Pasta night made easy with this easy Japanese Curry Pasta in a rice cooker – a fusion of flavours that’s as easy as it is irresistible. Curry magic in minutes!
Ever since I made my Rice Cooker Mac and Cheese, I’ve been trying to make more pasta dishes in the rice cooker! This Rice Cooker Japanese Pasta has been one of my recent favourites. Pasta, vegetables and ground beef gets cooked in the rice cooker, and stirred in with japanese curry roux cubes for instant indulgence – you’re going to love this one. Not only is this one-pot wonder irresistible, it’s perfect for those hectic days or when you’re craving an effortless flavour explosion.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- One Pot Wonder: Everything cooks in one pot in the rice cooker! Minimal cleanup with the rice cooker handling the heavy lifting, making it a go-to for those who appreciate simplicity.
- Quick and Easy: Perfect for those hectic days! Achieves a complex flavor profile in a fraction of the time, making it perfect for busy days or weeknight dinners.
- Versatile: Easily customizable with your favorite pasta shapes, veggies, and protein choices, giving you the flexibility to make it your own.
Key Ingredients for Rice Cooker Japanese Curry Pasta
- Pasta: Any short pastas will work, I used Conchigliette to grab as much of that saucy curry!
- Canned chopped tomatoes (optional): I added this in because I had these leftover, and I LOVED the sweet tang it brought to the curry. If you don’t have this, replace with 1 cup of water.
- Water: I used the tomato can (save those last bits of tomato in the can – top up the tomato can with water!)
- Frozen Veggies: Or your favourite chopped veggies of choice! I always have some frozen vegetables in the fridge for convenience, but I’ve used leftover vegetables. Make sure to thaw or give the frozen veggies a quick rinse with warm water before adding it to the pot.
- Garlic + onions: The main aromatic duo for the dish.
- Ground Beef: This is going to add proteins and a beefy flavour to the curry. ONLY use proteins that cook quickly, such as ground beef or seafood for rice cooker pasta. Do not go beyond the amount indicated in this recipe as well, to make sure that the beef can cook through fully. Any other proteins might not be able to cook as thoroughly. The pasta will cook much quickly than rice. To use other proteins, I recommend cooking them separately and adding it to the pot after.
- 2 cubes of Japanese roux: Any Japanese Curry roux of choice will work. This is the one that I use and love.
- Cheese: Optional, but a helping of cheese melted in at the end will make this an indulgent treat. I use a combo of mozzarella and cheddar.
Key Equipment
The key equipment you need for one-pot goodness: a Rice Cooker! This can work with ANY standard rice cooker, but if you’ve been here a while, you know that I can’t shut up about my Zojirushi!
- Zojirushi NS-ZCC10 Neuro Fuzzy Cooker
- Zojirushi NS-ZAQ10 Micom Fuzzy Logic (the exact one I purchased – this is the same as the model above; it’s labelled differently in Singapore/Southeast Asia. This is a ‘Made in Japan’ model.)
The Zojirushi range of rice cookers are well-loved for its reliability, effortlessly perfect rice each time and best of all… the musical chime when your rice is done! I enjoy my Zojirushi and highly recommend it.
My conchigliette cooks to al dente in the Zojirushi in 20 minutes. Every rice cooker will have varying cook times.
How to Make Rice Cooker Japanese Curry Pasta
1. Assemble in the Rice Cooker
Layer in the pasta, canned tomatoes, water, frozen veggies, garlic, onions, and ground beef. Stir to let the flavours mingle, and to make sure even cooking of the ingredients.
2. Top with Roux Magic
Top it off with the Japanese curry roux cubes. There is no need to stir it in at this stage.
3. Cook Away
Cover with the lid, set your rice cooker, and let it do its thing for 15-20 minutes.
4. Check for Pasta Perfection
At the 15-minute mark, check the pasta. If the pasta is al dente, move to the next step. If it’s still not cooked through, check every minute after until the pasta is al dente.
5. Stir the Curry Roux In
Stir until the curry roux melts into a luscious curry.
6. Final Touch
Top with cheese and stir until it melts – and just like that, your dish is done!
7. Serve and Enjoy
Turn off the rice cooker or remove the pot to prevent the pasta from overcooking. Plate the pasta, and enjoy!
More Recipes Like This
Rice Cooker Japanese Curry Pasta
2-3
servings5
minutes20
minutesIngredients
1 cup pasta (conchigliette or your favorite shape)
1 cup canned chopped tomatoes
1.5 cups water (reuse the tomato can)
1 cup frozen vegetables, or chopped vegetables of choice
Garlic + onions, finely chopped
100g or 1/2 cup ground beef
2 cubes Japanese curry roux
1/2 cup cheese (mozzarella + cheddar)
Directions
- In the rice cooker pot, layer pasta, canned tomatoes, water, vegetables, chopped garlic, onions, and ground beef. Stir to combine evenly.
- Top the ingredients with Japanese curry roux cubes.
- Close the rice cooker lid and set it to the regular cooking settings. Set a timer, and let it cook for 15-20 minutes.
- At the 15-minute mark, check if the pasta is cooked to your liking. If not, check every minute until it reaches al dente perfection.
- Once the pasta is cooked, stir until the curry roux completely melts into a luscious curry sauce.
- Stop there, or top the dish with your favourite cheese and stir until melted for a creamy, indulgent layer.
- Immediately remove the rice cooker pot to prevent the pasta from cooking further. Plate pasta and serve immediately!
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