Chicken Katsu Curry
When I realised Japanese katsu and Polish schabowy are basically cousins, my brain exploded. Both are pounded meat cutlets, coated in flour-egg-breadcrumbs, and fried until golden. Poland and Japan, separated by 8,000 kilometres and approximately zero shared history, independently decided that the best thing to do with a piece of meat is bread it and fry it. This is proof that some culinary ideas are universal truths.
Ingredients
For the Chicken Katsu
- 2 large chicken breasts, butterflied or pounded to 1cm thick
- 1/2 cup flour
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1.5 cups panko breadcrumbs
- Salt and pepper
- Vegetable oil for frying
For the Curry Sauce
- 1 large onion, diced
- 2 carrots, diced
- 2 medium potatoes, cubed
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
- 2 tablespoons curry powder
- 1 tablespoon flour
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon butter
Method
Make the Curry Sauce First
- Melt butter in a pot over medium heat. Cook the onion for 5-6 minutes until soft and golden. Add garlic and ginger — 1 minute, fragrant, not brown. Add curry powder and flour, stir for 1 minute until the raw flour taste cooks out and the spices bloom (you'll smell them intensify). Pour in the broth, stirring to prevent lumps. Add carrots, potatoes, soy sauce, and honey. Simmer for 20-25 minutes until the vegetables are tender and the sauce is thick enough to coat a spoon. If you want it smoother, blend half with an immersion blender and stir it back in.
Make the Katsu
- While the sauce simmers, bread the chicken. Set up three shallow dishes: flour (seasoned with salt and pepper), beaten eggs, and panko. This is the exact same breading station I use for schabowy and schabowy burgers — flour, egg, crumbs. Polish muscle memory, Japanese result. Coat each chicken breast in flour, dip in egg, press firmly into panko on both sides. Really press the panko in — it needs to adhere or it falls off during frying.
- Heat about 1cm of oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When the oil shimmers, add the breaded chicken. Cook 4-5 minutes per side until deep golden and crispy, and the internal temperature hits 165F / 74C. Drain on paper towels. Let rest 2 minutes, then slice into strips.
Serve
- Scoop rice into a bowl. Ladle curry sauce alongside. Lay the sliced katsu on top or next to the curry. The contrast of crispy cutlet meeting rich, thick curry sauce is the whole point. Some people pour the curry over the katsu, but I serve them side by side so the bottom stays crispy as long as possible. Each bite you dip into the sauce, getting crispy-outside-juicy-inside chicken with warm, spiced curry. Smacznego.