The sailors aboard the navy vessel Hashidate know what's for lunch long before the telltale aromas escape from the galley. It's Friday, which means one thing: curry.
Yosuke Oyama, the ship's chef for three decades, has been up since dawn softening onions, stirring a pot of chicken stock, and performing a quick inventory of spices, apple puree, ginger, garlic, and a red wine and honey reduction for extra umami. After a chorus of "Itadakimasu" - bon appétit - the mess deck goes silent except for the appreciative noises of Japan's maritime self-defence forces (SDF) personnel. "The crew love hamburgers, steak, sushi and ramen… they eat a lot like children," jokes Oyama, who's accustomed to cooking for up to 500 sailors at once. "And curry is always a winner."
This Friday curry tradition dates back to the 1800s, when Anglo-Indian officers in the Royal Navy are thought to have introduced curry powder to Japan after Commodore Perry's "black ships" forced the end of centuries of sakoku isolation in the 1850s. It turned out curry powder contained enough vitamin B1 to prevent beriberi, a deficiency that had been killing soldiers living on plain white rice. Cases plummeted, and military personnel quickly developed a taste for anglicised curry and rice - made with meat, vegetables, and a flour-thickened sauce less likely to splash in rough seas. A more romantic origin story involves shipwrecked British sailors coming ashore with curry powder rations.
Today, kaigun kare (navy curry) is a source of fierce pride and fierce rivalry between SDF bases. Together, Japan's sailors get through 45 tonnes of curry a year - equivalent to 2.25 million meals. Yokosuka claims the crown as navy curry capital, with its seagull mascot Sucurry greeting visitors at the railway station, a restaurant serving the 1908 recipe, and an annual curry festival in May attracting tens of thousands. Tradition dictates that Yokosuka curry must be accompanied by salad, pickles, and a glass of milk for nutritional balance.
But the dish has also landed some fans in hot water. In 2022, six Japanese sailors were suspended after helping themselves to free curry for up to three years at an SDF base they weren't entitled to. The previous year, a seafood curry shaped like the disputed Takeshima/Dokdo islands caused diplomatic tensions with South Korea. Aboard the Hashidate, First Lieutenant Yosuke Ohtsuki admits he rarely eats curry at home, noting some families wait until the sailor is away on a voyage before eating it. "If it's Friday we know it's going to be a good day."
Chef Oyama keeps things interesting with variety: keema curry, seafood curry, leftover sauce on udon noodles. He recently fried apple puree into the curry and declared it delicious. For Chief of Operations Hideaki Ito, the ritual is non-negotiable: "I never tire of eating curry. In fact, if I don't eat curry it messes around with my body clock."