Katsu, originally made with pork (katsuretsu) was invented in Japan in 1899 in a restaurant in Tokyo called Rengatei. It is similar to an escalope or schnitzel and is served with a sweet and salty sauce. Torikatsu is made with butterflied chicken thighs rolled in egg and panko and then deep fried. The result is a crispy chicken cutlet that is equally juicy on the inside. Traditionally buttermilk is not used for this recipe but i found it really helps in breaking down the protein and makes the chicken very succulent @sarchakra
PREP TIME: 40 mins
COOK TIME:30 mins
YIELDS: Serves 6
Ingredients
- Chicken 6 pieces
- Cornstarch ½ cup
- Buttermilk 1 cup
- Salt to taste
- Pepper 2 tsp
- Egg 2
- Panko breadcrumbs 2 cups
- Vegetable oil for frying
Sauce
- Tomato ketchup ¼ cup
- Ginger 1 tbsp, grated
- Garlic 2 tsp, grated
- Apple cider vinegar 1 tbsp
- Black pepper powder 2 tsp
- Soy sauce 2 tbsp
- Demerara sugar 1 tbsp
- Mirin 1 tbsp
Assembly
- Green onion for garnish
- Basmati or Jasmine rice to serve
- Back sesame seeds
- White sesame seeds
- Celery to serve
Method
Tonkatsu Sauce
- In a small bowl mix together the following: ketchup, mirin, Demerara sugar, ginger, garlic, apple cider vinegar, black pepper powder and soy sauce.
- Keep aside.
For the Chicken Katsu
- Using a meat mallet beat the chicken till thin and flat. Marinate chicken in buttermilk. Leave aside for at least ½ hour.
- In a bowl mix together cornstarch and eggs.
- In a plate season Panko breadcrumbs with salt and pepper.
- Discard excess liquid from chicken. Dredge chicken in cornstarch mixture. Press Panko breadcrumbs on both sides of the chicken. Repeat for the rest.
- Heat oil. Fry chicken 2 at a time taking care not to overcrowd the pan.
- Drain excess oil on kitchen towels.
- Serve chicken Katsu on a plate of basmati rice . Sprinkle white and black sesame seeds and chopped green onions. Serve with the Tonkatsu sauce and sliced celery.
Notes
Using a meat mallet is essential. Since the chicken is meant to cook super fast this ensures that it gets cooked in the shortest time. The buttermilk also helps to tenderize the meat. Use regular milk if you do not have buttermilk.
Usually the chicken is cut with a knife held diagonally, a technique called Sogigiri which allows the chicken to cook fast. I used a meat mallet as well as giving some diagonal cuts to the pieces as my chicken thighs were originally quite thick.
Panko (Japanese) breadcrumbs is key to this recipe for a crispy katsu.
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