I want to tell you about a new love of mine. In my head, I can hear my “Auntee” saying you don’t love things. You love people, you like things. But I think its love. The first time I tried curry, I made it at my apartment in Arizona. It was “oishii”!!!! I continued to make it. My favorite brand for curry is Golden Curry. 

It’s super easy to make. Saute some onions, garlic (I love garlic too), add your veggies, add water, break the cubes of curry mix into the water and let it do what it do! This was my jam for a few solid months before coming to live in Japan. I don’t know about you but when I love something, no matter what it is, I go hard in the paint for that thing. Eat it everyday, for every meal, super trill.

Since being in Japan, I’ve tried six types of curry. One box of Golden curry, one Indian restaurant (Sapna), Mr.Porukon’s Curry Cafe, Cafe Muche, and Coco’s Curry. Bruh! My first taste of Coco’s curry seared this brand into my heart. And also, literally scalded my tongue!

At Coco’s curry, you can choose what spice level works for you. The scale goes from 1-10. At first I was like, uh, what are these descriptions?! “Truly spicy”? “The real thing”? “Not for the faint hearted”? Who made this menu?! I thought, ok, I’m the hardest, trillest chica in da game. I can take a 4 and should be aight. I was so ready for “the real thing”. But I was not. NO. NOPE!!!!!!!! This is what came to my table.

I was eager. More eager because I’d heard awesome things about this chain. I dove in. Imagine, that cartoon where a character eats a hot pepper and his face turns red, his eyes start leaking, and steam comes out of his ears. That wasn’t quite me but its pretty close. It was by far the spicest thing that I’ve ever eaten. I went with Chelli san, our resident Mexican. If you know anything about Mexican culture, you know that some Mexican parents feed their children hot peppers. These kids are bred to endure and enjoy spice. Both Chelli and I got level 4 curry. We were both struggling to eat it. Noses were running. Mouths felt aflame. It was hard work to finish it.

Yes, those are ice cubes! By then end, I, who never eat dairy on purpose, at Ice cream for the rest of the day. I’m not proud of the ice cream. But I am proud of how much I actually ate. Here is a true scale that I found online. Take a look at how many hot peppers are in a level 4 curry!

I learned my lesson after this. On my next visit to Coco’s Curry, I got a level 3. It was still spicy but manageable. I’ve heard of people eating level 10. Bruh! You know what I think about that? They don’t love themselves. That curry “ate” its way through their intestines and out the other side!

If you ever happen to see a Coco’s Curry in the states, I highly recommend that you try it. Its so flavorful and delicious that you’ll want to go everyday. Ask questions about spice levels! Be realistic! I want you to enjoy your meal not struggle through it like I did.