Three wise men who know spices inside and out have a heated debate: Let’s decide on “Reiwa’s Strongest Retort Curry”!
Special project to blow away the lingering summer heat Part 2] "Rumor's Famous Restaurant" series? House, S.B., MUJI, Nakamuraya, etc.
Retortable curry can be eaten simply by heating it in a microwave oven or by boiling water. In fact, it was born in Japan. Bon Curry,” launched by Otsuka Food Industries (now Otsuka Foods) in 1968, was the world’s first. Since then, retort curry has evolved continuously. The taste has become as authentic as that of a specialty restaurant, and there is a wide variety of curry products such as European-style curry, keema curry, and soup curry. Now, which is the best retort curry that is both inexpensive and delicious? Takehisa Inoue, representative of the Curry Research Institute, Spicy Maruyama, a curry researcher, and Komei Medoruma, a retort curry researcher, engaged in a heated debate.
Rumored famous restaurant vs. selected popular restaurant
–How about SB Foods?
Maruyama: Our top choice is “Rumor’s Famous Store: South Indian Style Chicken Curry” (432 yen). The aroma of cinnamon, cardamom, and other spices is outstanding. Retort curry loses its aroma during the process of pressurization and heat sterilization. In order to compensate for this, many products have an additive spice added afterwards. This product retains so much aroma in spite of the fact that it is made without any spice additives. It is a product that is like an achievement of S.B. Foods.
Medorima: Retort curry that reproduces the taste of famous restaurants, which is not so rare nowadays, was started by S.B. Foods, wasn’t it? My favorite is “Rumor Meiten Shonan Dry Curry” (432 yen) from the “Rumor Meiten ” series. It is a curry with a lot of mushrooms, and it is difficult to make from scratch at home.
Maruyama: The quality of “Shonan Dry Curry” has improved since its renewal in 2010. The retort smell has disappeared, and the unique dairy aroma of “Coral Reef” at the actual store in Shichirigahama, Kanagawa Prefecture, has been reproduced to a greater degree.
–What is the relationship between “Rumors of Famous Restaurants” and House Foods’ “Selected Popular Restaurants” series, which is similar to “Rumors of Famous Restaurants”?
Maruyama: We see this as a countermeasure to the hit “Rumor Meiten Osaka Spiced Keema Curry ” (432 yen) released by Esbee Foods in the summer of 2005. House Foods launched “Chosen Popular Restaurant” in 2006. The following year, in 2007, SB Foods launched the “Kanda Curry Grand Prix” series, and the “Meiten Mono” genre became firmly established.
–What do you recommend for “selected popular restaurants”?
Inoue: I would like to recommend the 180g “Chosen Popular Store Sri Lankan Curry Chicken. The actual retail price is about 400 yen. It uses slightly different spices from Indian curry and is mild. In Sri Lanka, there is a traditional dish called “string hoppers” which is curry poured over beef noodle. It goes well with rice, but we also recommend recreating the local curry by combining it with beef noodle.
MEDORIMA: Beef noodle is made of rice flour, so I guess it goes well with it. My recommendation is the “150g Selected Popular Restaurant Beef and Pork Keema Curry. The actual restaurant in Shimokitazawa (Setagaya-ku, Tokyo), “Kyu-Yamu-tei” is a popular restaurant, but you can experience its taste for as low as 400 yen.
–What about the “Kanda Curry Grand Prix”?
Maruyama: We recommend the “Kanda Curry Grand Prix European Curry Bondi Cheese Curry” (432 yen). It recreates the rich taste of Bondi.
MEDORIMA I like ” Kanda Curry Grand Prix Ochanomizu Daishoken Reproduction Curry” (432 yen). It is based on the seafood soup from the tsukemen restaurant “Okashoken,” and has a nostalgic taste like “curry from a soba noodle shop.
–Nakamuraya’s retort curry is also very popular.
Maruyama: We entered the market in 2001 with the “Indian Curry” series. It was innovative in that it was a retort curry with an “emphasis on spice aroma. Until then, most retort-pouch curries were European-style curries that were an extension of home cooking. Indian and Thai curries were only available at specialty restaurants. We broke such common sense.
