ramyaramesh3007This Curry Udon is rich, creamy, flavourful and wonderfully pairs with crunchy Eggplant Katsu coated in breadcrumbs. This is a collaboration with one of my favourite vegan food bloggers, Priya (@spices.and.spoons)
This was a wonderful collaboration between me and my friend, Priya. She is a vegan food blogger too and goes by the handle @spices.and.spoons on Instagram! She makes amazing and authentic vegan Indian recipes and is such an inspiration.
The idea for this dish came about because I love noodles and unfortunately, many Katsu Curry dishes are predominantly meat based. Priya consulted her friend from Japan on how to make this dish vegan but also authentic by not changing too many components compared to traditional Katsu Curry.
I also found eggplant to be a wonderful substitute for regular Katsu because of it’s crunchiness when fried and the tasty texture when you bite into it.
There is 2 parts to this recipe – making the curry for the udon and the eggplant katsu. You can find the full recipe below.
Vegan Curry Udon with Eggplant Katsu
Equipment
- 1 Large Pot
- 1 Frying Pan
Ingredients
Curry Udon by @spices.and.spoons
- 5 slices kombu or dried kelp
- 7 dried shitake mushrooms
- 1.5 cup hot water
- 2 cubes curry roux
- 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
- 1 white onion
- 1/2 cup sliced carrots
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp mirin
- 1 pack udon noodles
Toppings
- Scallions
- Black & White Sesame Seeds
- Chili Sesame Oil
Eggplant Katsu
- 1 medium eggplant
- 3 tbsp plain flour
- 1 tbsp corn starch
- `1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
- 1/2 cup neutral oil
Instructions
Curry Udon
- Make kombu dashi (broth) by combining 4-5 small pieces of kombu / dried kelp and 7/8 dried shiitake mushrooms to 1 cup of hot water. Let it sit for 15 minutes.
- Strain and keep aside. Slice the mushrooms length wise to use later.
- Add two cubes of curry (store bought Japanese curry cubes) to 1/2 cup of hot water and stir until it is fully dissolved.
- To a heated pan, add toasted sesame oil. Then add thinly diced white onions, carrots and mushrooms. Sauté until the onions are caramelized.
- To this add kombu dashi, dissolved curry roux, 2 tbsp soy sauce, 1 tsp mirin and stir well to combine. Add more water to adjust consistency as the mixture will get thicker as it cooks.
- Bring to a gentle boil for about 7-8 minutes until the broth is glossy & semi- thick.
- Pour the curry over cooked udon noodles ( I used frozen ones from Asian store) and garnish with scallions, sesame seeds and chili sesame oil.
Eggplant Katsu
- Slice 1 medium eggplant into round slices and 1cm thick.
- Mix together 3 tbsp plain flour, 1 tbsp corn starch, 1 tsp Salt, 1 tsp black pepper, 1 tsp onion powder and add 1/2 cup water gradually (add more to get a thick paste, but the batter should not be runny).
- Heat up oil in a pan and coat the slices in the mixture. Coat it again in breadcrumbs.
- Deep fry it until golden brown. Drain the excess oil on a tissue and serve with udon noodles.