What's in the fridge?

A shout out to my brother for introducing me to Japanese curry. I didn’t know this was a thing until this year! (so much to learn). Japanese curry is different from Indian curry mostly because it’s uses less spices and it’s more on the sweeter side than the spicy side.

Most people make Japanese curry with a store-bought curry roux which I’ve heard is good, but I made this one from scratch with ingredients I had on hand. Then, I paired it with a nice crispy Chicken Katsu (cutlet) that I “fried” in the Air-Fryer. I have to say I was impressed with how it came out, though the cutlet was a little more blonde than I would have liked. Next time I’ll spray it more generously to see if I can get more color. I can’t wait to make a sandwich with the chicken katsu. This recipe is going down in the books as a repeat! Enjoy!

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Air-Fryer Chicken Katsu Curry

Ingredients:
30 minutes/serves 4

Chicken:

• 4 chicken breasts, pounded to ¾”
• Pam Spray
• 1 large free-range egg, beaten
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 cup Japanese panko breadcrumbs
• 4 tbsp flour, seasoned (s&p)
• 1 1/2 cups short-grain rice, cooked, to serve

For the curry sauce:

• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1 potato, chopped small
• 2 celery ribs, chopped
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger, very finely chopped
• 1 tsp ground turmeric or fresh grated
• 1 tbsp tomato purée
• ½ serrano chile, seeds and veins removed, chopped (optional)
• 1 tbsp curry powder
• 2 cups chicken or veggie broth
• 2 tsp rice wine vinegar (or sub 1 tsp. white vin. + ¼ tsp. sugar)
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1 tbsp soy sauce

Recipe inspired by
#DonalSkehan

Directions:

1. Soak the rice for 30 minutes if you want a more ‘sticky’ rice. Then cook for 20 minutes.
2. Start cooking the curry in a large pan. Heat oil and add onion. Cook for 3-4 minutes, or softened. Then, add veggies, garlic, ginger, turmeric, tomato puree, chile and spices. Toss to coat. Then, add broth. Bring to a boil, then cover partially, lower to a simmer. Cook for 8-10 minutes, or potatoes are fork tender.
3. When potatoes are cooked, stir in the rice wine vinegar, honey, and soy sauce and cook another 3 minutes.
4. While rice and curry are cooking, prepare chicken. Pound between parchment in a ziplock bag with a mallet or rolling pin. Season with a small pinch salt and pepper.
5. Set up a plate with flour, a bowl with egg + 1 Tbsp. soy sauce, and another plate with panko. Preheat air fryer to 330 F. (or oven at 425 F)
6. Dip chicken cutlet in flour, then, egg/soy mixture, then panko. Shake off excess.
7. Spray air fryer basket with some oil. Place cutlets single layer in basket (might have to do in 2 batches). Then, spray on top. Cook at 330 F for 10 minutes. Then, flip. Spray again and cook at 400 F for 3 minutes. Internal temperature should reach 165 F of chicken if using thermometer. Juices should run clear, not pink. (It looks pale when cooked because we are not traditionally frying but it is cooked. Use more oil spray to get more color).

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