Best Japanese Chicken Katsu

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Looking for a new delicious chicken recipe for weeknight dinners? Japanese chicken katsu is the crispiest and juiciest chicken cutlet you’ll ever try. And it’s surprisingly easy to make. There’ll be no need to go to a Japanese restaurant tonight!

Some people think Japanese cuisine is extremely complex and that may be true to some extent. But there are plenty of recipes like this chicken katsu with tonkatsu sauce that you can easily make in the comfort of your own home.

Why We Love This Japanese Chicken Katsu Recipe

This recipe teaches you how to make authentic Japanese chicken katsu. I’m sharing all the important techniques and steps to get the crispiest and tenderest chicken cutlets. But don’t fright, just because the instructions are detailed, doesn’t mean this recipe is hard to make.

Our chicken katsu comes together in 30 minutes. And you can even break down the steps for different days to make this recipe super quick. Check the Notes & Tips for how to save time. 

The tonkatsu sauce (literally pork cutlet sauce) deliciously compliments chicken katsu (katsu means cutlet in Japanese). You can also buy this sauce at some Asian stores, but I love making it at home because you get to control the proportions and amount.

What Do I Need For This Authentic Japanese Chicken Katsu Recipe?

Ingredients for the chicken cutlets:

  • 1.3 lbs. Chicken breasts (or boneless skinless chicken thighs) 
  • 1 tsp. salt (for flavor)
  • ½ tsp. sugar (to keep the meat juicy)

For the tonkatsu sauce:

  • 2 Tbsp. oyster sauce
  • 2 Tbsp. soy sauce
  • 4 Tbsp. BBQ sauce

For the batter:

  • 1 ½ cups water
  • 2 eggs
  • ¾ cups flour

Other important ingredients:

  • 3 cups panko breadcrumbs 
  • 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
  • Oil for frying (with a high smoke point)
  • Fresh cabbage or another side vegetable, optional

How To Make Japanese Chicken Katsu

Step 1: Prepare the chicken

  • First, you want to make sure the chicken pieces are evenly thick. Otherwise some parts will overcook while others will be undercooked.
  • For big chicken breasts, cut them horizontally in half and remove any skin or fat. Then pound them in between plastic wrap or in a plastic bag until they’re even in thickness. Don’t over-pound the meat or it’ll turn into mush. Focus on the thicker parts.
  • You can use a meat pounder, meat tenderizer, a pot, a wine bottle, or anything that works for you. 

Step 2: Season the chicken with salt & sugar

  • Season the chicken with a mix of salt and sugar. Set aside at room temperature.

Step 3: Mix the ingredients

  • Mix the ingredients for the batter (water, eggs, flour) in a large shallow bowl.

Step 4: Cover the cutlets in crumbs

  • Set up a crumbing station with a tray of flour and panko breadcrumbs, alongside the batter.
  • Crumb chicken with flour, shaking off any excess, then coat in batter, and finish with panko. Press the breadcrumbs into the chicken on both sides to help them adhere. We don’t want any naked pieces of chicken after frying.
  • Set aside and let rest at room temperature for at least 30 minutes. This’ll prevent the oil from cooling down too much when adding the chicken pieces.

Step 5: Prep the sauce and side vegetable

  • Mix all the sauce ingredients together in a small bowl. 
  • Shred some cabbage and optional carrots. Prepare any other side vegetables or fermented vegetables you wish to serve with the chicken katsu.

Step 6: Fry chicken katsu

  • Heat oil in a large pot, wok, or cast-iron Dutch oven until it reaches 365-374°F. Check notes for how to check the temperature without a thermometer.
  • Carefully place the crumbed chicken in the hot oil, away from you to avoid oil splashing towards you. Fry for 2 ½ minutes. 
  • Make sure the oil stays at around 311-329°F while cooking. 
  • Flip the cutlets and cook for another 2 ½ minutes on the other side, or until golden brown.

