Prep time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 18 minutes

“Katsu” is Japanese for “cutlet” and these crispy, panko-crusted chicken cutlets make for a delightfully comforting meal. The comfort comes from the contrast of the crunch of the cutlet’s crust against the sweet-salty taste of the katsu sauce and the ice-cold refreshing nature of the cabbage, but also in the virtue of this dish.

If ordered in a restaurant, explains chef Anna Olsen, your chicken katsu would be deep-fried, but here the cutlets are oven-baked, minimizing the fat used. I try it with the new Air Fry oven by LG.

Hints&Tips
(1) Your can add or replace cabbage by shredded carrots.

Cucumber salad & Cabbage

1. Toss the cucumber with the rice vinegar, sesame oil and salt, and chill until ready to eat.
2. Chill the thinly sliced cabbage in ice-water to crisp for 20 minutes, then drain and pat dry with kitchen towels just before serving.
3. Then toss with the ginger and juice of 1 lemon. Cut the lemon into 6 wedges and chill.

Katsu sauce

1. Whisk together the ketchup, soy sauce and Worcestershire sauce, and pour into 6 little serving dishes.

Chicken

1. Toast the panko in a dry skillet over medium heat, stirring often, until lightly browned, about 8 minutes, then stir in the butter until melted. Set aside to cool.
2. Preheat the oven to 200°C / 400°F.
3. Line a baking sheet with foil or parchment paper and place a wire rack over top.
4. Slice the chicken breasts into ¾-inch (18 mm) slices against the grain.
5. Place 1 to 2 slices in a cut-open resealable plastic bag and pound with a meat mallet or the bottom of a pot until it is just under ½-inch (12 mm) thick and chill until ready to cook.

Cooking

1. Set up 3 flat bowls —the first for the flour, the second for the egg wash, and the third for the toasted panko breadcrumbs. Add a little salt and pepper to each bowl and stir in.
2. Dip each of the chicken cutlets into the flour, shake off the excess, then into the egg and, finally, into the panko, coating it thoroughly.
3. Set the breaded cutlets on the wire rack set over the baking sheet and bake until golden brown and crispy, about 18 minutes. Check that the chicken is cooked through by cutting into a cutlet. If the juices run clear, it’s done.

To serve

1. Slice each cutlet into 5 strips.
2. Serve with cooked Japanese rice, the katsu sauce, cucumber salad, and a mound of the drained cabbage.
3. Sprinkle the toasted sesame seeds over the cutlets, cucumber salad and cabbage and serve with a wedge of lemon.