Tonkatsu

How to Cook Tonkatsu

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1. Score through the fat and sinew round the edge of each steak at 2 cm intervals.

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2. Bat the steaks lightly to an even thickness and season both sides with the salt and pepper.

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3. Soak the shredded cabbage in iced water for 10 minutes, then spin or pat dry.

   Mark done Start 10 min timer

4. Coat each steak in flour, then beaten egg, then panko, pressing the crumbs on firmly.

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5. Heat the oil to 170°C / 340°F.

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6. Fry two cutlets for 6 minutes, turning once, until the crust is pale gold.

   Mark done Start 6 min timer

7. Drain on a rack, standing them on edge rather than flat.

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8. Repeat with the other two, then rest all four for 4 minutes.

   Mark done Start 4 min timer

9. Slice each cutlet across into 2 cm strips, keeping the shape.

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10. Serve with the cabbage, tonkatsu sauce, sesame seeds and lemon.

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What Can Go Wrong

1. Score the edge or the cutlet curls.
2. 170°C / 338°F, not hotter — the crust will be ahead of the meat otherwise.
3. Rest on a rack standing on edge, so the underside stays crisp.

If You're Missing Something

• Panko gives the crunchiest crust here, but ordinary dried breadcrumbs will still fry crisp if that's what's in the cupboard.

The Short Version

Score through the line of fat and sinew that runs round the edge of a pork loin, every two centimetres. Left whole it contracts in the oil and curls the cutlet into a dome, so the middle never touches the fat and cooks unevenly. Fry at 170°C / 340°F, which is lower than instinct says: panko browns fast and pork loin this thick needs six minutes to come through.

What to Serve It With

Shredded cabbage with lemon · Miso soup · Steamed rice

Sides from the same cuisine on this site: Nasu Dengaku, Sunomono, Gomae.

Keeping Tonkatsu

Eat fresh. Reheat in a 200°C / 390°F oven for 8 minutes rather than a microwave.

The Numbers per Serving

No nutrition figures are given for this recipe: they cannot be worked out reliably from its ingredient list (how much frying oil the food takes up cannot be known from the recipe). Why some recipes have none.

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