Step 7: Remove from the oil and rest on a wire rack

  • Remove from the oil and rest on a wire rack or on paper towels for 3 minutes.
  • Slice into pieces on a cutting board and serve with side veggies and a drizzle of tonkatsu sauce. Garnish with a little fresh parsley, and enjoy!

Notes & Tips

  • Use the chopstick method to check the oil temperature. Dip a chopstick until it touches the bottom of the pot and observe the bubbles that form. If the bubbles are relatively fast and on the smaller side, the temperature is around 365°F. 
  • Chicken katsu is best when eaten immediately, but you can store it in the freezer for up to 3 months. To do so, let them cool down and individually pack each cutlet in plastic wrap and place them in a Ziploc bag.
  • To save time, you can prep the chicken and let it marinate in the salt and sugar up to 12 hours before. You can also prep the batter, sauce, and side veggies ahead of time. You can even crumb the cutlets and stack them in between parchment paper, then store them in the fridge up to a day in advance.
  • To reheat chicken katsu, place them in an air fryer at 350°F for about 5 minutes (or 8 minutes if reheating from frozen). Alternatively, reheat them in the oven at 375°F until warmed through (about 10 minutes). 
  • Don’t overcrowd the oil, fry the chicken katsu in batches. Otherwise, you’ll end up with greasy chicken that hasn’t fried evenly. 
  • It’s important to let the chicken rest at room temperature after coating and before frying. But this doesn’t mean the chicken pieces won’t affect the temperature of the oil. Once you add the chicken wings to the hot oil, measure the temperature again to make sure it’s between 311-329°F.
  • If you prefer consuming less oil, you can make this Japanese chicken katsu in an air fryer. Preheat your air fryer to 350°F and place the coated, crumbed chicken cutlets on the basket. Don’t overcrowd them. Spray with cooking oil and cook for 10 minutes, then flip, spray again, and cook for an additional 8 minutes. Voila. 

Japanese Chicken Katsu

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Resting Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour
Servings: 3
Calories: 895kcal

Ingredients

  • 1.3 lbs. Chicken breasts
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • ½ tsp. sugar

Tonkatsu sauce:

  • 2 Tbsp. oyster sauce
  • 2 Tbsp. soy sauce
  • 4 Tbsp. BBQ sauce

Batter:

  • 1 ½ cups water
  • 2 eggs
  • ¾ cups flour

Other:

  • 3 cups panko breadcrumbs
  • 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
  • Vegetable oil for frying
  • Fresh cabbage or another side vegetable optional

Instructions

  • All ingredients ready? Let's begin!
  • For big chicken breasts, cut them horizontally in half and remove any skin or fat. Place them in between plastic wrap and pound them until even in thickness.
  • Season the chicken with a mix of salt and sugar. Set aside at room temperature.
  • Mix the ingredients for the batter in a large bowl. Set up a crumbing station.
  • Coat chicken with flour, shake off any excess, then coat in batter, and finish with panko. Press the breadcrumbs into the chicken to help them adhere.
  • Set aside and let rest at room temperature for at least 30 minutes.
  • Mix all the sauce ingredients together in a small bowl. Shred some cabbage. Optional: prepare any other side vegetables or fermented vegetables.
  • Heat oil in a large pot until it reaches 365-374°F.
  • Carefully place the crumbed chicken in the hot oil. Fry for 2 ½ minutes. Make sure the oil stays at around 311-329°F while cooking. Flip the cutlets and cook for another 2 ½ minutes.
  • Remove from the oil and rest on a wire rack or on paper towels for 3 minutes.
  • Slice into pieces serve with side veggies and a drizzle of tonkatsu sauce. Enjoy!

Video

Nutrition

Calories: 895kcal | Carbohydrates: 121g | Protein: 64g | Fat: 32g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 8g | Monounsaturated Fat: 16g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 235mg | Sodium: 2375mg | Potassium: 991mg | Fiber: 10g | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 262IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 196mg | Iron: 8mg

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