Ubiquitous, Delicious

An Asian adaptation of the pork cutlet, tonkatsu takes a better bread crumb

ANYONE WHO has ever enjoyed a "plate lunch" in Hawaii or a casual dinner in a certain class of unpretentious Japanese family restaurants has probably seen something called "Tonkatsu" on the menu. And anyone who has ventured to try this breaded pork cutlet has probably become completely enamored of it. Long before it became part of the litany of dishes mandatory for any place claiming to offer authentic "local" fare in Hawaii, tonkatsu had become a standard of the Japanese home kitchen. According to Hiroko Shimbo, author of "The Japanese Kitchen" (Harvard Common Press, $29.95), the dish originated in the late 19th century. "Fried pork cutlet was born along with modern Japan," she writes. In the wake of major political changes, "the Japanese population was encouraged to adopt scientific and technological advances, medicines and customs from the West." Among these adopted customs came new meat dishes, including breaded pork cutlets.

A conjunction of "ton," the Japanese word for pork, and "katsu," a corruption of the English word cutlet, "tonkatsu" was coined to describe the new dish that rapidly caught on with Japanese home cooks. It became, in fact, so ubiquitous that Shimbo, like many other chroniclers of Japanese cuisine, considered a recipe for it unnecessary.

Part of what makes the dish so appealing is the breading. Often overlooked but widely available, "panko" is a bread crumb that produces a perfectly crisp coating for fried foods. I have found it everywhere I have looked, from my parents' neighborhood supermarket in suburban Florida to a grocery in Sitka, Alaska. Sun Luck brand, which comes in a 3 ½-ounce box and costs about $3, is the most widely distributed brand. A better value is panko in bulk, available at Central Market in Shoreline, Poulsbo and Mill Creek and at Ballard Market.

If it's unavailable at your supermarket, Welpac Brand, which comes in a bulky, 6-ounce bag, can be ordered from Amazon.com for $3.99.

The other element essential to a good tonkatsu is the intensely flavorful plum ketchup known appropriately enough as "tonkatsu sauce," the most popular being Bulldog brand. Although it would never be found anywhere near an elegant Japanese dinner table, the sauce, which is vaguely reminiscent of Worcestershire sauce, is used in casual Japanese kitchens as a condiment on all sorts of fried foods, and it's almost mandatory in modern soba noodle salads. Bottled tonkatsu sauce is almost as easy to find as panko, but I have developed a homemade version that comes together in a snap. So, even though my Japanese friends shake their heads and wonder why I bother, I like to make my own.

Greg Atkinson is a contributing editor for Food Arts magazine and a culinary consultant. He can be reached at greg@northwestessentials.com. Barry Wong is a Seattle-based freelance photographer. He can be reached at barrywongphoto@earthlink.net.