Chicken Katsu Recipe (2024)

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Chicken katsu is a popular Hawaiian dish. Tender chicken cutlets coated in a crispy, golden brown crust and dipped in tonkatsu sauce. Sure to be a favorite in your house.

Chicken Katsu Recipe (1)

Oh the good old chicken katsu. Definitely one of my favorite plate lunch options. Easy recipe with simple flavors. Perfect for the picky eater in your home.

Chicken is a twist on the classic Japanese tonkatsu. Tonkatsu is a breaded, deep-fried/tempura pork cutlet.

Cut through that crispy crust to find tender, juicy chicken. You can eat it plain or my favorite with tonkatsu sauce.

Chicken Katsu Recipe (2)

Here’s some other great plate lunch dishes to try: Some other great plate lunch options include: loco moco, chow fun, mochiko chicken, pastele stew, shoyu chicken, kalua pig, beef stew, laulau, or luau stew.

Chicken katsu ingredients

Chicken Katsu Recipe (3)

Katsu sauce recipe adapted from Aloha Kitchen. Check out this cookbook for yummy Hawaiian recipes.

How hot should the oil be to fry chicken thighs?

350F is a good temperature for frying and works well for this recipe.

What temperature should chicken be cooked to?

Safe minimum temperature of chicken should be 165F.

What sauce goes well with chicken katsu?

My favorite is tonkatsu sauce, which is a thick, Japanese style Worcestershire sauce. It’s often eaten with tonkatsu, but works well for chicken katsu as well. You could also use plain ketchup.

Chicken Katsu Recipe (4)

What do I serve with katsu?

A plate lunch of chicken katsu in Hawai’i generally comes with shredded cabbage, sticky white rice, and macaroni salad, but you can serve this with the common sides that go well with chicken as well. How about some roasted veggies, corn, or any starch.

Can you air fry chicken katsu?

Yes! Air fry at 350F for 18-20 minutes, flipping halfway through.

Can you bake chicken katsu?

You can do this as well. Bake at 400F for 25-30 minutes.

How to store chicken katsu?

This dish tastes best when eaten fresh, however if you happen to have leftovers you can store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. When you are ready to re-heat you can microwave, bake, or quickly fry again to bring back the crispiness.

Chicken Katsu Recipe (5)

How to make chicken katsu?

Heat oil in a large pan over medium high heat. While oil is heating up start dredging the chicken.

Place the eggs, panko, and flour in three separate shallow dishes.

Chicken Katsu Recipe (6)

Add garlic salt and pepper to the flour and mix to combine.

Next coat the chicken in flour. Be sure to shake off any excess flour. Then dip in the eggs being sure to cover the entire surface of the chicken. And lastly dip in the panko. You can press the panko on to the chicken to ensure even coverage.

Chicken Katsu Recipe (7)

Once the oil has reached about 350F, place the chicken in the pan and fry until golden brown, about 10-15 minutes flipping halfway through.

Chicken Katsu Recipe (8)

Remove chicken and place on a paper towel or a cooling rack set over a cookie sheet to catch excess oil.

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For the katsu sauce: In a medium bowl add ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, shoyu, sugar, and mirin. Whisk to combine.

Chicken Katsu Recipe (10)

Serve chicken with the katsu sauce as well as sticky white rice, macaroni salad, or tossed greens. Enjoy!

Chicken Katsu Recipe (11)

Chicken Katsu Recipe

Relle Lum

Chicken katsu is a popular Hawaiian dish. Tender chicken cutlets coated in a crispy, golden brown crust and dipped in tonkatsu sauce. Sure to be a favorite in your house.

4.59 from 24 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 12 minutes mins

Total Time 27 minutes mins

Servings 6 servings

Calories 595 kcal

Ingredients

For the chicken katsu

For the tonkatsu sauce

Instructions

  • Heat oil in a large pan over medium high heat. While oil is heating up start dredging the chicken.

  • Place the eggs, panko, and flour in three separate shallow dishes.

  • Add garlic salt and pepper to the flour and mix to combine.

  • Next coat the chicken in flour. Be sure to shake off any excess flour. Then dip in the eggs being sure to cover the entire surface of the chicken. And lastly dip in the panko. You can press the panko on to the chicken to ensure even coverage.

  • Once the oil has reached about 350F, place the chicken in the pan and fry until golden brown, about 10-15 minutes flipping halfway through.

  • Remove chicken and place on a paper towel or a cooling rack set over a cookie sheet to catch excess oil.

  • For the katsu sauce: In a medium bowl add ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, shoyu, sugar, and mirin. Whisk to combine.

  • Serve chicken with the katsu sauce as well as sticky white rice, macaroni salad, or tossed greens. Enjoy!

Notes

*You can use chicken breasts if you prefer.

*Panko is Japanese bread crumbs.

*Shoyu is a Japanese style soy sauce.

*Mirin is Japanese rice wine.

*Katsu sauce recipe adapted from Aloha Kitchen. Check out this cookbook for yummy Hawaiian recipes.

Nutrition

Serving: 1gCalories: 595kcalCarbohydrates: 53gProtein: 41gFat: 25gSaturated Fat: 7gPolyunsaturated Fat: 17gCholesterol: 259mgSodium: 1084mgFiber: 2gSugar: 11g

Keyword chicken, chicken katsu, chicken recipes, dinner recipes, Hawaii food, Hawaiian food, japanese food, katsu, keeping it relle, lunch recipes, plate lunch

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Chicken Katsu Recipe (12)

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Chicken Katsu Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is chicken katsu made of? ›

Katsu, a popular Japanese comfort food of breaded cutlets, is commonly made with chicken or pork. For this chicken version, boneless chicken breasts are pounded thin, dredged in flour, egg and panko, then fried until golden brown for an irresistible crispy crust that yields to — and protects — juicy meat inside.

