Challenge authentic India! "Japanese curry" 15:22 on August 26th

Home of curry, India. A major Japanese curry chain store opened in India for the first time. We provide the taste that we have cultivated in Japan for many years. How can Indian people really take it? (New Delhi bureau photographer Akira Morishita)

First store opened at home

“Irasha Imase!”
The lively greetings from the Indian staff echoed at the first Indian store of Japan's leading curry chain “CoCo Ichibanya”. About 40 minutes by car from the capital city New Delhi. It opened in August in an area lined with commercial facilities and offices. The curry taste that you care about is basically the same as that offered at Japanese stores.

"It's different from Indian curry, but it's the best." "I'm not good at sushi, but I like Japanese curry!" "I want to make it at home if you give me recipes."

When I talked to Indian customers, I heard many positive opinions. I was a little surprised to see how delicious Japanese curry was eaten.

Originally evolved, Japanese curry

In the first place, people in India and other countries have been eating dishes that stew vegetables with plenty of spices. Curry, which we generally know about this dish, varies depending on the region. In the 18th century, the dish was introduced to Britain, which ruled India, and became known as "curry." It entered Japan in the Meiji era. After World War II, curry roux was developed in Japan and is widely used in general households, and has become established as one of the national foods.

“Pleasure” advance to India

"I want to try authentic Japanese curry." It was a long-cherished wish for a major chain. It has been over 40 years since we opened our first store in Aichi Prefecture in 1978. The store network has more than 1,400 stores in Japan and overseas, including Europe, America and Asia. I have been searching for the timing of entry into the real India for more than 10 years, but in addition to the infrastructure such as roads and commercial facilities being developed due to the economic development of this time, Indians visiting Japan were We heard about the reputation of saying "is delicious", so we decided to open this store.

Hirosa Nakamura COO
"India, where more than 1.3 billion people eat curry, has great market value for us. And the culture that Indian-born curry has transformed into Japan and spread I would like to introduce

Supports unique eating habits

When opening a store in India, the most important curry sauce comes from Japan. We also brought in the services we have cultivated in Japan, such as allowing you to choose the spiciness you like.

On the other hand, dealing with India's unique eating habits was an important issue. Hindus, who make up about 80% of the population, do not eat beef, followed by Muslims who do not eat pork. Furthermore, it is said that 30% of vegetarians who do not eat the meat itself will eat it. Therefore, we use curry sauce that does not contain any meat extract. The kitchen has also been devised with a cooking area exclusively for vegetarians.

We made trial and error in the field to try to incorporate ingredients familiar to Indian people in the menu. As a result, we have decided to incorporate multiple "local menus" such as "Paneer," cheese that is often eaten locally, and "Parata," which is one of the staple foods.

The price you care about is about JPY 480 to JPY 900 in Japanese yen. Targeting the middle class, the price is a little higher than general local curry.

Suddenly hit Corona

Initially, the planned opening was late March. Around that time, the number of people infected with the new coronavirus also began to increase in India. The government blocks the whole country at once and enforces strict restrictions on going out. As a result, preparations for opening a store have almost stopped.

Approximately three months later, I was able to resume full-scale preparations, but the work did not proceed as expected because I needed to take measures to prevent infection. While many Japanese were forced to return to Japan for a while, and the support from Japan could not be reached, Mr. Nakamura, who was in charge of the site, stayed alone in the field and gave guidance to the staff.

Hirosa Nakamura, COO
“I wanted to make sure that the infection measures were well-established, open, and eat our curry. In the future, Japanese curry would become established as part of the Indian diet. I want to see him go.''

Will it become established

A few weeks after opening on August 3rd. The new coronavirus measures helped to reduce the number of seats, but the process started with a fumble, but the word of mouth gradually spread the word of the word, and it is said that regular customers are also starting.

“Indian curry is high in calories because it uses a lot of spices and oil, but this curry is healthy for
me .” A customer I spoke with also reflected a growing health consciousness in India in recent years, “ I felt the possibility of "Japanese curry".

India is suffering severe damage to the economy, including the food service industry, due to the outbreak of new coronavirus infection. I hope that the struggle for the establishment of “Japanese curry” will be bright news for both Japan and India.

New Delhi Branch
Cameraman
Akira Morishita
Joined in 2002 After working at
Nagasaki Station, Hiroshima Station, Video Center,
Osaka Station, etc.,
currently
in charge of coverage of South Asia mainly in India.