Japanese Pork Cutlet (Tonkatsu)
[とんかつ]

Pairs well with the Japanese Vegetarian Curry [日本のベジタリアンカレー] (and Cabbage Salad recipe included in it)

The Preparation

1. ▢
   In a deep dish, place the 30 g Japanese breadcrumbs and spray with water until it is moist. Set aside for 15 minutes, or until the panko becomes soft and tender. Meanwhile, prepare the other breading ingredients. Whisk together 1 egg in a mixing bowl and add ½ Tbsp. vegetable oil. In another mixing bowl, prepare 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour.
2. ▢
   Using a sharp knife, remove and discard the extra fat from 600 g boneless pork loin chops. Then, make several slits on both sides on the connective tissue (white area) between the meat and fat which will allow it to stay nice and flat when deep-frying and prevent it from curling up. Then gently pound both sides of the meat with the back of a knife and mold the meat back into its original shape with your hands. Season both sides of the meat with ½ tsp. salt and ⅛ tsp. freshly ground black pepper.
   

The Frying

1. ▢
   First, dredge the pork in the flour and dust off any excess. Next, dip the pork into the egg mixture and coat well. Finally, dredge the pork in the panko, gently pressing the panko onto the pork. Gently shake off any excess panko, then place the pork pieces onto a tray or plate. Set it aside for 5 minutes so the breading will set.
   
2. ▢
   Add 720 ml vegetable oil to a pot and bring it to 340ºF over medium heat. Make sure your oil is 3 cm deep in the pot. Gently put one piece of pork into the oil and cook for 1 minute (without touching it). After a minute, flip the pork and cook the other side for 1 minute. Keep watching the oil temperature and make sure it doesn’t go over 340ºF.
   
3. ▢
   Take out the pork and remove excess oil by holding it vertically over the pot for a few seconds while the oil drips off. Place it on a wire rack or paper towel and let it sit for 4 minutes. The hot oil on the exterior will slowly continue to cook the meat as it sits. Turn off the heat temporarily and scoop up and discard any fried crumbs in the oil with a fine-mesh strainer. Turn on the heat and bring the oil back to 340ºF.
   
4. ▢
   Repeat for the rest of the pork loin chops.
   
5. ▢
   The first piece of pork should now be ready for its second frying. Now, repeat the same steps as earlier but this time bring the oil to 355ºF and fry the pork for 30 seconds on each side (1 minutes total).
   

The Sauce

1. ▢
   Grind ½ Tbsp. roasted white sesame seeds and ½ Tbsp. roasted black sesame seeds with a pestle and mortar. Leave some seeds unground for texture. Mix in a serving bowl with 4 Tbsp. tonkatsu sauce.

The Serving

1. ▢
   Cut the Tonkatsu into slices ¾ inch (2 cm) wide. Serve the Tonkatsu on rice with a drizzle of Tonkatsu sauce on the cutlets. As mentioned earlier, goes well with the Japanese Vegetarian Curry [日本のベジタリアンカレー] and the Cabbage Salad included in it.