Have you ever tried curry bread? It’s absolutely delicious! Also called Karee Pan, this homemade bread roll is filled with minced meat, potatoes, veggies, and curry seasonings. The best part about this dish is that it takes less than an hour to make! You’ll be eating homemade curry bread in no time at all.
Karee pan, or curry bread, is one of the most delicious Japanese food creations ever! It is, as the name suggests, a bread roll filled with meaty curry.
I know it sounds so simple but it’s incredible.
Classic karee pan, and the type you will find sold everywhere in Japan, is fried… But, in this recipe, I am going to show you how to bake it instead (just to make it a little healthier).
The fried version is so delicious though, so I definitely recommend trying it!
Karee pan, like Yakisoba Pan, is so convenient because it’s basically one meal packed into one bread roll that you can eat on the go or for a quick lunch on a busy day.
Why You Will Love This Curry Bread Recipe
I’ll admit- There are so many reasons to love this curry bread recipe!
Growing up, my high school had the best canteen ever, so of course, it had karee pan. I would get one whenever I forgot to pack my lunch (which I often did…on purpose).
Now, whenever I have a strong craving for curry with rice, I will make a few batches of these to have on hand in my fridge. My daughter only had her first taste of it a few years ago and now whenever she goes back to Japan, she has to have karee pan!
Filled with some of those classic curry flavors, this curry bread recipe really hits the spot. Because it is packed into a bread roll and eaten like a sandwich, the curry filling is much thicker than regular curry. To make it thicker, you mash up some potatoes into the curry; and also use mince instead of beef chunks. Then, you can eat it easily so it makes a perfect lunch!
Ingredients Needed To Make Karee Pan
There are two parts to this recipe – the rolls and the filling. So, you’ll need a few different things for each part of this recipe. Here’s a bit more information about the ingredients I used in both.
Bread Roll
For the bread roll, I used basic bread or dinner roll ingredients:
- Bakers flour
- Plain flour
- Sugar
- Salt
- Dry yeast
- Milk
- Butter
- Bread crumbs
- Olive oil spray
Curry Filling
The curry filling has tons of flavor! Here’s a list of ingredients I used in it:
- Beef mince (or beef chunks)
- Potato
- Carrot
- Onion
- Garlic
- Japanese curry roux (or my homemade version)
- Garam masala
How To Make Curry Bread
All of the step-by-step instructions are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post. If you have ever made homemade rolls or bread before, then this will be simple.
To make the curry bread, mix and prepare the homemade rolls first. While the bread dough is rising, make the curry filling.
You’ll make the curry filling in a saucepan on the stove. After everything is combined and warmed up, you can divide it up into 8 equal servings.
Then, roll out the bread dough into 8 rolls. Add the filling to each roll and completely cover the filling by wrapping the dough around it.
Bake them until they are completely cooked.
It really is that easy!
Cooking Note:
In the recipe card, the amounts listed will make more curry filling than you need to fill 8 rolls of bread. You can either double the bread roll or make half the curry filling.
What To Serve With Japanese Curry Bread
This is a very filling dish that you can enjoy for either lunch or dinner. I wouldn’t serve much with it, but you can definitely choose one of your favorite Japanese side dishes.
You might like some pickled daikon and carrot. It’s a crunchy and zesty salad that brightens your palette and really enhances the flavor of the curry bead.
Here are a few other of my favorite go-to recipes to serve alongside curry bread:
FAQ
Before we get to the recipe in the printable recipe card, here are some questions people often ask about curry bread.
Can you deep fry curry bread?
Yes, you can deep fry the curry bread! Just bake it like normal and then place it in your deep fryer for a few minutes. It will be less healthy but come out with a delightfully crispy exterior.
How do you store leftover curry bread?
The best way to store leftovers is in the refrigerator in an airtight food storage container. It will stay fresh for up to five days.
Can you freeze it?
Yes, these are freezer-friendly rolls! I like to make a few extra rolls when I can when I (or my daughter) get cravings. They will stay fresh in the freezer for up to six months.
Related Recipes
If you enjoyed this curry bread recipe, here are some more roll and bread recipes you might want to try next. They are some of my favorites!
- Japanese Melon Bread
- Hot Dog Buns With Japanese Milk Bread
- Shokupan – Japanese Milk Bread Loaf
- Kabocha Shaped Pupmkin Bread
Stay Connected
If you like the recipe please rate the recipe and leave comments below. Also don’t forget to follow me on Youtube, Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. This way you keep up to date with all the latest happenings on Chopstick Chronicles.
Don’t forget to sign up for a weekly newsletter so you never miss out on new authentic delicious Japanese recipes! Sign up form is on the right-hand sidebar.
Curry Bread – Karee Pan
Ingredients
Bread Roll
- 180 g Baker’s Flour
- 20 g Plain flour
- 20 g sugar
- 2 g salt
- 3 g dry yeast
- 140 g milk
- 30 g butter
- 1 cup bread crumbs
- Olive oil spray
Curry filling
- 100 g beef mince
- 3 potato
- 1 carrot
- 1 onion
- 1 clove garlic
- 250 ml water
- 70 g store bought Japanese curry roux
- 1 tsp garam massala
Instructions
- Combine the yeast, milk, and sugar in a small bowl or jug then cover and set aside for 10 minutes then stir in the egg.
- Combine the flour and salt in a large bowl.
- Make a well in the centre of the flour and add the liquid mixture and stir to form a soft dough.
