Margarita's International Recipes

Japan

Tori Katsu

Chicken Katsu


Chicken Katsu


This is a stove top recipe.

Chicken katsu is a chicken version of tonkatsu, the Japanese version of wiener schnitzel. The latter was first served at a restaurant in Tokyo in the 19th century, as a type of yoshoku, or western-inspired dish. It consists of a breaded pan-fried chicken cutlet, served with sauce.

Katsu sauce itself is an adaptation of a Worcestershire sauce, which incorporates fruity and sweet flavors. Commercial versions seem to include a variety of fruits and spices, but most of the home versions I found online were a combination of ketchup and Worcestershire sauce, to which a variety of other ingredients are added. Clearly personal taste come into play, as recipes feature ingredients in very varied proportions. The recipe below is for the one I made. My husband liked it, but I wasn't very fond of it - then again, I'm not a big fan of the katsu sauce served at either Japanese or Hawaiian restaurants either. Still, if I was to make it again, I would probably omit the oyster sauce and perhaps tweak with the proportions. Adding some prepared mustard (which I saw in a recipe) might help.

The cutlet itself is pretty much identical to the chicken milanesas I grew up eating - the only difference is that in this Japanese version the chicken is first coated with flour, which is not used for milanesas. Also, panko is far coarser than Argentinian breadcrumbs, which are even finer than American ones. There is much to love about this Japanese method, however - the cutlets were very crispy on the outside and still juicy in the inside - always a challenge with chicken breasts. You can, of course, use thighs - but they are harder to work with for these purposes.

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Chicken Katsu

Ingredients

  • 4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
  • salt & pepper to taste
  • flour for coating
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • panko breadcrumbs
  • oil for frying

    For the sauce

  • 3 Tbsp ketchup
  • 1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 Tbsp oyster sauce (optional)
  • 1 1/2 tsp soy sauce
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • 1/2 tsp mirin (optional)
  • 1 lemon, cut in wedges.

Directions

Cover chicken breasts with plastic wrap and pound until they are about 1/2" thick. If they are too large, cut in two. Season with salt and pepper.

Place flour, eggs and panko crumbs in shallow pans. Lightly coat each chicken breast with the flour, then cover in egg and dip into the panko crumbs, making sure the whole surface is covered.

Heat a thin layer of oil on a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Working in batches, add the chicken breasts, pan frying until they are golden brown and cooked through on both sides, about 3-4 minutes per side.

Make the sauce

While the chicken is cooking, make the sauce by mixing all sauce ingredients.

Serve chicken with sauce and lemon wedges.


Adapted from a recipe at


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