Donburi Series – Cheese Katsu Kare Don

This Cheese Katsu Kare Don is a mix between Korean Pork Cheese Cutlet served with Japanese Curry and rice. The cheese katsu is a pork cutlet rolled with mozzarella cheese inside and coated with a layer of panko then Airfried! Yes, you can make katsu in the air-fryer. It’s served on rice with a simple Japanese curry made with potato, carrot and onions. Make one, or make both to enjoy a full, satisfied meal.

Cheese Katsu is pork cutlet that’s pounded with a meat tenderizer till it’s flat, then wrapped with a mozarella cheese. By pounding the meat down, it will tenderize it and prevent it from being too dry once it’s fried. Pork loin is a leaner cut of pork hence it does not contain much fat. Once it is flattened, a block of mozzarella cheese is placed in the center and it’s wrapped up like a spring roll. The meat and cheese ratio here is almost 1:1 . Air frying the katsu makes it healthier and saves some money from using up too much oil. Follow on to see how it’s done.

Kare don is Japanese curry rice and it is very easy to make with the ready-made curry roux. This rich, savoury curry that’s made with only potato, carrots and onion is an easy weeknight cook and satisfying to eat. You can cook with chicken, pork or beef or leave it plain with just vegetables. Since I’m serving a cheese katsu with it, I kept the curry with just vegetables.

I usually make a bigger portion of Japanese curry because it’s freezer friendly or it can be kept in the fridge and reheated the next day to make a curry udon.

SOME KEY INGREDIENTS IN MAKING THIS DISH

• Mozzarella cheese. Use block mozzarella cheese as it is easier to wrap while keeping it’s shape.
• Pork. I used pork loin but I find that it can be a bit dry if it’s over-cooked because pork loin is very lean. Use pork chop where there is some fat on it and it makes the dish even more tasty. If you do not consume pork, you can use chicken breast and the steps would be similar.
• Panko. Japanese breadcrumbs are the best in making that crunch. Because this dish is airfried, the panko needs to be cooked in a pan first until it is golden brown. If using the traditional method of frying, just panko as it is.
• Japanese Curry roux. It usually comes in a box of 12 servings (12 cubes), divided in to 2 packets. The more popular types are Vermont curry and Java curry. Both can be used and the spicy level is up to you. Japanese curry is not spicy and is children friendly. I used Vermont curry with a touch of apple and honey and used 1/2 a box. Japanese curry usually are freezer friendly so if you make a bigger portion, it can be kept in the fridge for a few days or freezer lasting for 3 months.
• Vegetable for Kare. Use hardy vegetables such as carrots and potatoes

STEPS TO MAKE CHEESE KATSU KARE DON

• First, get ready a pot to cook curry. Heat pot with some oil, add chopped onions and cook for 3-4 minutes until it’s softened. Add carrots and potatoes and cook for another 3-4 minutes. Add 1L water and bring to a boil. Let it simmer for about 15 minutes.
• While this is simmering, make panko. Heat a pan with some oil, add panko and stir till it turns golden brown. It will take about 10 minutes, depending on how much panko or how big your pan is. When it’s ready, pour into a shallow plate.
• Back to the Japanese Curry, add curry roux cubes to the mix and stir till its melted. Let it cook and simmer for another 5-10 minutes until the curry thickens, then it’s ready. I didn’t add any seasoning as I find the curry salty enough.
• Next to make the cheese katsu, cut 1 block of 200g mozarella cheese to 6 equal pieces.
• Take 1 pork loin, place in between 2 plastic sheets and pound with a meat tenderizer or a rolling pin. As you can see in Image1, the pork loin is almost 3x wider but of course, flatter. This step will help to tenderize the meat and make a bigger surface to wrap.
• Season with salt and pepper, place cheese in the middle and wrap like a spring roll.
• Use a cling wrap and wrap up the pork roll so it stays tight, repeat with the rest and place them in the fridge till its ready to cook.
• Prepare the egg for dredging. Crack two eggs in a bowl, add salt and pepper. Add flour into the egg and mix until it’s smooth. I saw this trick on Seonkyounglongest while she was making this dish. The regular dredging would be flour, egg then breadcrumbs. For this method you only need to dredge once in the egg and flour mix.
• Remove plastic from pork roll and dip into the egg. Then dip and roll in panko. Pat to ensure the panko sticks onto it.
• Preheat air-fryer at 200 C for about 5 minutes. Place cheese katsu and cook for 15-20 minutes at 200C. When it’s done, remove and cut in half.
• To serve, scoop rice and japanese curry then place cut cheese katsu on top. Sprinkle some seaweed powder or dried parsley flakes.

Did you try this dish?

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