How to Cook the Best Tonkatsu

Filipinos love to adopt different cultures, traditions, lifestyles, and most of all different cuisines from different nations and countries. 

And one of the most popular dish is Pork Tonkatsu. This pork recipe from Japan catch the heart of every Filipinos. It is a combination of spices influence by Japanese and Western cuisines. 

Surely, you can’t get enough of this recipe of tonkatsu. If you want to try this one- homemade tonkatsu recipe, you are on the right track. Keep on reading because in this blog, you will know more about japanese fried pork cutlet including the dishes to serve with this,the variations, ways of cooking it, cooking tips and troubleshooting,  and most especially how to cook the best tonkatsu recipe. 

So, prepare your notepad and pen, c’mon let us start! 

What is Tonkatsu?

Tonkatsu refers to deep fried pork cutlet coated with japanese panko breadcrumbs. It is a well-known Japanese dish that is an all time favorite. 

If you want to cook perfect tonkatsu, you can use to different main cuts of pork. You can use pork fillet or hire-katsu, and pork roast or rosu-katsu. Pork Fillet or Hire-katsu is a part contains the pork tenderloin, while the other one- pork roast or rosu-katsu uses a cut of pork that has a strip of fat along the side. Rosu-katsu is pretty much juicer than the other one because of the marbled fat on it. The other one is way more expensive than the first one. It is a high quality of meat which is suitable for deep fried since it will not be dry when you make tonkatsu. 

You can also use pork loins, and pork chops that you can buy and find to asian grocery stores to make tonkatsu. It is pounded into perfect thickness using meat mallet. 

Aside from pork, you can make homemade tonkatsu with other different type of meat and breaded it with fresh panko breadcrumbs and deep fried it including minced meat, ham katsu, chicken katsu or chicken cutlet made from chicken breast, beef katsu, fish katsu, and cheese katsu. There is a wide variety of proteins and other recipes you can use to cook the recipe. 

What is tonkatsu sauce made of?

Japanese tonkatsu or Pork cutlets are not complete with a savory tonkatsu sauce. A kick of sweet, sour, yet savory flavor will enhance the taste of the dish. 

Tonkatsu Sauce is made of different varieties of fruits and vegetables including dates, tomatoes, prunes, apples, carrots, lemon juice, onions, and celery. It also contains a lot of spices including vinegar, soy sauce, and sugar. You can also add Worcestershire sauce to give more flavor to the pork katsu.

But most pork cutlets are served with a homemade sauce that has a sweet and tangy flavor. It is a bit of yellow mustard that gives thickness to the tonkatsu sauce. 

While others like restaurants' savory sauce recipe include tomato ketchup and fruity Worcestershire sauce. You can also add grind toasted sesame seeds for extra flavor. 

Ways to cook Tonkatsu

Pork katsu can be cooked in many ways or methods. So, here are the cook modes you can use to cook Japanese pork cutlets- stovetop, deep fryer, and air-fryer. 

Stovetop

Cook tonkatsu is normally done by Japanese cooking it in a fryer.  However, you can cook it by pan-frying it using a stove at your home in medium heat, especially when the meat is already pounded or have the perfect thickness. 

Deep Fryer

This is the most applicable way of cooking pork cutlets. It is using a deep fryer to fry the pork chop or pork loin in deep frying oil. In a very hot oil set at 320º Fahrenheit in a deep frying pan, slowly put the pork and cooked it until golden brown. Make sure to flip it over side by side so the cook will be equal. Once cooked, you can remove the meat and place it in a cooling rack to remove all excess oil and cool the pork katsu down.

Air-Fryer

Air frying is another best way to cook pork cutlets. It gives a crispy coating on the outside, but the meat is tender and juicy on the inside. 

In this method, you have to preheat the air fryer to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Then, you can lay the pork on a plate and then season it with salt and pepper.  

On a plate, put panko breadcrumbs and beat eggs on a bowl. Coat the pork chops with plain flour first so the egg will stick to the meat. You can also add black pepper to it if you prefer. Then, dip it to the beaten eggs.  Dredge the pork in the panko breadcrumbs. Do it twice until the protein is covered perfectly. 

In the air fyer’s basket, spray it with non stick cooking spray then place the meat. And air fry it for about ten minutes. Make sure you flip the side of the pork katsu by a spatula to cook the other side. Leave it for another ten minutes again. 

Variations

Pork Katsu is not a plain, deep-fried meat. You can elevate the dish by making more recipes of the versions or variations of it. So, in this section, you can find some of the famous variations of fried pork cutlets.

Tonkatsu with Cabbage Salad Recipe

This first version of pork katsu is the easiest and most common since you serve it as a set of meal or also known as teishoku featuring the fried pork cutlets, soup, rice, and raw shredded cabbage with pickled cucumbers on the side. Seasoned it with salt and pepper as you preferred. 

The soup served with this is either tonjiru or miso soup. Tonjiru is a soup made from pork broth (which is made from boiled pork bones) and miso. This meal comes with lemon juice and clean flavor of the finely shredded cabbage which contrast to the savory and richness of the juicy pork. 

Katsudon Japanese Pork Cutlet and Egg Rice Bowl (Tonkatsu Donburi)

This tonkatsu is a perfect version of deep-fried pork cutlets in a egg rice bowl. First, you have to prepare the meat by using a meat mallet to get the correct thickness of it before seasoning it with different spices, including salt and pepper.Then, add a small amount of excess flour before dipping it on the beaten egg. 

In a bowl, beat the eggs. Put the panko bread crumbs(you can use nama panko) into a bowl or baking sheet that can fit the meat. Coat the pork with panko bread crumbs. Dip it and coat it with eggs and nama panko twice. You can also add black pepper if you prefer. 

Heat the oil over medium heat. When the hot oil is ready, slowly lay the pork on the deep frying pan and cook for about five to six minutes then, flip it over and cook the other side for about five to six minutes until golden brown. Remove it from the deep frying pan and place it on the cooling rack or wire rack. Put it in a plate with paper towels on it. 

While resting the deep fried pork, in a small bowl, make a sauce contains sugar, soy sauce, stock from pork bones and Mirin. Add oil to a pan over medium heat, then, and add sliced onion. Saute the onions until it is slightly caramelized and translucent.

In different bowl, beat two eggs. Pour the stock over the caramelized onions and slice your pork katsu into strip or small pieces. Place it on top of the stock and onions then drizzle the egg mixture over the stock and onion-katsu mixture. Cook it over medium low heat and serve it over a bowl of steamed rice and garnish with freshly type scallions or green onions. 

Pork Katsu Curry

This is a Japanese dish made from rice and curry and topped with stripped of homemade tonkatsu cutlet and homemade tonkatsu sauce. Japanese curry is a bit different from traditional Indian-style curry. It is sweeter and more mild in flavor. It is made from grated apple and honey rather than bold and hot spices.  

This Japanese dish can be served and enjoyed with some crunchy pickled cucumber, and  a hard boiled egg. It is the most common toppings in curry from Japan.

Aside from this homemade tonkatsu protein, you can use chicken to create chicken katsu curry. 

To make curry sauce, first, sauté the onions until perfectly cooked, then add the vegetables- potatoes and carrots. Before adding water and bring it to boil, make sure that the vegetables are slightly cooked. 

Simmer it for about ten minutes over medium low heat. Then, you can now add the curry paste, stir it carefully until it is fully dissolved.

For another ten minutes cook it on a low heat. Afterward, add the sliced pork cutlets. Stir it for a few minutes then,drizzle with the homemade tonkatsu sauce and served. 

Deep-fried Pork Cutlet with Cheese (Tonkatsu)

This last version is definitely popular not only in Japan but also in the Philippines and in South Korea. It is a pounded cut of pork thinly rolled over a thick block of mozzarella cheese. 

This is not a traditional pork katsu dish, it is another version originating in Japan. Cheese katsu is made with either cut of pork or chicken. The only difference is that, this dish is stuffed with mozzarella cheese which melts once deep fried.

