Review: Kokumaro Curry

There’s something ever so wonderfully comforting about Japanese curries. More closely related to the five spice sweetness of a Chinese curry, than the earthiness of an Indian curry; Japanese curries offer a salty umami, caramely whack of flavor to the tastebuds. Admittedly some of that no doubt comes from the judicious use of MSG – see the packaging below for all ingredients.

This curry sauce base from House Foods is as good as other items in their line up – which is to say – it’s fabulous. If you’re a lover of this uniquely styled curry-profile, you’ll be a big fan of this one. The Kokumaro curry cubes make for a velvety smooth sauce that will happily support a variety of proteins and veggies.

This Kokumaro Curry is just one of many in the House Foods line up, all slightly so different, not to mention spiced differently too. While this product is marked as medium-hot I didn’t personally detect any material spiciness to the sauce. In fairness, I’m a spice lover, so add that to your calculous if you’re not.

House Foods Kokumaro Curry – what’s in the box?

Inside the cardboard packaging you’ll find two plastic containers, each one individually sealed. Inside each is a block of four cubes. When I open one of the sealed plastic packages I personally store the remaining cubes in an airtight container in the fridge.

How much water should you use for Kokumaro Curry?

See the close up below for House Food’s own recommended dilution amounts. I find that half a cup of water per single cube makes for a fabulously rich experience. Don’t forget that the sauce will lose water and concentrate as it cooks, plus gain moisture from added items like vegetables too.

I usually find myself starting with one cup of water and two curry cubes and carefully monitor and adjust from there, adding a little more water very carefully if needed as it cooks.

Cooking with Kokumaro Curry

Obviously the use case for this product is fairly limited. You bought curry cubes – you’re probably making a curry! Here’s one I put together using Gardein’s beefless ground crumbles with a side of steamed rice and home cooked garlic boo choy.

Here’s a slightly less thicker version, using the sauce more sparingly. This time I cooked the sauce with a variety of vegetables before adding some microwaved MorningStar Farms Chick’n Nuggets right at the end.

I actually reserved some of the curry vegetable sauce and the next day created this final dish – curry fried rice. Simply add some curry/vegi leftovers to a regular fried rice and you’ll have a wonderfully umami-popping plate!

Here’s one more curry, this time a more classical Japanese beef curry with grass fed beef, onions, peas and carrots:

Kokumaro Curry sauce ingredients and nutrition

These curry cubes pack an almighty wallop of sodium – I mean – that’s part of the reason they taste so good. Beyond that, just look at the mad science laundry list of ingredients, everything from cheeses to dried tangerine peel. This isn’t something you’re ever probably going to make at home.

In terms of cooking, I tend to deviate a little from the packet. A break the cubes into a pan with a little oil and heat until they dissolve. Not too hot so they burn. Once a roux forms I add the water (as detailed above) and mix well. From there I turn the heat up which lets the sauce thicken, and it’s at that point I usually use the curry sauce in my recipe; whether that’s adding to another dish, or adding items directly to cook in the sauce.

What’s a fair price for House Foods Kokumaro Curry?

I paid $6.49 for this 8 cube pack on Amazon (affiliate link, we get a referral fee on purchases) – as I use a couple cubes per person per serving, I make that $1.75 per serving which is more than fine by me

Stuart Melling

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!