Buttermilk Chicken Katsu Curry

Posted on June 3, 2018 by

9 Comments

Buttermilk Chicken Katsu Curry

Homemade Chicken Katsu Curry from scratch using fresh ingredients.

I am sure that there are as many recipes for Chicken Katsu Curry as there are people in this world.  

My first experience of Chicken Katsu Curry was at Yo! Sushi.  Before I became allergic to fish and shellfish the hubby and I regularly went to Yo! Sushi for (well, you guessed it!) sushi, but also for their undeniably great Chicken Katsu Curry.  I couldn’t get enough of it.  Then we discovered that Giraffe (the restaurant) also has a great Chicken Katsu Curry (with noodles!!), but our nearest is about 40 minutes’ drive away so I had to learn to make it myself.

After loads of research and a number of tries, I’ve finally put together a recipe that the hubby approve of!

Why is it called Katsu?

Katsu is the item that is covered in panko bread crumbs and subsequently deep fried. Therefore ‘chicken katsu’ simply refers to a piece of chicken that has been covered in panko and deep fried. The curry is therefore an indication of the sauce that is poured over the chicken.

Why do I marinade the chicken in buttermilk?

When I grew up we had access to a lot of game meat. If it wasn’t prepared correctly, it had a very wild taste to it. We found that if we marinaded the meat in buttermilk it not only took away the wild taste, but it also tenderised the meat until it was melt-in-the-mouth delicious. Until this day, I still like to use buttermilk as a marinade for meat – any meat – as it gives it a subtle tenderness, but also a creamy taste.

The Curry

Back in South Africa we love eating curried eggs on rice. I’ve adapted that very simple curry recipe and added some ingredients that I have learnt to use (and very much now consider as staples) here in the UK.

If your curry sauce is too runny to your liking you can do one of the following:

  1. Thicken it with a corn starch slurry,
  2. Place it back on the hob and let it blip away, reducing it slowly,
  3. Thicken it with cooked and mashed vegetables like leftover mashed potatoes.

For a different experience, you can replace the water with a tin of coconut milk to give it richness.

Why not try this rice recipe: Fluffy basmati rice

Chopped carrots in a saucepan
Red onion with nail art
Chopped red onion
A thumb of ginger
Three flavours of Mrs Ball's Chutney

How to butterfly a chicken breast

I find that, for this recipe, the easiest way to cook the chicken breasts evenly is to butterfly them. This simply means to take the chicken breast and to lie it on a cutting board with the smooth side up. Take a knife, tilt it horizontally and slice the chicken breast in halve (horizontally). You can either slice it all the way through to have two pieces or you can stop just before cutting it through and open it like a butterfly.

Buttermilk Chicken Katsu Curry
Buttermilk chicken katsu curry

Buttermilk Chicken Katsu Curry

  • Servings: 2
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print

Ingredients

    Curry
  • 1 large red onion, diced
  • 4 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1 carrot, finely diced
  • 1 thumb-sized piece of ginger, finely diced
  • 1 tablespoon galangal (optional)
  • 1 teaspoon garam masala
  • 1 teaspoon curry powder
  • 1 teaspoon turmeric
  • 2 tablespoons plain flour
  • 1 tablespoon dried coriander leaves
  • 1 vegetable (or chicken) stock pot
  • 1 tablespoon tomato ketchup
  • 1 tablespoon Mrs Ball’s peach chutney
  • 2 cups cold water

    • Chicken

  • 500g chicken breast (butterflied) or tenders
  • 300 ml buttermilk
  • 2 tablespoons garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon garam masala
  • 120g panko breadcrumbs
  • 1 egg
  • 5 tablespoons plain flour
  • oil to shallow fry

    • Onion Pickle

  • 1 lemon, juiced
  • 1 red onion, sliced in rings
  • big pinch of salt
  • big pinch of sugar
  • 5 tablespoons of red wine vinegar

Directions

    Chicken
  1. The very first step is to marinade the chicken in the buttermilk. Ensure it is fully submerged before covering it and placing it in the fridge for at least four hours (overnight is best).
  2. Once the marinating is over, take the chicken out of the buttermilk and pat it dry.
  3. Mix the flour, garlic and garam masala in one bowl, the egg into another bowl and the panko into a third bowl.
  4. First dust the chicken in the flour, then the egg and lastly the panko. You can repeat the egg and panko layers again if you would like a thicker crust.
  5. Fry the chicken until it is cooked through – this should take around 10-12 minutes.

    6. Onion Pickle

  6. Combine all the pickle ingredients (ensure the onions are submerged). Place in an air-tight container and place in the fridge for at least an hour.

    7. Curry

  7. In a frying pan or wok, fry the carrots in a bit of oil until they are starting to soften.
  8. Next, add the onions and continue frying until they become translucent.
  9. Add the ginger, garlic and galangal and only fry for a minute to retain their flavour.
  10. Add the dry ingredients: garam masala, curry powder, coriander, turmeric and plain flour. Coat the vegetables thoroughly by stirring with a wooden spoon.
  11. Combine the water, ketchup and chutney and add to the pan. Add the stock pot.
  12. Cook until thickened, then blend the sauce in a food processor until smooth.

    13. To serve

  13. This dish is best served with basmati rice. You can also serve this on a bed of egg noodles and vegetables of your choice (I like tenderstem broccoli).

Do you fancy some more chicken recipes?

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There are very few things in the world that soothes the soul. Like sitting by a crackling fire whilst the wind sweeps eerily outside or a steaming bowl of soup that gently warms you from the inside out. One such soup is the warming notes of a Chicken Laksa Soup. I’ve scoured the internet in…

Moroccan-style Chicken with Bulgar Wheat

I can still remember the first time I had Moroccan food. I was in South Kensington with my cousin. I cannot remember what I had that night, but I do remember coming home and thinking: ‘wow! that was bloody fantastic!’

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Category: Food Category, Global Cuisine, Japanese, Meat, RecipesTags: , , , , , ,

9 Comments on “Buttermilk Chicken Katsu Curry”

  1. Pingback: Fig Tabbouleh with Pomegranate Glazed Halloumi – Life, with Clotted Cream

  2. Pingback: Green Thai Chicken Curry – Life, with Clotted Cream

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