Katsu curry
カツカレー
A breaded cutlet on Japanese curry rice — the student special that became a national comfort plate.
Recipe by I Want Some Food · Reviewed by the editorial kitchen. Native name preserved: カツカレー.
0 people cooked this in the public kitchen yet. Kitchen-tested by I Want Some Food. Not a purchased rating.
- Prep
- 25 min
- Cook
- 35 min
- Total
- 1 hr
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Spice
- Mild
- Cost
- Weeknight budget$8–16 USD · indicative, not a store price
About
Katsu curry is two dishes sharing a plate: a panko-fried cutlet, and a mild, slightly sweet Japanese curry that is closer to a stew than to a Kerala gravy. The curry is often a store roux block. That is how Japan cooks it. We write it that way and do not apologise.
Ingredients
Ingredients
- Chicken, breast or thigh, pounded even400 g
- Panko80 g
- Wheat flour44 ml
- Egg1 large
- Rice, uncooked, to serve300 g
- Neutral oil, for frying400 ml
- Salt4.9 ml
Curry
- Onion, sliced2
- Carrot1
- Potato2 medium
- Garam masala15 ml
- Wheat flour, or a Japanese curry roux block30 ml
- Butter30 ml
- Soy sauce15 ml
- Water600 ml
Scaling multiplies the written quantities. Baking still prefers a scale.
Steps
Step 1
Sweat onion in butter until deep gold, 12 minutes. Add carrot and potato, then flour and garam masala. Stir 1 minute. Add water and soy. Simmer until the vegetables are tender and the sauce is thick, 15 minutes. A roux block goes in instead of the flour and spice if that is what you bought.
28 minStep 2
Salt the chicken, dust in flour, dip in egg, coat in panko. Fry at 170°C until gold, 3–4 minutes a side. Drain.
10 minStep 3
Rice, curry, sliced katsu on top. Sauce on the rice, not a swimming cutlet if you can help it.
Adapt this recipe
The canonical recipe stays intact. Personal versions are labelled. Serving changes are maths, not AI.
Adaptations · 0 / 15 used. Resets 24 August.
Substitutions
Curry block → Butter, flour and garam masala as written
Less glossy, still Japanese-adjacent. Label it as a stand-in.
Tips
- Pork loin is the other classic cutlet.
- A grated apple in the curry is a home sweetness a lot of blocks already have.
History & culture
Cafeterias, family restaurants, and the plate you eat after exams. Rice is mandatory. The cutlet should stay crisp under the sauce for about a minute.
Japanese curry is a Meiji-era British import that Japan completely remade. The katsu on top is later cafeteria logic.
Modern adaptation
Provenance: Editorial adaptation. Original editorial adaptation for I Want Some Food. Not copied from another recipe site. Official recipe photography is pending. Photograph: Ocdp via Wikimedia Commons (CC0). https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Katsu-curry%20001.jpg
Questions about this recipe
Answers taken from this dish's times, amounts, swaps and tips — not a chatbot.
How long does Katsu curry take?
1 hr all in — 25 min prep, 35 min cook. That is the time on this recipe, not a guess.
How many does it serve?
The recipe is written for 3 plates. Scale the ingredient list on the page if you are cooking for a different number.
How hard is it?
Medium.
How spicy is it?
Mild.
What allergens should I watch?
This recipe is labelled for Wheat, Eggs, Soy. Labels are informational — check the packets in your kitchen. This is not medical advice.
Does it fit a diet?
The published recipe is labelled Dairy-free, Nut-free.
What does it cost to cook?
Weeknight budget — about $8–16 USD, as a grocery budget for this recipe, not a restaurant price.
What equipment do I need?
Saucepan, Frying pan.
How much salt do I put in?
The recipe lists Salt at 1 tsp.
How much soy sauce?
1 tbsp of Soy sauce.
What can I use instead?
Curry block → Butter, flour and garam masala as written. Less glossy, still Japanese-adjacent. Label it as a stand-in.
Any tips from this recipe?
Pork loin is the other classic cutlet. A grated apple in the curry is a home sweetness a lot of blocks already have.
Can I use an air fryer?
This method is not written for an air fryer. The core technique on the page still applies.
Similar dishes
Japanese curry rice
カレーライス
The everyday Japanese curry — mild, a little sweet, thick enough to catch on rice, no cutlet required.
55 minEasy🌶️
Tonkatsu pork
Tonkatsu pork from Japan. Times were inferred from the source steps.
21 minMediumNo chilli
Oyakodon
親子丼
Chicken and egg on rice — the parent-and-child bowl, simmered in one pan until the egg is just set.
25 minEasyNo chilli