What is katsu sauce made of? ›

This sauce is the traditional Japanese accompaniment for tonkatsu — Japanese-style breaded pork cutlets. It's made from a specially balanced blend of applesauce, onion, tomato paste, carrots and traditionally brewed Kikkoman® Soy Sauce that adds flavor to meat and poultry.

Why is chicken katsu so good? ›

Chicken Katsu is a Japanese-style chicken cutlet that is breaded and then fried. It comes out super crispy on the outside and perfectly juicy and tender on the inside. The chicken typically gets served with Tonkatsu Sauce. It's a Japanese sauce that's tangy, rich, and slightly sweet.

What's the difference between chicken katsu and breaded chicken? ›

Only two things distinguish it. First, katsu must be made with panko crumbs (as opposed to European-style breaded cutlets, where panko may occasionally be called for but is not a requirement). And second, it must be served with katsu sauce.

What does katsu mean in English? ›

Meaning of katsu in English

a Japanese dish consisting of a piece of meat, usually chicken, or vegetable, covered in bread crumbs, fried, then usually cut into strips and eaten with a sauce: One of my favorite dishes growing up, chicken katsu is basically the Japanese version of fried chicken.

What is the red stuff on katsu chicken? ›

f*ckujinzuke is a mixture of Japanese radish (daikon), lotus root, cucumber and eggplant which are preserved in a soya sauce and sweet cooking wine (mirin) base. The sweet brown or red relish is served as a garnish to Japanese curry (kare raisu).

How unhealthy is chicken katsu curry? ›

The curry is a sauce that tends to be milder in flavor than other curries. Unfortunately, katsu curry can be high in calories and not very healthy for you. Curries, in general, tend to be more fattening than people expect. If you're looking for a way to make your favorite dish waistline-friendly, look no further.

What cut of meat for katsu? ›

For those of you who are new to this Japanese dish, tonkatsu consists of tender pork loin (or fillet) that has been breaded and deep-fried to crunchy perfection. The word Ton (豚) comes from “pork” and Katsu (カツ) is an abbreviation of Katsuretsu (カツレツ), derived from the English word “cutlet.”

What is a substitute for katsu sauce? ›

Can you substitute tonkatsu sauce? Yes. If you don't have all the ingredients to make your own, you can substitute with tomato, Worcestershire or barbecue sauce. Otherwise, you could also shake things up by using other Japanese sauces such as takoyaki, okonomiyaki or yakisoba sauce instead.

Is chicken katsu just schnitzel? ›

Both are fried chicken preparations. Katsu is a Japanese recipe where the entire piece of chicken is breaded ( with other ingredients) and fried. Schnitzel is a boneless filet( I pound mine out) breaded ( again other ingredients ) and fried.

What is the difference between chicken katsu and tonkatsu? ›

Katsu is a Japanese dish of crispy fried cutlets coated with Panko bread crumbs. Popular varieties are chicken katsu (like this recipe) and tonkatsu (which is made with pork).

Do Japanese people eat chicken katsu? ›

Chicken Katsu is a classic Japanese home-cooked dish served with tonkatsu sauce and a side of shredded cabbage salad. These tender and crispy panko-breaded cutlets are surprisingly easy to make, even on a busy weeknight! They also freeze well and make for a delicious meal-prep item.

Why is katsu chicken pink? ›

Chemical changes occur during cooking. Oven gases in a heated gas or electric oven react chemically with hemoglobin in the meat tissues to give it a pink tinge. Often meat of younger birds shows the most pink because their thinner skins permit oven gases to reach the flesh.

What's the difference between panko and katsu? ›

The essential difference between Katsu and other styles of breaded cutlets is Katsu must be made with Panko. The crispy light delicate texture of Panko is what makes this dish so satisfying and delicious. Your choice of Panko is important if you plan on adding Katsu or any Panko fried foods to your menu.

Is karaage the same as katsu? ›

What is the difference between karaage and katsu? Katsu refers to deep-fried cutlet and commonly uses chicken breast that's been breaded with panko before frying, while karaage uses bite-size chicken thighs that are coated potato or corn starch. We serve katsu with a sweet-savory brown sauce called tonkatsu sauce.

How does katsu taste? ›

The Katsu curry bears little resemblance to Indian curry's in terms of flavour. It's a sweeter, richer flavour thanks to the variety of spices used and the soft onion and garlic flavours. The sweet flavours are enhanced by using soy sauce, bringing a delicious more-ish flavour to the dish.

What katsu contains? ›

Chicken katsu curry is a very popular curry dish – traditionally hailing from Japan, this dish comprises of panko breadcrumb coated chicken in a thick curry sauce and rice. Due to the ease of preparation and minimal ingredients list, it is a firm favourite with the British.

What is the difference between curry and katsu? ›

Katsu curry is just a variation of Japanese curry with a chicken cutlet on top. I used a store-bought block of Japanese curry roux which is commonly used in Japanese households. Chicken Cutlet (Japanese version of chicken schnitzel) brings the Japanese curry up to the next level. It's so delicious and filling.

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