Skip to content
Japan
Deutsche Version

Food & Drink

Tonkatsu

豚カツとんかつtonkatsu

A Western cutlet, deep-fried and made Japanese

Tonkatsu is a thick pork cutlet coated in flour, egg and coarse panko breadcrumbs and deep-fried, served sliced with shredded cabbage, rice, miso soup and a thick, fruity sauce. It is one of the best-known dishes of yōshoku, Japan's Western-inspired cooking.

Tonkatsu grew out of the côtelette, the veal or pork cutlet introduced with Western cooking in the Meiji period. Early versions were thin and pan-fried in butter. By the late Meiji period, Tokyo restaurants were deep-frying breaded pork like tempura and serving it with shredded raw cabbage instead of cooked vegetables, and in the early Shōwa period thick, deep-fried pork cutlets under the name tonkatsu, from ton (pork) and katsu (cutlet), became established.

The dish belongs to yōshoku, the family of Western-inspired dishes that includes curry rice, omurice and korokke, but it is served in a thoroughly Japanese way: sliced into strips to be eaten with chopsticks, with rice, miso soup and pickles. Specialist tonkatsu restaurants take great care over pork breed, frying oil and temperature.

Cuts and cooking

The two standard cuts are loin (rōsu), juicier and with a rim of fat, and fillet (hire), lean and tender. The meat is seasoned, dusted with flour, dipped in beaten egg and pressed into panko, the coarse, airy Japanese breadcrumbs that give tonkatsu its crisp, light crust. It is deep-fried, often twice at different temperatures, then rested and sliced.

The classic accompaniment is a mound of finely shredded raw cabbage, often refilled free of charge in specialist shops, with a sesame or citrus dressing. Tonkatsu sauce is a thick, sweet and tangy sauce related to Worcestershire sauce; some shops provide sesame seeds to grind into it at the table. Hot mustard, salt and lemon are common alternatives.

  • Rosu katsu

    ロースかつrōsu katsu

    Pork loin cutlet with a layer of fat.

  • Hire katsu

    ヒレかつhire katsu

    Pork fillet cutlet, lean and tender.

  • Panko

    パン粉panko

    Coarse, flaky Japanese breadcrumbs.

  • Tonkatsu sauce

    とんかつソースtonkatsu sōsu

    Thick, fruity brown sauce made from vegetables, fruit, vinegar and spices.

Katsu dishes

The cutlet is used in many other dishes, and the principle of breading and frying has been applied to other meats and seafood. In Japanese, the word katsu is also a homophone of 'to win', which makes katsu dishes a popular meal before exams and competitions.

  • Katsudon

    カツ丼katsudon

    Cutlet simmered with onion and egg on rice.

  • Katsu curry

    カツカレーkatsu karē

    Curry rice topped with a cutlet.

  • Katsu sando

    カツサンドkatsu sando

    Cutlet with sauce in crustless white bread, a classic of station bento and department-store food halls.

  • Kushikatsu

    串カツkushikatsu

    Small breaded and fried skewers of meat and vegetables, a speciality of Osaka, where double-dipping in the shared sauce is forbidden.

  • Menchi katsu

    メンチカツmenchi katsu

    Breaded, fried patty of minced meat and onion.

  • Ebi furai

    エビフライebi furai

    Breaded fried prawns, closely associated with Nagoya.

Regional variations

Regional variants usually change the sauce or the pork. Several prefectures raise branded pigs, and specialist restaurants often name the breed and origin of their pork.

  • Miso katsu

    味噌カツmiso katsu

    Cutlet covered in a sweet sauce of dark soybean miso, a signature of Nagoya.

  • Kurobuta

    黒豚kurobuta

    Black Berkshire pork, above all from Kagoshima, prized for tonkatsu.

  • Sauce katsudon

    ソースカツ丼sōsu katsudon

    Sauce-dipped cutlet on rice without egg, a speciality in Fukui and several inland towns.

  • Tonteki

    トンテキtonteki

    Not breaded: a thick pork steak in a dark garlic sauce, associated with Yokkaichi in Mie.

Yoshoku: Western food, Japanese style

Tonkatsu is part of yōshoku, dishes adapted from European cooking from the Meiji period onwards and now considered Japanese. They are served in dedicated yōshoku restaurants and family restaurants and eaten with rice rather than bread. Typical yōshoku dishes include curry rice, hayashi rice (beef in demi-glace), omurice (omelette over ketchup rice), hamburg steak, korokke (croquettes) and Napolitan spaghetti.

  • Korokke

    コロッケkorokke

    Breaded potato or cream croquettes, sold at butchers and delicatessens.

  • Omurice

    オムライスomuraisu

    Ketchup-flavoured rice wrapped in or topped with an omelette.

  • Hayashi rice

    ハヤシライスhayashi raisu

    Thin beef and onion in a demi-glace sauce, served on rice.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between tonkatsu and schnitzel?

Both are breaded cutlets, but tonkatsu is usually thicker, coated in coarse panko rather than fine breadcrumbs, deep-fried rather than pan-fried, and served sliced with cabbage, rice and a thick sauce.

What does katsu mean?

Katsu is short for katsuretsu, the Japanese rendering of cutlet. It also sounds like the verb 'to win', which is why katsu dishes are eaten for luck before exams.

Is chicken katsu Japanese?

Yes, chicken katsu (chikin katsu) is common in Japan, especially in bento and canteens, though pork remains the standard for the dish called tonkatsu.

Which cut should I order, rōsu or hire?

Rōsu (loin) is juicier and richer because of its fat; hire (fillet) is leaner and softer. Many restaurants offer both.

Related

Sources

  1. 1.うちの郷土料理 (opens in a new tab) — 農林水産省 (Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries)
  2. 2.Japan National Tourism Organization – Official travel guide (opens in a new tab) — JNTO

Editorial team · Published: