Tonkatsu
from Kay & Hiroki
Tonkatsu is deep-fried breaded pork cutlet, always served with finely shredded cabbage, rice and Tonkatsu sauce. Tonkatsu came to Japan from the West, but it is a very popular daily food in Japan and can be found on the menu of most casual restaurants. There are also some restaurants that specialize in Tonkatsu and serve nothing else. A few of these are extremely good and rightfully famous: Hamakatsu in Nagasaki, for example, and Tonkatsu Wako, which is now a chain in Tokyo. On our family trip to Japan in 2002, Ken, Naomi and Chip treated us to dinner at Hamakatsu in Nagasaki on our wedding anniversary. That meal is still memorable, even though the ingredients seemed to be the same as in this recipe.
Ingredients (These are general, adjust quantities as needed.)
1 pound pork loin or tenderloin, cut into slices about ½ inch thick
flour
salt
pepper
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups Japanese bread crumbs (Panko)
cabbage, finely shredded, preferably soft Asian cabbage
oil for deep frying
Tonkatsu sauce (available in bottles in Asian markets)
rice, preferably short-grain Japanese rice
lemon wedges, optional
Prepare ahead
Slice the cabbage really really thin. (I can't do this satisfactorily. Hiroki does it. Ken sprinkles it with a small amount of rice vinegar to soften it.) Set the cabbage aside.
Put rice on to cook.
Have three plates set up, one with the beaten egg, one with the flour, one with the Panko.
Remove fat from pork slices, or slash the fat to keep the pork from curling when cooked.
Lightly salt and pepper the pork slices on both sides.
Dredge a slice of pork in flour, then dip it in the egg, then press it into the breadcrumbs. Repeat with all pork cutlets.
To deep-fry
In a deep-fryer or a heavy-bottomed pot, heat oil to about 350 degrees F. You will need to have about 3 inches of oil. Put 1 or 2 or 3 cutlets into the hot oil, do not crowd them. Deep-fry until golden on both sides, turning with long chopsticks once or twice.
You will be cooking the Tonkatsu by sound as well as by sight. A Japanese friend taught me to listen for the rapid bubbling sound of the oil that produces a nicely cooked and browned cutlet. If the sound slows down or the cutlets begin to take longer to be done, raise the heat. You can hear this sound on the web: Type in
This is the home page of Hamakatsu, the famous Tonkatsu restaurant headquartered in Nagasaki. You will hear the sound and see a wonderful picture of Tonkatsu ready to serve.
Test the first cutlet to be sure it is cooked through. As each cutlet is done, drain on absorbent towels or on a wire rack. (Ken keeps the cutlets warm in a 225 degree F oven.)
To serve
Cut each cutlet at ¾ inch intervals into bite-sized pieces that can be managed with chopsticks. Arrange the slices as if uncut on a plate with a generous amount of the shredded cabbage. Serve with a bowl of rice and, if you have access to a Japanese grocery store, a side dish of pickles. Pass the Tonkatsu sauce.
Variations
The traditional way of serving Tonkatsu is described above. Of course you can also leave the cutlet whole and use a knife and fork. You can cut the pork into bite sized pieces and string it on wooden skewers before frying it. Some vegetables and fruits are delicious dipped in flour, egg and Panko as above, deep-fried on skewers and eaten with Tonkatsu sauce. Chunks of banana are my favorite. Apples, peeled and cut into slices and pre-cooked, are good. Sweet potato, peeled and sliced and pre-cooked is also recommended.
They say you can make Tonkatsu sauce
but I would personally not try it, since the joy of this dish is the sauce. If you want to try making it, here is one suggested recipe, which I have never tried:
4 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons Ketchup
1 teaspoon soy sauce