Inoue: The company’s strongest product is probably “Indian Curry Beef Spicy ” (416 yen). In India, curry using beef is almost unheard of due to religious reasons. Against this backdrop, Nakamuraya created its own recipe and launched the “Indian Curry” series. Nakamuraya’s spiced curry seems to dance in the mouth and pass through the nose, and its flavor differs from that of both House Foods and S.B. Foods.
MEDORIMA I was worried about Butter Chicken, but I agree with “Beef Spicy” for the strongest. It has a robust spice and reproduces the taste served in restaurants.
Maruyama: For butter chicken, “Seijo Ishii & Shinjuku Nakamuraya Butter Chicken Curry 170g” (387 yen), a collaboration with Seijo Ishii, is an excellent product. It is more elegant than the original brand. As a side note, Seijo Ishii has a wonderful selection of retort curry.
–Although not a food specialist, MUJI’s retort curry is also popular.
Maruyama: MUJI popularized Thai curry by selling green curry in 2002. The launch of the big-selling Butter Chicken Curry in 2009 was probably the decisive factor. You have become an integral part of the industry.
Inoue: Butter Chicken is now in its sixth generation, but it had a tremendous impact when it was first introduced. Currently, the three main products are “Curry with the best ingredients: 6th generation Butter Chicken” (350 yen), “Curry with the best ingredients: Green” (350 yen), and “Curry with the best ingredients: Spicy Chicken” (350 yen).
MOMEDORUMA: Most of MUJI’s curry is produced by Nishiki Foods in Miyagi Prefecture, and we continue to make minor changes every three years or so. The people in charge of both MUJI and Nishiki go to India to brush up on local trends. I personally think that the “6th generation” is the best of all time. The smoky and deep flavor with the addition of big cardamom is delicious for Japanese people, and Indians will agree that it is authentic. It goes well with rice, naan, or tossed with pasta.
Amazing quality for 150 yen!
Maruyama: I would venture to recommend the “Roasted Spice Gorori Beef Curry” (490 yen). It is a relatively new product, having been on sale since November of last year, but it was so popular that it was temporarily difficult to obtain. It is based on European-style curry, which has a mellow image, but you can feel the gusto of the spices.
MEDORIMA MUJI’s curry can be purchased at Lawson and Family Mart, so its easy availability is also a high point.
–What are some of the other manufacturers’ products of interest?
Maruyama: Yamamori’s “Thai Curry Green” (453 yen) is hard to miss. The quality is so high that even if it were served in a restaurant as is, it would not be considered a retort. Yamamori once released a higher series of “Thai Curry,” but the current product is quite satisfying, so the higher series did not take root. That is why “Thai Curry” has such a high level of perfection.
MEDORIMA: “Thai Curry” is made in Thailand, isn’t it? I heard that a Thai factory was built to pursue the authentic taste.
–Let’s come to a conclusion.
MEDORIMA: Taste, price, and the fact that it is difficult to make at home but easily available. Considering these factors, I would like to recommend “Shonan Dry Curry” from S.B. Foods “Rumor Meiten”.
Maruyama: My first recommendation is also “South Indian Style Chicken Curry” from “Rumor Meiten. However, after this discussion, I have been attracted by the high overall quality of House Foods’ “Pro Quality”. Mr. Inoue was pushing for black, but I would like to push for medium-hot.
Inoue: I would recommend the black one in the series for its trendiness, but I think the medium-spicy one is tasty enough.
MEDORIMA: “Pro-Quality” without ingredients is a product that can also be enjoyed by those who want to enjoy the arrangement. I have the impression that the medium-spicy version is more convenient than the black version, which is more of a changeable version. I also vote for medium-hot.
Third place
Rumor of a famous restaurant
Shonan Dry Curry (SB Foods)
2nd place
Rumor Meiten South Indian Style Curry (SB Foods)
Chicken Curry (SB Foods)
After a heated debate, the three curry masters chose House Foods’ “Pro Quality Curry 4-pack Medium Spicy” as their favorite. The deciding factor was the high degree of flexibility in using the curry as a sauce or adding other ingredients to the dish. Why don’t you enjoy a variety of retort curries based on this heated debate?
No. 1
Pro Quality Curry
4 bags, medium-hot (House Foods)
From the September 5, 2025 issue of FRIDAY
