuisines. As seen on Google.com, Today.com, Buzzfeed, Jetstar Asia and Lonely Planet.Read more...
