Japanese curry is closer to a thick, savoury gravy than anything from the Indian subcontinent — sweet with apple and onion, spiced but not hot, and thickened with a roux like a French sauce. This version blends the base smooth before the roux goes in, which is what gives it that glossy, coating texture. The pickled cucumber is not a garnish — it is what stops the plate feeling heavy.
Ingredients
- For the chicken katsu
- 4 Boneless skinless chicken thighs, 180–200g each
- 8 g Fine sea salt, or 1% of the chicken's weight
- 0.5 tsp White pepper
- 100 g Plain flour, for coating
- 2 Eggs, beaten
- 120 g Panko breadcrumbs
- 1000 g Neutral deep frying oil, see notes
- For the curry sauce
- 1 tbsp (13.5g) Neutral oil
- 1 White onion, finely diced
- 1 Apple, small and sweet, peeled and grated
- 100 g Carrot, peeled and finely diced
- 20 g Ginger, peeled and grated
- 2 cloves Garlic, minced
- 2 tsp Japanese curry powder, see notes
- 1 tsp Garam masala
- 0.5 tsp Ground turmeric
- 0.25 tsp Ground cumin
- 750 ml Chicken stock, good quality, see notes
- 150 ml Water
- 1 tbsp (15g) Light soy sauce
- 1 tsp (7g) Honey
- 1 tbsp (17g) Tomato ketchup
- 1 tbsp (16g) Worcestershire sauce
- Fine sea salt, to taste
- For the roux
- 35 g Butter
- 35 g Plain flour
- For the rice
- 400 g Jasmine rice
- 520 g Water
- For the pickled cucumber
- 1 Cucumber
- 1 tsp (5g) Fine sea salt
- 2 tbsp (30g) Rice vinegar
- 1 tsp (4g) Caster sugar
- 1 tsp (4.5g) Sesame oil
- 1 tbsp (9g) Sesame seeds, toasted
Equipment
- Large saucepan
- Blender
- Large deep frying pan
- Digital probe thermometer
- Wire rack
Put the neutral oil and diced onion into a large saucepan over a medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, golden, and sweet with no raw bite left — about 25 minutes.
While the onion cooks, peel and grate the apple, dice the carrot, mince the garlic, and grate the ginger. Getting the mise en place done now means the next three steps run back to back.
Wash the jasmine rice in cold water, changing the water until it runs clear, then drain well. Put it in a saucepan with the measured water and set aside off the heat.
Add the apple, carrot, ginger, and garlic to the onion. Cook, stirring, until the carrot has lost its raw crunch and the apple has collapsed into the pan — about 5 minutes.
Add the Japanese curry powder, garam masala, ground turmeric, and ground cumin. Cook, stirring constantly, until the spices smell toasted rather than dusty — about 1 minute.
Pour in the chicken stock and water, then add the light soy sauce, honey, tomato ketchup, and Worcestershire sauce. Stir to combine and bring to a gentle simmer.
Leave uncovered for 30 minutes.
While the sauce simmers, slice the cucumber into rounds about 1mm thick. Put them in a bowl, toss with the fine sea salt, and leave for 15 minutes — liquid will pool in the base of the bowl.
Combine the rice vinegar, caster sugar, and sesame oil in a bowl and stir until the sugar has dissolved.
Rinse the cucumber under cold water, then squeeze it firmly between your hands to drive out as much liquid as possible. Add to the pickle liquid, toss to coat, and refrigerate until serving.
Season the chicken thighs with the fine sea salt and white pepper. Leave to sit at room temperature while you set up for breading.
Set out three shallow trays: one with the plain flour, one with the beaten eggs, one with the panko breadcrumbs.
Coat each thigh in the flour and shake off the excess, then into the beaten egg, letting the surplus drip away, then into the panko. Press the crumbs on lightly so they hold, checking every part of the surface is covered.
Lay the breaded thighs on a tray and leave for 10 minutes.
Once the sauce has had its 30 minutes, pour it into a blender and blend until completely smooth. Keep the saucepan — the roux goes into it next, unwashed.
Set the pan of washed rice over a medium-high heat, uncovered. As soon as it comes to a simmer, put the lid on and drop the heat as low as it will go. Cook for 12 minutes without lifting the lid.
Take the pan off the heat, lid still on, and leave to rest for 10–15 minutes.
Put the saucepan back over a medium heat and add the butter. Once it foams, add the plain flour and stir continuously until the paste smells nutty and biscuity rather than of raw flour — about 2 minutes.
