Japanese Recipe: Katsudon (Breaded Pork Cutlet Over Rice)

Sushi is often considered the pinnacle of Japanese cuisine in the US, but the island nation has so much more to offer. Their food is robust and complicated with interesting takes on foods introduced to them by other countries. Take tonkatsu: a pork cutlet breaded and fried. This thoroughly Japanese dish is actually a variation on European cuisine that was introduced during the Meiji Restoration (Late 19th century to early 20th).

Katsudon (a breaded pork cutlet over rice) is incredibly popular in Japan. It's a combination of tonkatsu(the pork cutlet) and donburi (Japanese rice bowl dish). It's a dish commonly eaten for good luck on the night before a major test because katsu is a homophone for the verb katsu in Japanese, meaning "to win" or "to be victorious".

Read on to learn how to make this delicious recipe...

Homemade Katsudon Recipe

(makes 4 servings)

Ingredients:

Basics

• 7 cups steamed short-grain white rice
• 3 green onions, sliced thin
• 3 small onions sliced thin
• vegetable oil (for frying)
• 4 boneless center cut pork chops pounded thin (should be  about 1" thick before pounded out)
• salt and pepper to taste
• Worcestershire sauce (optional)

Breading

• 3 tablespoons flour
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 cup Japanese breadcrumbs (Also known as panko)

Broth

• 1 cup dashi broth (available in the international aisle but use water if you can't find any)
• 6 tablespoons soy sauce
• 6 tablespoons sugar
• 4 tablespoons mirin (Japanese rice cooking wine)
• 3-4 eggs beaten

Directions:

1. Heat vegetable oil in a 1-inch deep frying pan or wok until it's at 340F or until a few breadcrumbs dropped in the middle of the oil surface immediately.
2. Remove extra fat and silverskin from the sides of the pork cutlets then pound them out until they are about 3/4" thick.
3. Salt and pepper the pork cutlets, then dust first in flour, dip into the beaten egg, then into the panko.
4. Fry the cutlets in the oil (1 at a time so the oil doesn't overflow) until light brown (about 4 or so minutes per side)
5. Drain the pork cutlets onto paper towels the cut into 1" strips.
6. Mix the broth ingredients except for eggs together in a bowl.
7. Add oil to a hot frying pan, then add onions (not the green onions).
8. Saute until the onions are fragrant and start to turn translucent.
9. Pour the dashi mixture over the onions, then nestle the pork cutlets into the onions.
10. Drizzle the 3-4 beaten eggs over everything in the pan then sprinkle with green onions.
11. Cover with a lid and cook until the egg is mostly set (about 1 minutes)
12. Split the rice between four large bowls, then top each with a pork cutlet and the egg.
13. Serve immediately with Worcestershire sauce on the side optionally.
14. Enjoy!

Japanese Snack Recipe: Onigiri

Onigiri, or a Japanese rice ball is a snack popular all over Japan. These rice balls are often filled with ingredients like pickled ume, salted salmon, or other salty or sour ingredients. These ingredients usually act as a natural preservative. The rice balls are usually wrapped in nori (seaweed) which makes these treats wonderfully portable and adds an additional salty flavor.

Despite common misconceptions, onigiri is not sushi. Onigiri is usually flavored with salt or other fillings while sushi is flavored with a sushi vinegar. that being said, the rice used is the same. You want  short grain Japanese rice (also known as sushi rice to some). If you can't get a hold of Japanese rice, Italian medium-grain rices like vialone or arborio (usually used in risotto) can be used. What matters is that the rice remains sticky and moldable. We filled our onigiri with simple pan-fried salmon, but feel free to experiment with your own ideas to find the perfect onigiri for you! Keep reading below for our favorite, simple onigiri recipe...

Onigiri

(makes about 6 servings)

Ingredients

• 1 small salmon fillet
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 2 teaspoons dried parsley
• 3 cups cooked Japanese rice (rinse and drain at least two to three times before cooking)
• salt
• pepper
• 6 pieces Japanese nori (dried seaweed)

Directions

1. Place the rice in a mixing bowl and run under cold water while mixing the rice with your hands. Drain the rice through a strainer, then repeat the process at least two or three more times to properly wash the rice. Add to a rice cooker with 3 cups water and turn the rice cooker on.
2. While the rice cooks, sprinkle the salmon fillet with salt, pepper, and parsley. Melt the butter in a skillet and cook the salmon skin-side down first for about 4 minutes on each side on medium heat. Remove the salmon from the heat and break apart with a fork to form small salmon flakes. Set aside.
3. Line a small, shallow bowl (or Japanese teacup) with enough plastic wrap to hang well over the sides. Press the plastic down into the cup with your fingers.
4. Sprinkle the inside of the cup with a little water, and shake the excess into the sink. Sprinkle the plastic wrap with a little salt, turning the cup or bowl so the sides get sprinkled too. Shake out any excess salt.
5. Add about 2/3 cup cooked rice to the bowl, letting it sit loosely (no need to pack it down). Poke a hole in the middle of the rice with your finger about halfway down. Add about 1/2 tablespoon or so of the salmon flakes into the center.
6. Lightly press the rice over the filling, then gather up the ends of the plastic wrap. Twist and squeeze, pushing out and excess air. Twist tightly to form a ball,  squeezing to make sure the salt sinks into the surface and making sure the rice sticks together. Mold into the shape you like (perfectly round onigiri will be the simplest though many like the triangle look).
7. Unwrap the rice ball from the plastic wrap and wrap one side with the onigiri. Serve immediately. To make for later use, keep the rice in the plastic wrap until ready to serve.
8. Enjoy!

