Is Japanese Curry Healthy? (3 Tips for Weight Loss)

We are all familiar with Indian Curry and Thai Curry, but have you ever had Japanese Curry? Influenced by Indian cuisine, Japan first started creating their own version of curry by adding the typical curry ingredients, but has a slightly sweeter taste in the savory dish. Although Japanese curry is a super delicious dish, you may be wondering, is it healthy? 

Japanese Curry is relatively high in calories with majority coming from carbohydrates and fats. Japanese Curry is not the ideal food to consume when trying to lose weight due to its poor balance of macronutrients. Additionally, Japanese curry is usually paired with another carbohydrate source, which will add even more additional calories to your meal.

Even though it is not the best diet food, this does not mean you can’t eat Japanese Curry if you are trying to lose weight! 

In this article, we will be discussing three great tips that will help you understand more about the nutrition behind Japanese Curry and how to enjoy this dish while still losing weight:

Tip 1: Understand How Many Calories are in Japanese Curry

Tip 2: Understand What to Pair Japanese Curry With to Lose Weight

Tip 3: How to Make a Healthier Version of Japanese Curry

Now let’s get started!

Tip 1: Understand How Many Calories are in Japanese Curry

Japanese Curry is a very simple dish made up of several different ingredients such as potatoes, carrots, chicken thighs, butter, and the curry roux itself. Often flavored with various spices, Japanese Curry has a super unique flavor, and the aroma is instantly recognizable. 

These specific ingredients mixed make Japanese Curry. Although each ingredient is relatively healthy, Japanese Curry is still a high caloric sauce that adds a lot of extra carbohydrates to your meal. 

For every serving of Japanese Curry, there are around 250 calories with 6 grams of fat, 40 grams of carbohydrates, and 10 grams of protein.

As you can see, Japanese is composed mainly of carbohydrates and very little protein making this not the ideal dish to eat when you are trying to lose weight. 

We do not want to over-consume carbohydrates because carbohydrates often do not give us the same satiating effect that protein does.

This does not mean you should completely eliminate carbohydrate sources from your diet, but to make sure you are not over-consuming up to the point where you are in a calorie surplus. 

The most important thing to remember is that the only way to lose weight is to be in a calorie deficit or consume less than your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE).

Your TDEE is essentially the amount of calories that you burn throughout the day and is composed of: 

• Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR): The amount of calories you burn at rest (when you’re just sitting there and not doing anything) 

• Calories Burned From Activity: The amount of calories you burn when doing any physical activity (i.e. walking, running, sports, washing dishes) 

• Thermic Effect of Food: The amount of calories you burn when you are eating and digesting food 

You may now be wondering, how do you figure out your TDEE? This is very simple! All you have to do is go onto any credible fitness website, like Bodybuilding.com or NASM, and find their calorie calculator.

By putting in your sex, height, weight, and activity level, this calculator can help you generate an approximate number that is your TDEE.

Once you know your TDEE, to be in a calorie deficit, aim to eat around 300-500 calories less than your TDEE every single day.

Although you may not see results in the first couple of days, or maybe even the first week, it’s essential to trust the process and stay consistent.

Weigh yourself every single day, at the same time to get the most accurate results. 

My favorite way to track how many calories I am eating every day is by using MyFitnessPal, which allows you to easily input your food into a journal and help you calculate how many calories you are eating throughout the day.

Remember that everyone’s body is unique, and the TDEE calculator is simply an estimate.

If you still do not see any results within around two weeks, try lowering your calorie intake by around 150-250 calories and observe the results. Drink plenty of water throughout the process, and don’t forget to stay patient and consistent. 

Tip 2: Understand What to Pair Japanese Curry With to Lose Weight

Now that we have covered the basics of what goes into Japanese Curry and the nutritional information behind the curry itself, what do we usually pair it with?

The most common example that you are probably familiar with is curry rice.

However, did you know that you can eat curry with udon or even inside of bread? 

Although there are several delicious options to pair curry with, these all add up to be relatively higher in calories and more challenging to eat when trying to lose weight.

This section will go over the nutritional information behind each of the curry bases and why they are not the best to eat when trying to lose weight. 

Curry Rice (Kare Raisu)

Japanese Curry Rice is the most popular option out of the three and is the most convenient to make. Served popularly to Japanese war soldiers and soon making its way to the school cafeteria, Japanese curry rice slowly became one of Japan’s most commonly bought meals. 

One serving of Curry Rice has approximately 450 calories with 6 grams of fat, 80 grams of carbohydrates, and 14 grams of protein.

As you can see, rice added 40 grams of carbohydrates to your meal and little to no additional protein. 

