Japanese Ground Beef Curry

This one-skillet Japanese curry combines ground beef, potatoes, carrots and peas with store-bought curry roux bricks for a meal that tastes complex but comes together with little effort. A Westernized, roux-based version of curry was introduced to Japan by the British Navy in the late 1800s and, over time, evolved to become a staple in Japanese households, with a number of variations like kare udon (served over noodles) and kare raisu (served over rice). In the 1950s, store-bought curry roux bricks were created, combining the roux with curry powder and a variety of other spices. In this recipe, those store-bought curry bricks do the heavy lifting. (If you’re particularly ambitious, you could make your own Japanese curry bricks with this recipe from Sonoko Sakai.) Serve this curry over rice, udon or lo mein, or alongside a breaded pork cutlet.