Pour a small amount of the blended sauce into the roux and whisk until thick and smooth. Add more, whisk again, and carry on in stages until it is all in — adding it gradually is what stops lumps of roux sitting in the finished sauce.
Simmer for 20 minutes, then taste and season with fine sea salt.
While the sauce simmers, heat the neutral oil in a large, deep frying pan to a depth of around 2cm until it reaches 160°C (320°F).
Lower the chicken into the oil away from you, working in batches so the pan is not crowded. Fry, turning once, until the panko is deep golden and crisp and the thickest part of the thigh reads 79°C (174°F) — see how to cook chicken to temperature.
Lift onto a wire rack and rest for 10 minutes before slicing.
Ladle a pool of curry sauce over one half of each warmed plate. Fluff the rice, press it into a small bowl to mould it, and turn it out onto the plate as a dome.
Toss the sesame seeds through the pickled cucumber and set a mound alongside. Slice the chicken into 1.5cm thick slices, lay it over the sauce, and serve.
Notes & Substitutions
Curry powder: S&B is the classic curry powder for a Japanese curry sauce and it makes a real difference — the blend is milder and more fragrant than a British curry powder, with a distinct fenugreek note. An 85g jar costs around £6–7 online. That is dear for a spice, but the jar lasts a long time and works out at under 10p a serving.
Leftover sauce: There will almost certainly be sauce left over, and it freezes very well — likely enough for a second round. Defrost in the morning and reheat gently in a saucepan, loosening with a splash of stock if it has tightened. The second time you make this it becomes a weeknight dish.
Stock: The sauce is mostly stock, so its quality sets the ceiling on the finished dish. A good homemade stock with real body is noticeably better than a cube — see Golden Chicken Stock if you want to make your own.
Frying oil: A litre gives roughly 2cm depth in a 28cm pan. Adjust for your pan — you want enough for the chicken to sit in the oil without touching the base. Cooled and strained through a fine sieve, the oil keeps for two or three more fries.
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Chicken Katsu Curry
COOKED
PROPERLY
Ingredients
- 4 Boneless skinless chicken thighs (180–200g each)
- 8 g Fine sea salt (or 1% of the chicken's weight)
- 0.5 tsp White pepper
- 100 g Plain flour (for coating)
- 2 Eggs (beaten)
- 120 g Panko breadcrumbs
- 1000 g Neutral deep frying oil (see notes)
- 1 tbsp Neutral oil
- 1 White onion (finely diced)
- 1 Apple (small and sweet, peeled and grated)
- 100 g Carrot (peeled and finely diced)
- 20 g Ginger (peeled and grated)
- 2 cloves Garlic (minced)
- 2 tsp Japanese curry powder (see notes)
- 1 tsp Garam masala
- 0.5 tsp Ground turmeric
- 0.25 tsp Ground cumin
- 750 ml Chicken stock (good quality, see notes)
- 150 ml Water
- 1 tbsp Light soy sauce
- 1 tsp Honey
- 1 tbsp Tomato ketchup
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- Fine sea salt (to taste)
- 35 g Butter
- 35 g Plain flour
- 400 g Jasmine rice
- 520 g Water
- 1 Cucumber
- 1 tsp Fine sea salt
- 2 tbsp Rice vinegar
- 1 tsp Caster sugar
- 1 tsp Sesame oil
- 1 tbsp Sesame seeds (toasted)
Equipment
- Large saucepan
- Blender
- Large deep frying pan
- Digital probe thermometer
- Wire rack
Method
Cook the onion
1 tbsp Neutral oil · 1 White onion
Put the neutral oil and diced onion into a large saucepan over a medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, golden, and sweet with no raw bite left — about 25 minutes.
Prep the veg and rice
1 Apple · 100 g Carrot · 20 g Ginger · 2 cloves Garlic · 400 g Jasmine rice · 520 g Water
While the onion cooks, peel and grate the apple, dice the carrot, mince the garlic, and grate the ginger. Getting the mise en place done now means the next three steps run back to back.
Wash the jasmine rice in cold water, changing the water until it runs clear, then drain well. Put it in a saucepan with the measured water and set aside off the heat.
Soften the aromatics
Add the apple, carrot, ginger, and garlic to the onion. Cook, stirring, until the carrot has lost its raw crunch and the apple has collapsed into the pan — about 5 minutes.
Bloom the spices
2 tsp Japanese curry powder · 1 tsp Garam masala · 0.5 tsp Ground turmeric · 0.25 tsp Ground cumin
Add the Japanese curry powder, garam masala, ground turmeric, and ground cumin. Cook, stirring constantly, until the spices smell toasted rather than dusty — about 1 minute.
