Pork Katsu Sando Recipes

PORK KATSU SANDO WITH HEARTY WINTER GREENS

Steps:

• For the katsu: Pound the pork loins out with a meat mallet or rolling pin between 2 pieces of plastic wrap to about 1/2-inch-thick and roughly the size of a piece of sandwich bread. Salt and pepper both sides.
• Set up a breading station: Place the flour and some salt in one shallow dish, eggs with a dash of water and a pinch of salt in the second dish and panko in the third dish. Working with one piece of pork at a time, coat the pork in the flour and shake off the excess. Dip in the egg and drain the excess, then dredge in the panko. (Make sure the panko coats all sides.) Transfer to a plate.
• Season the mayo: Whisk together the mayo, vinegar, gochujang, sugar and wasabi in a small bowl until smooth; set aside.
• Fry: In a 12-inch skillet, heat the canola oil over medium-high heat to 325 degrees F. Place the pork in the oil in batches and fry, flipping halfway through, until both sides are golden, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Adjust the heat as necessary. Drain on paper towels and season with salt.
• Assemble: Spread the mayo on the bread. Place the pork on one piece of bread and top with another. Trim the edges to create a square, crustless sandwich. The meat should be fully exposed on the edges, so that you can see the interior. Cut the square in half on the bias. Repeat to make another. Serve the sandos with the salad.
• For the salad: Whisk together the oil, vinegar and mustard in a small bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Toss the endive, frisee and mustard greens in a large bowl and add the vinaigrette; toss.

PORK KATSU SANDWICH

Steps:

• Pork:
• Slice pork crosswise into 4 medallions. Place between 2 sheets of plastic wrap; gently pound with a meat mallet to 5"-wide pieces.
• Whisk koji, salt, and 1 cup water in a medium bowl until salt dissolves. Add pork; cover and chill at least 8-24 hours.
• Assembly:
• Drain pork (no need to rinse off koji if it sticks); set aside. Place cabbage in a medium bowl. Finely grate lemon zest over; slice lemons in half and squeeze in the juice. Season cabbage with salt. Using your hands, toss and squeeze cabbage until slightly wilted, about 5 minutes. Chill until ready to use.
• Place eggs, panko, and flour in 3 separate shallow bowls. Whisk 2 Tbsp. water into eggs. Line a rimmed baking sheet with paper towels and set a wire rack inside; place near stovetop. Working with 1 piece of reserved pork at a time, dredge in flour, shaking off excess. Dip in eggs, letting excess drip back into bowl, then coat in panko, pressing to adhere before shaking off excess. Transfer to another rimmed baking sheet or a platter.
• Pour oil into a medium heavy pot to come 2" up sides. Heat oil over medium-high until an instant-read thermometer registers 350°-365°F. Carefully lower a piece of pork vertically into skillet, letting it slide away from you into oil until it eventually lies flat. Cook, using tongs to keep meat submerged in oil, until golden brown underneath, about 1 minute. Using tongs, carefully turn over and cook until golden brown on the other side, about 1 minute. Transfer to prepared baking sheet; immediately season with salt. Repeat with remaining pieces of pork.
• Drizzle tonkatsu sauce over cutlets. Spread mustard on 1 side of half of bread slices; top with cabbage mixture, then cutlet, sauce side up. Close sandwiches and slice each into thirds.

JAPANESE PORK KATSU

Steps:

• Make the dipping sauce:.
• Stir together 1 T. of hot water and the soy sauce, mirin, worcestershire sauce, ketchup and mustard. Set aside.
• Prep the pork:.
• Place the pork cutlets between 2 sheets of waxed paper or plastic wrap and pound them with a meat pounder until about 1/4 inch thick. In a shallow bowl, lightly beat the egg. Spread the flour and panko on 2 separate plates. Season the flour with the salt and pepper. Also, season the pork cutlets with salt on both sides. Then dip the pork first into the flour, then the egg and last the panko (coating both sides). Press the panko into the pork so it stays put.
• Panfry the pork:.
• Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until just hot and then add the oil. Add the cutlets and fry, turning once, until golden brown on both sides and just opaque at the center (you don't want to overcook pork) - this should take approximately 5 minutes on each side.
• Tranfer the cutlets to paper towel to drain briefly, then cut across the grain into strips 1/2 inch thick.
• Serve with the dipping sauce and rice.

KATSU SANDOS

Steps:

• Put the cabbages in two separate small bowls, sprinkle each one with ½ tbsp of the vinegar and leave to marinate. Put the flour, egg and breadcrumbs onto separate plates. Mix all the ingredients for the tonkatsu sauce in a bowl and set aside.
• Dust the pork or chicken in flour, dip in the egg on both sides and then into the breadcrumbs, making sure they are well covered. Heat 1cm of the oil in a deep frying pan until a breadcrumb sizzles as soon as it is dropped in. Fry the pork or chicken for 2-3 mins on each side or until the crumb coating is golden brown. Lift out and sprinkle with a little salt. Keep warm.
• Dust, dip and coat the prawns in the same way. Add a little more oil to the pan if you need to and fry the prawns.
• Spread mayonnaise over the slices of bread and lay them out on a board, then drizzle some tonkatsu sauce on two of the slices. Put the pork or chicken on one slice with tonkatsu on and arrange the prawns in a single layer on another. Spoon some pickled green cabbage onto the prawns and the pickled red cabbage onto the pork or chicken. Press another slice of bread, mayo-side down on each to make a sandwich. Trim the edges with a sharp knife and cut each one into four.