House Foods Vermont Curry any good?
Absolutely yes! So far, this is my favorite brand of off the shelf Japanese style curry that I’ve found available in the United States. The slightly sweet sauce is great for dishes such as Tonkatsu. Buy on Amazon now.
I stumbled across the Vermont Curry
The curious packaging of this product immediately jumped out at me; it seemed as if every inch of the packet was covered in some text or otherwise. Despite its American sounding name, this is a Japanese product from a hugely popular Japanese brand. I’d never heard of House Foods or their line of curries before, so was eager to try this out. I’m guessing the Vermont naming is a nod to the hint of added sweetness in the product.
Right down to brass tacks then, how does this curry rate? Fabulous in a word! I was instantly hooked from the first bite. It’s a rich, umami packed sauce with a subtle sweetness. I was expecting a brasher, more cloying sweet taste, but was happy with its balance. Sweet potatoes, onions and carrots would work well in this sauce if you were pondering vegetables. The popular brand you’ll see on most US grocery store shelves is S&B, I think this sauce is a notch above.
Spice wise, I thought the product was very tame; so much so I forgot this was even labelled as a hot variety until I was scanning the packaging in later for this review. Spice lovers will want to amp this up with a few additions no doubt.
House Foods Vermont Curry – what’s in the packet
Inside the cardboard packaging is a plastic container that is divided into two sections. This in turn is sealed with a peel back cover so that you only have to open one of the two sections at a time. Each section has a brick of 6 curry cubes. If you have unused cubes after opening either part of the container, be sure to refrigerate any left over cubes.
House Foods Vermont Curry – cooking instructions and nutrition
Cooking is as simple as adding the cubes to water, bringing to a higher heat and then simmering. Nutrition wise, hold onto your sodium hats – as these things are packed with the stuff. Seriously, these are a salt lovers dream. I went with two cubes in a dish for one person (the recommended serving is one cube) as I wanted to ensure a really rich curry taste. The cubes aren’t shy with the saturated fat levels either.
Given the salt and fat you’re probably going to want to use these sparingly, which means they’ll also last quite some time. They’ll definitely be part of my kitchen staples personally, but for sure as a splurge and treat as opposed to regular weekly item.
What dishes can I make with House Foods Vermont Curry?
I can’t wait to try this curry sauce over some freshly breaded, pan fried pork – Tonkatsu is one of my favorite comfort food dishes of all time. I’d wager that Gardein Turk’y cutlets would be a good option for those looking to avoid meat.
In testing the product I made a simple meatball curry using the meat free Gardein Meatballs – I was in a hurry and I wanted to test those meatballs in a rich curry sauce anyway (side note: excellent choice). In the dish below I’ve gone with meatballs and some fresh mushrooms for even more umami. I also went with a side of steamed jasmine rice and a quick sunomono salad to finish the dish.
Some other dishes I’ve made with the House Vermont Curry:
Where Can I Buy House Foods Vermont Curry?
You can purchase his curry sauce via Amazon for a reasonable price. It usually retails for less than 9 bucks and you can get quite a few meals from one packet. Buy Vermont Curry on Amazon now
Hi, I’m Stuart, nice to meet you! I’m the founder, writer and wrangler at Gastronomic SLC – Utah’s biggest and oldest online food magazine; I’m also a former restaurant critic of more than five years, working for the Salt Lake Tribune. I’ve worked extensively with multiple local publications from Visit Salt Lake to Salt Lake Magazine, not least helped to consult on national TV shows.
I’m a multiple-award winning journalist and have covered the Utah dining scene for the better part of fifteen years. I’m largely fueled by a critical obsession with rice, alliteration and the use of big words I don’t understand. I started Shop Smart to catalogue my adventures in the grocery store and kitchen. Follow along on Instagram too!