Japanese Dessert Recipe: Strawberry Rice Cake (Ichigo Daifuku)

I was incredibly pleased recently to discover a Japanese food store in my area and couldn't resist getting my hands dirty (literally) with a new recipe. Ever a fan of desserts, I decided to try something I haven't had in a long while: Ichigo Daifuku Mochi, (translated to strawberry great luck rice cake). Daifuku is a Japanese rice cake stuffed with a sweet filling, most commonly a sweetened red bean paste called anko. Ichigo daifuku takes this one small step further and adds a strawberry in the center.

The tartness of the strawberry really pulls this entire confection together, adding an extra burst of flavor to a sweetness that generally isn't too bold in this Japanese dessert. One issue we were running into, however, was that the rice was drying out before we could properly wrap the strawberries. The trick was to lower our batch size: Only five strawberries at a time so we could use the rice cake while it was still malleable and sticky. One other issue we had manipulating the mochi was just how darned sticky it could be! The best solution was to keep plenty of corn or potato starch on hand and to pat our hands and fingers in it regularly. One last note: These ingredients with most likely be found in a Japanese grocery store, however if you don't have one near you, Amazon has both mochiko and anko you can get delivered. Keep reading below for our recipe for this delicious confection.

Ichigo Daifuku Recipe

(makes 6 servings)

Ingredients

• 5/8 cup mochiko (glutinous rice flour)
• 5/8 cup (or 150ml) water
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 5 strawberries
• 3/4 cup (or more to taste) Anko (sweet red bean paste. Use Koshian [or smooth] style red bean paste if you can)
• Corn starch for dusting

Directions

1. Mix together the mochiko and the sugar in a medium, microwave safe bowl then set aside.
2. Hull the strawberries and dry completely with a paper towel. Divide the anko into 5 balls of roughly the same size. The anko gets sticky in your hands so you will probably have to wash your hands after each new ball otherwise they will be hard to shape.
3. Wrap the strawberries with the anko, leaving the tip of the strawberry uncovered. Again, you will probably need to wash your hand between each strawberry.
4. Using a silicone spatula, add the water in 3 parts and stir until the mixture has reached a thick consistency. Cover loosely with plastic wrap. Set workspace on the side dusted with cornstarch.
5. Microwave the mochiko mixture for 1 minute. Mix well with a wet silicone spatula. Cover again with plastic wrap. Microwave again for 1 minute, and mix again, covering with plastic wrap once more. Microwave one last time for 30 seconds. the flour mixture should start to look slightly translucent now.
6. Scrape the mochi out onto the dusted workspace and dust lightly with a little extra corn starch on top. Flatten the mochi a little, then fold in half, once more dusting with corn starch. Warning, the mochi will be pretty hot, so it's INCREDIBLY important to make sure your hands are well dusted with corn starch so you don't have anything sticking to your hand and burning you. Use a bench scraper or silicone spatula to cut the mochi into 5 equal pieces.
7. Take one piece and flatten it out to roughly a 3" round or square. Place the anko covered straberry on top, with the tip facing down. Cover the strawberry with the mochi from all sides, and use your thumb tp hold the mochi on top. When all of the sides of the mochi meet at the top, twist to close. Hold the mochi with both hands and form into a nice, round shape. Repeat with remaining mochi.
8. Serve and store at room temperature. Consume within two days.
9. Enjoy!

Japanese Recipe: Curry and Rice

For an incredibly delicious, popular Japanese dish, look no further than Ka-re. Ka-re (otherwise known as curry or curry rice) is a slightly sweet, slightly spicy dish consisting of a thick gravy with stew meat and vegetables typically served with rice.

To make the curry, we first made a curry roux from butter, flour, and a few spices. In a separate pot, we boiled the basic components of the dish; a combination of meat, carrots, onions, and potatoes. For a little extra sweetness we also tossed in some pureed apple. We kept the roux and the curry separate until the last few minutes and then added the boiled medley to the roux.

We served our curry in one of the most popular methods: with short grain rice (however it's also commonly served on its own or with noodles). The best part of serving with rice is using the leftover rice to make onigiri!

In Japan, it is traditionally considered rude to completely mix together the rice and the curry. Instead, they are served next to each other on the plate, and you mix a spoonful of the rice with the curry before taking the bite. Keep reading below for this delicious recipe...

Japanese Curry Rice

(makes about 4 servings)

Ingredients

ROUX

• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2 tablespoons garam masala (or curry powder)
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (adjust accordingly for spiciness)
• black pepper
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 tablespoon freshly ground ginger
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

CURRY

• 2lbs beef round chuck cut into bite sized cubes
• 2 teaspoons grape-seed oil
• 2 large onions sliced thin
• 2 carrots cut into chunks
• 2 cups water
• 1 cup beef broth
• 1 cup red wine
• 2 large yukon gold potatoes cut into large chunks
• 1 small apple peeled, cored, and pureed
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon garam masala (or curry powder)

Directions

1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium low heat and add the onions. Saute the onions until they are golden brown and caramelized (about 30 minutes). Turn the heat up to high, add the beef, and brown.
2. Add the carrots, water, broth, and red wine. Bring to a boil. Skim off any foam or oil from the top, then lower the heat to medium. Add the potatoes, pureed apple, salt, and garam masala. Simmer for about 30 minutes, or until the carrots, potatoes, and meat are tender.
3. Meanwhile, to make the roux, melt the butter over medium low heat. Add the flour and garam masala. Stir until you have a thick paste. Add the cayenne pepper and some black pepper to taste. Add the garlic, ginger, tomato paste and Worcestershire sauce. Stir to combine. Continue to cook until the paste starts crumbling. Remove from the heat and set aside until the meat and vegetables are done cooking. 
4. To finish the curry, ladle 2 cups of liquid into the roux then whisk until it's smooth. Pour this mixture back into the other pot and gently stir until thickened.
5. Serve with rice next to the curry.
6. Enjoy!