A big day for curry

Today, and January 22nd annually, is both Curry Rice Day カレーライスの日 and Curry Day カレーの日. What is the difference you ask! Well in Japan, curry isn't only served with rice. For example, you can also get curry udon and curry bread. Curry Rice specifically refers to the dish where curry is served over rice, or around rice as in the photo below! 

The reason the 22nd is Curry Rice Day is because this day marks a milestone in school lunch history. On January 22, 1982, the National School Nutritionist Association served curry rice to roughly eight million elementary and junior‑high students across the country to commemorate 35 years of school lunches. This large‑scale event helped popularize rice‑based school meals and further cemented curry’s status as a staple of Japanese home cooking. The below photo is of a curry rice lunch meal at a kindergarten in Japan.

January 22nd is also recognized as “Curry Day” by the All‑Japan Curry Manufacturers Association. They promote the dish’s cultural significance as well as encourage events and campaigns to celebrate it. Curry is said to have originated in India, but the curry here is quite distinctive to Japan. You can also get many different types of varieties too, though.