This recipe uses low moisture cheese or a block or mozzarella. Generally, you can found both pork and cheese in Asian grocery stores. 

To make this pork tonkatsu, first, place a piece of pork loin or pork chop in plastic wrap or parchment paper. You can use a meat mallet or any meat tenderizer to pound the pork until the correct thinkness is achieve. 

Once done pounded the meat, seasoned it with great amount of spices including salt and black pepper. Then, you can lay the chees on the top of the meat. Gently rolled it, but make sure it is secured and continue rolling it until it is closed. Using a plastic wrap, tightly wrap the mat so it will keep its form. Place it to fridge or freezer for about thirty minutes. 

Heat a deep frying pan or large skillet over medium high heat. Before tossing it to the oil, rolled the meat to beaten egg and panko bread crumbs twice until all is covered. Toast the meat until the bread crumbs set to golden brown for about 12 minutes. Then, remove from the pan, drizzle with tonkatsu sauce and served.

Best served with 

Pairing katsu recipe with side dishes will make this into another level. It will highlighted and elevated the taste and flavor that it produces. 

Steamy Rice

Rice is perfect to served with pork tonkatsu, it will surely helps to let the taste and flavor of the dish pops out. 

Ginisang Gulay 

Pork and vegetables like ginisang gulay is great combination because vegetables balances the savory and salty flavor if the pork tonkatsu sauce. 

Salad 

Pork katsu and salad is another wonderful combination to serve during lunch or dinner. It will highlighted the succulent flavor of the pork tonkatsu. 

Bread

You can make sandwich with pork katsu and bread. If you are on a diet and want to eat sandwich that taste superb, then try this combo.

Troubleshooting

Cooking tips is very important when you are creating a wonderful dish like this one. To avoid ruining the dish. Here are some of the tips so you will not mess this up:

To avoid the pork tonkatsu to be oily or greasy, Place it in a wire rack or cooling rack and pat it with paper towels so it would soak up all the excess oil and grease. 

You can use fresh bread if you cannot find bread crumbs in the store. Make sure to check the meat side by side to avoid the bread crumbs to be burnt. 

If you will reheating chilled curry, try to add some water to it because when it is cool down the roux will thicken it. 

You can heat the frozen curry with a hot water bath or microwave it.

Trivia

Pork loins are considered high in saturated fats. And also, pork chops has five times saturated fat. 

You can find many japanese keywords in this article because the dish is originated in Japan. Did you know that katsu is short for katsuretsu, which means cutlets. 

Pork tonkatsu, or pork cutlets usually served with shredded cabbage, miso soup, and steamed rice. 

Did you know that a boneless, and thin cut of meat means cutlet? Yes! You read it right. 

Mirin is a kind of rice wine used in Japanese cooking which is similar to sake or lower alcohol content. 

You can also make chicken cutlet or chicken katsu recipe using the other ingredients that pork tonkatsu has. 

In India, curry is the most well-known dish but as for Japan, it has grown to love curry due to British influence long time ago. 

Substitution

Tips in cooking are very important as we have to create this wonderful dish. If you are new in cooking, you are on the right page. 

You substitute the sauce of katsu with tomato, Worcestershire or barbecue sauce if you don't have all the ingredients.  

You can substitute pork broth by chicken broth. 

You can choose between two different categories of panko dried or fresh to use in cooking pork katsu recipe. 

Equipment

You will need a great number of types of equipment when cooking this cuisine. You will need a sharp knife, meat mallet, wire rack or cooling rack, baking sheet, chopping board, spatula, tongs, paper towels, bowl, air fryer, stove, and deep fryer. 

Storage 

The way to keep the dish is very important if you created a lot or big portion. 

You can keep tonkatsu in an airtight container and place it to the fridge. 

Japanese Curry can be stored up to three days in the fridge and one month in freezer. 

Conclusion 

This very popular and delicious Japanese cuisine is perfect to serve with your loved ones and your friends. Let’s try to cook this dish together! If you want to know more recipes, kindly like and visit this website. Share this with your friends and loved ones. 

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