- Transfer to an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook and knead for about 5 min or until smooth and elastic.
- With the mixer motor running, add the chopped butter and mix until the butter is combined and a smooth and silky dough forms.
- Place the dough in a greased bowl and cover and set aside in a warm place to prove for 1 hour or until doubled in size.
- Meantime, make the curry filling.
- Cut the carrot, onion and garlic finely.
- Peel and cut potato into bite size pieces and cook until soft to make potato mash. Set aside.
- Heat olive oil in a frying pan and cook the onion, carrot, and garlic until soft then add beef mince to the frying pan to cook.
- Add water to the frying pan and bring it to boil.
- Turn the heat down to low and add the curry roux.
- Stir and mix the curry roux to dissolve.
- Add the mashed potato and simmer till the mixture has thickened.
- Pour it into a flat container and when it is set, divide it into 8 even sizes.
- Divide the bread dough into 8 equal sized balls and knead on a lightly floured surface until smooth.
- Wrap the curry piece with a bread rol.
- Spray it with olive oil and roll in panko crumbs to coat the bread.
- Repeat the process for the 7 others.
- Place them on a cooking paper lined oven tray and cover with clean damp cloth and set aside for about 45 min or until doubled in size.
- Preheat oven to 180 degree and bake for 15 minutes.
Hi,
Would I be able to deep fry this? As in, just make it exactly the same as your recipe up until the part where it’s time to bake and then put it in the deep fryer for a few minutes? I obviously understand that this would be less healthy. Thanks 🙂
Hi Alex yes you can.
Question on eggs! There are two questions further up about whether or not to add egg with conflicting responses – one response says to add a whole egg and the other says no egg at all.
Please provide clarification on whether or not an egg is needed for the dough. Thank you!
Hi Krista, No egg at all. I will update the recipe shortly.
please clarify tt’s it’s 180 degrees C so 350 degrees F cuz I messed hat up
Hi Charles, sorry for the confusion. Yes that’s correct. 180°c is 356°F 😀
Hi Shihoko,
I was wondering how exactly you fill the dough? Do you freeze the curry and then place cubes of it in the dough and then bake it or do you just allow it to cool in its mold and then add it? Do you let the dough proof after adding the curry or do they go straight into the oven? Do you know what type of bread dough this is – whether or not its laminated, rich, straight, enriched, lean, or yeast dough?
Also, thank you so much for putting the ingredients in grams! It takes the conversion step out for me. I can’t wait to try this one out soon! 😀
Hi Hanna, This is yeast dough and curry is very thick so you do not need to freeze or anything. The dough need to be proofed like making An-pan after it is shaped. I am trying to update all recipes but I have over 240 recipes here and am updating 2 a week so take a while…. but will get this one too eventually.
Really quick, is the dough upposed to be gooey? Cause that’s what’s happnening to me
Hi Zoe, no it is not supposed to be gooey…. supposed to be soft bread.
im gonna try this soon!
I hope you enjoy it 😀
Hi Shihoko,
Thank you for your wondeful recipes! I find your blog posts really helpful in my learning to make Japanese homemade food, especially because I live in Sydney and can easily find the ingredients you list!
I want to try making this curry pan as it looks delicious. My question is, can you make them in advance and freeze them? Would you freeze them raw or already baked? How long can you store them in room temperature once made?
Hi Luciana, the curry bread probably is served best when they are freshly baked. However, if you have to you can freeze them after you baked them. It will last about a month in a freezer and you can microwave to reheat. It will be ok for a couple day in room temperature 😀
Thanks for your reply Shihoko! 🙂
I didn’t do very well with the bread so I’ve got a couple of questions for next time.
– was there supposed to be an egg in there? It is in the recipe, but not the ingredients list. I added it, but then had to add a lot more flour to get the dough to the right consistency.
– was the milk supposed to be warm? I don’t think my yeast reacted to it so the bread didn’t rise. I’m not sure if the yeast is just old though!
Hi Nikki, Thank you for trying and making the recipe. Sorry it did not turn out well for you. I fixed the recipe. You are right, there is no egg listed and you are not supposed to add egg either. Yes the yeast and everything need be not old…. otherwise the bread will not rise well and it is all depend the room temperature too.
If I do not have baking flour can I use all normal flour? Will it be very different?
I will assume yes, It will be different texture.
Hi, Do you add the whole egg or just yolk as i dont see it in the ingredients list?
Hi Thank you Pam to bring my attention to the recipe. I need to update the post and the recipe, It is whole egg 😀 I will update the recipe asap.
Just the bread alone is amazing, let alone the filling! I love foods that you can easily carry with you and especially when they’re filled with something! I wish I could reach through the screen and grab one… or two… ok maybe 3 😉
Thank you Kathleen 😀 It will be great if we could 3D print out and taste and flavour comes with it 😀 Then I will grab something from your blog.
Oh my. I’ve never had this before but I can tell that it is delicious! In Malaysia we have something similar call curry puffs with curry filling in a pastry outer layer. Just to die for. Love anything curry anyway! Yum.
Hi AiPing, yes it is yummy! Try it when you get back 😀
Oooooh!!! Yes!!!
Bread is one of my favourite foods but stuff it full of curry and I am in heaven.
This looks sensational!!!! I can just imagine the smell as you break one open! YUM!
Thank you, Claire 😀 You will love this if baking is the thing you like 😀