Chicken Katsu Curry

Ingredients

• 650 g boneless chicken breast (2 large), each sliced horizontally into 2 thin cutlets
• 1 tsp salt, for the chicken
• ½ tsp black pepper
• 4 tbsp plain flour, for dusting
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 120 g panko breadcrumbs
• 250 ml neutral oil, for shallow frying
• 2 tbsp neutral oil, for the sauce
• 2 onions, finely chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, grated
• 1 tbsp fresh ginger, grated
• 2 carrots, peeled and diced small
• 1 medium potato, peeled and diced small
• 2 tbsp plain flour, for the sauce
• 1½ tbsp mild curry powder
• ½ tsp garam masala
• 600 ml chicken stock, hot
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp tomato ketchup
• 1 tbsp honey or sugar
• ½ sweet apple, grated (optional)
• 300 g short-grain or sushi rice
• 450 ml water, for the rice
• salt, to taste
• 1 small cucumber, sliced, or 80 g pickled radish, to serve

Instructions

1. Rinse the rice in a bowl of cold water, swirling and draining until the water runs almost clear. Drain well and place in a pot with 450 ml water.
2. Bring the rice to a boil, cover, then reduce to the lowest heat and cook until the water is absorbed. Turn off the heat and leave it covered to steam.
3. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook the onions with a pinch of salt, stirring often, until soft and golden at the edges.
4. Add the garlic, ginger, carrots and potato and stir for 2 minutes. Sprinkle over 2 tbsp flour, the curry powder and garam masala and stir for 1 minute until the flour smells toasty and no dry patches remain.
5. Pour in the hot stock a little at a time, stirring to avoid lumps. Add the soy sauce, ketchup, honey and apple, then simmer partly covered until the potato and carrot are very tender and the sauce coats a spoon.
6. Meanwhile, pat the chicken dry and gently flatten each cutlet to an even thickness of about 1.5 cm. Season both sides with salt and pepper.
7. Set up three plates: flour, beaten eggs, and panko. Coat each cutlet in flour and shake off the excess, dip in egg, then press firmly into the panko on both sides. Rest the coated cutlets on a rack for 5 minutes so the crumbs stay on.
8. Blend the sauce with a stick blender until mostly smooth, leaving a little texture if you like. Taste and adjust with salt or a little more honey, then keep it warm on low heat.
9. Heat 250 ml oil in a wide frying pan over medium heat until a breadcrumb sizzles steadily. Fry 2 cutlets at a time until deep golden and the centre reaches 74°C, turning once. Fry the remaining cutlets the same way.
10. Drain the cutlets on a wire rack for 2 minutes so they stay crisp, then slice into strips about 2 cm wide.
11. Fluff the rice with a wet spoon. Serve it with the curry sauce poured alongside and the sliced katsu on top, keeping the crumb out of the sauce so it stays crisp. Add the cucumber or pickled radish on the side.

Tips

• Slicing the breasts into thin, even cutlets lets the chicken cook through before the crumb darkens.
• Press the panko on firmly and rest the coated cutlets briefly; this helps the coating stay on during frying.
• Keep the oil at medium heat. Too hot and the crumb burns before the centre is cooked; too cool and the cutlets turn greasy.
• Cooking the flour in the spices before adding stock gives the sauce body and a rounded flavour.