Curry Udon

Japanese Curry Udon is not as commonly heard of, but it is a delicious meal that is an excellent and unique take on Japanese curry.

The curry flavor comes from the warm broth, while the udon and pork loin sits in the soup to soak in the curry flavor. 

One serving of Curry Udon has approximately 460 calories with 14 grams of fat, 67 grams of carbohydrates, and 23 grams of protein.

Curry Udon has less carbohydrates than Curry rice and has an adequate amount of protein.

If comparing Curry Udon to the first option, if you want to increase your protein intake for the day, I recommend choosing this option instead.

Curry Bread

If you’re looking to make a fun and delicious curry pastry, Curry Bread is a wonderful savory bread that gushes with flavor as soon as you bite into it.

Filled with Japanese Curry, you’ll get the curry flavor you’re looking for if you eat this delicious pastry. 

One serving of Curry Bread (around two pastries) has approximately 410 calories with 10 grams of fat, 67 grams of carbohydrates, and 13 grams of protein.

Curry Bread has a very similar macronutrient breakdown compared to Curry Rice, except it's higher in fat.

If you are looking to eat just two Curry breads for lunch, this isn’t too bad of an option, but keep in mind that it is very low in protein, so be sure to eat more protein-heavy and low-calorie meals throughout the day.   (20 g sugar 2 g fiber) 

Tip 3: How to Make a Healthier Version of Japanese Curry

Even though we discussed all the options above as relatively unhealthy, the good news is that you can make your version of a healthier curry!

You have to make a couple of adjustments to the recipe, but by making these small tweaks, you can reduce the amount of calories for a just as delicious curry. 

In this section, we will be giving three tips on how you can make your own easy, delicious, and healthier version of Japanese Curry: 

Use a Lean Source of Protein

When choosing a source of protein for your curry, most people use chicken thighs. Still, chicken thighs tend to be higher in fat and thus add extra calories to your dish.

If you swap out the chicken thighs for chicken breast, it may not be as tender. However, by properly marinating the chicken and cutting it into small cubes, this is still a delicious option.

Chicken breast is one of the leanest protein sources and can drastically increase the amount of protein in your dish. Feel free to add a bit more than what the recipe calls for in your version! 

Increase the Amount of Vegetables in the Dish

Curry also contains a lot of vegetables such as carrots, onion, and sometimes even cauliflower.

I love adding a couple of my unique vegetables into the dish, such as mushrooms, white radish, or even broccoli.

Not only does this taste super delicious, but it adds a lot of extra fiber and a bit of extra protein to your meal.  

Use a Lower Calorie Base 

As we observed earlier, adding the rice, udon, or bread adds many additional calories to your meal.

These are all super delicious options, but quite often, overeating can quickly put you in a calorie surplus.

I recommend that you sometimes cut the base amount by half to make it a lower calorie meal. Another great tip is to choose a base that is lower in calories. 

Some people enjoy making zucchini noodles or buying low-calorie noodles as replacements.

Although these small adjustments are not as delicious as using actual rice, udon, or bread, this may allow you to eat more and stay more full throughout the day. 

So there you have it! Now that you understand the nutritional information behind Japanese Curry, the different types of dishes made with Japanese Curry, and how to make your own healthier version of Japanese Curry, you can still enjoy this delicious dish while still losing weight!

Remember, weight loss does not need to be a restrictive and uncomfortable process, but more so about being patient, consistent, and proactive about what you are putting into your body.

Conclusion 

Remember, although nutrition is a huge factor that influences weight loss, it is important to pair this journey with exercise as well.

Especially strength training. Several years of research on the benefits of weight training have shown that individuals that do some sort of consistent resistance training at least 3-5 times a week have shown not only a great amount of weight loss but are also able to keep the weight off! 

The secret to this phenomena is that strength training leads to a build-up of muscle.

Not only does your body recomposition into a more fitting and athletic-looking aesthetic, but having more muscle also increases your resting metabolic rate which essentially means you burn more calories at rest! 

Now that we know the importance of muscle we need to make sure we stay on track with our workouts.

Consistency and longevity are the two key factors when building muscle so there will be some commitment involved.

We understand that not everyone has access to a gym membership or feels comfortable starting off in such an intimidating environment.

Although I would strongly recommend that everyone should get a gym membership, don’t worry we got your back!

You can either go to the gym or build one for yourself. It really just comes down to 3 pieces of equipment that you need to do most workouts.

These three are the workout bench, dumbbells, and gym flooring. Check out our recommended gear page to see our best picks for these pieces of equipment here. 

https://www.aspirefitnesswalnut.com/home-workout-equipment

If a home gym is not for you then getting a membership somewhere works too. As long as you are starting your muscle-building journey, we’re happy! 

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