Simmer the sauce base
750 ml Chicken stock · 150 ml Water · 1 tbsp Light soy sauce · 1 tsp Honey · 1 tbsp Tomato ketchup · 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
Pour in the chicken stock and water, then add the light soy sauce, honey, tomato ketchup, and Worcestershire sauce. Stir to combine and bring to a gentle simmer.
Leave uncovered for 30 minutes.
The ketchup and Worcestershire sauce do the job the flavourings in a shop-bought curry block would — tomato for sweetness and acidity, Worcestershire for tamarind, anchovy, and vinegar. Leave them out and the sauce tastes flat in a way more spice will not fix.
Salt the cucumber
1 Cucumber · 1 tsp Fine sea salt
While the sauce simmers, slice the cucumber into rounds about 1mm thick. Put them in a bowl, toss with the fine sea salt, and leave for 15 minutes — liquid will pool in the base of the bowl.
Dress the cucumber
2 tbsp Rice vinegar · 1 tsp Caster sugar · 1 tsp Sesame oil
Combine the rice vinegar, caster sugar, and sesame oil in a bowl and stir until the sugar has dissolved.
Rinse the cucumber under cold water, then squeeze it firmly between your hands to drive out as much liquid as possible. Add to the pickle liquid, toss to coat, and refrigerate until serving.
Squeeze harder than feels reasonable. The slices will look crushed and it will not matter — they spring back in the pickle liquid, and any water left behind waters down the dressing.
Season the chicken
4 Boneless skinless chicken thighs · 8 g Fine sea salt · 0.5 tsp White pepper · 100 g Plain flour · 2 Eggs · 120 g Panko breadcrumbs
Season the chicken thighs with the fine sea salt and white pepper. Leave to sit at room temperature while you set up for breading.
Set out three shallow trays: one with the plain flour, one with the beaten eggs, one with the panko breadcrumbs.
Salt at 1% of the chicken’s weight — weigh the thighs and multiply by 0.01. It takes ten seconds and removes the guesswork entirely, and the same ratio works on any piece of meat you season directly.
Bread the chicken
Coat each thigh in the flour and shake off the excess, then into the beaten egg, letting the surplus drip away, then into the panko. Press the crumbs on lightly so they hold, checking every part of the surface is covered.
Lay the breaded thighs on a tray and leave for 10 minutes.
Blend the sauce
Once the sauce has had its 30 minutes, pour it into a blender and blend until completely smooth. Keep the saucepan — the roux goes into it next, unwashed.
Hot liquid expands violently in a sealed blender. Fill the jug no more than two-thirds, take the centre cap out of the lid, cover the hole with a folded tea towel, and start on the lowest speed.
Start the rice
Set the pan of washed rice over a medium-high heat, uncovered. As soon as it comes to a simmer, put the lid on and drop the heat as low as it will go. Cook for 12 minutes without lifting the lid.
Take the pan off the heat, lid still on, and leave to rest for 10–15 minutes.
Make the roux
35 g Butter · 35 g Plain flour
Put the saucepan back over a medium heat and add the butter. Once it foams, add the plain flour and stir continuously until the paste smells nutty and biscuity rather than of raw flour — about 2 minutes.
Combine and finish the sauce
Fine sea salt
Pour a small amount of the blended sauce into the roux and whisk until thick and smooth. Add more, whisk again, and carry on in stages until it is all in — adding it gradually is what stops lumps of roux sitting in the finished sauce.
Simmer for 20 minutes, then taste and season with fine sea salt.
The sauce thickens as it simmers and again as it cools. Take it slightly looser than you want it on the plate — if it tightens too far, a splash of stock brings it straight back.
Fry the chicken
1000 g Neutral deep frying oil
While the sauce simmers, heat the neutral oil in a large, deep frying pan to a depth of around 2cm until it reaches 160°C (320°F).
Lower the chicken into the oil away from you, working in batches so the pan is not crowded. Fry, turning once, until the panko is deep golden and crisp and the thickest part of the thigh reads 79°C (174°F) — see how to cook chicken to temperature.
Lift onto a wire rack and rest for 10 minutes before slicing.
Rest on a wire rack, never on kitchen paper. Paper traps steam against the underside and the panko you spent ten minutes crisping goes soft within two.
Plate up
1 tbsp Sesame seeds
Ladle a pool of curry sauce over one half of each warmed plate. Fluff the rice, press it into a small bowl to mould it, and turn it out onto the plate as a dome.
Toss the sesame seeds through the pickled cucumber and set a mound alongside. Slice the chicken into 1.5cm thick slices, lay it over the sauce, and serve.
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