Chicken Katsu Rice Bowl

This crispy Chicken Katsu Rice Bowl is a weeknight staple at our house. It's a great balance of comfort using golden brown fried chicken and healthy using a mix of stir fry veggies. We love getting to customize our bowls using our favorite Bachan's Japanese Barbecue sauces.

Time: 30-40 minutes | Yield: 2-4 bowls | Difficulty: Easy to moderate

this Recipe!

This savory bowl is inspired by the Japanese Katsu fried chicken dish. While this version is far from traditional, it is accessible and delicious to serve on any given weeknight. It only takes 30 minutes, makes about four servings and I would say the difficulty level is doable for an experienced cook. If you are a beginner I would tack on some extra time since there is dredging and frying involved. But don't be intimidated! I've included pictures of the process and step-by-step instructions.

Ingredients

• 2 boneless chicken breasts (cut into thinly slice chicken cutlets) - You can also use chicken thighs, pounded thin into a cutlet
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon coarse Kosher salt
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 1 1/2 cups Panko bread crumbs
• Vegetable oil for frying - Any neutral oil will work, but avoid olive oil

For serving

• Cooked white rice
  • Any rice will do and I love a quick store bought microwaved rice pouch
• Frozen or fresh stir fry veggies
• Green Onions
• Katsu sauce or my favorite Japanese Barbecue sauce from the store

Instructions

Start by setting up your dredging stations placing the 1/2 cup flour and 1 teaspoon of salt mixed together on one plate, then the beaten egg on a bowl and lastly the panko breadcrumbs in another plate.

Dredge the thinly sliced and pounded chicken cutlet in the flour, then egg wash and finally breadcrumbs and set aside while you coat the other pieces of chicken.

Tip: Check out my Thinly Sliced Chicken Breasts post if you need instructions how how to cut up chicken cutlets.

Once all the chicken pieces are breaded, heat up some oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. You want enough oil to cover about halfway up the chicken breast, so about 1/2 inch deep in the pan. Carefully place 1-2 pieces of chicken in the hot oil and let it fry until golden (about 4-5 minutes). Using tongs, flip the chicken to finish frying on the other side.

Did you flip it too soon and it's not crispy enough? No worries, just flip it again until it's golden. Place the cooked chicken on a wire rack to cool, or a plate lined with a paper towel.

In a separate pan I like to stir fry some vegetables. It can be whatever vegetables you have on hand. We love a broccoli and carrot combination, but I'll use a frozen vegetable stir fry mix too. This is a great clean out the fridge recipe to use up any leftover veggies.

To cook the vegetables, I add a little oil to the pan and turn the heat up to medium high. Stirring occasionally, I let the veggies soften a little and season them with some soy sauce and sometimes a sprinkle of ginger powder and garlic powder. I keep the simple since we are adding a very yummy sauce to the bowl. The veggies take about 7-10 minute depending on how soft you like them.

For the steamed rice, I love a short grain white rice or basmati but I just use whatever rice we have around. I keep those microwave rice pouches on hand for a shortcut quick dinner.

Assemble the bowls however you like! And add a generous drizzly of your favorite sauce. Again we are addicted to the Bachan's Japanese barbecue sauces (not sponsored). We grab a combo pack at Costco and love mix and matching the flavors. All of them are winners.

Make Ahead, Storage & Reheating

• Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to four days.
• Reheat the chicken in the air fryer at 350 for 2-3 minutes until warmed through.
• Oven option: 400°F for 5-8 minutes (risk of drying).
• Microwave works if you don't mind a softer crumb.

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Chicken Katsu Rice Bowl

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5 from 2 reviews

• Author: Leanna Myers
• Total Time: 30 minutes
• Yield: 4 1x

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Description

Crispy, golden Chicken Katsu made easy! This Japanese-style fried chicken is family-friendly, budget-friendly, and ready in 30 minutes.

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Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

Chicken

• 2 chicken breasts
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 egg
• 1 cup flour
• 1 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
• 1/2 teasp garlic powder

Rice (sub precooked rice)

• 1 cup white rice
• 2 1/4 cup broth
• 1 teaspoon salt

Veggies

• 2 -3 cups fresh broccoli and carrots - sub frozen stir fry mix
• 1 tablespoon neutral oil or butter
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce

Katsu Sauce (sub store bought sauce like the Bachan's Japanese Barbecue Sauce)

• 1/4 cup ketchup
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon soy suace
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

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Instructions

For Chicken

1. Butterfly the chicken breasts and pound them to ½-inch thickness for even cooking. Season with salt.
2. Place flour, beaten eggs, and panko in three shallow bowls.
3. Dredge each piece of chicken in flour, dip in egg, and coat with panko. Press gently to help the breadcrumbs stick.
4. Heat ½ inch of vegetable oil in a skillet over medium heat.
5. Fry the chicken until golden brown and crispy, about 3-4 minutes per side.
6. Drain on paper towels.

For Rice

1. Rinse rice until water runs clear and place in a shallow pot with 2 1/4 cups broth or water and 1 teaspoon of salt.
2. Bring the it to a boil, then reduce to simmer and cook until all the water is absorbed for about 20 minutes.

For Veggies

1. In a large skillet heat vegetables over medium high heat with the oil and soy sauce.
2. Cook until the vegetables for about 10 - 15 minutes or until they are as soft as you like them, stirring occasionally.

For Katsu Sauce

1. Mix together the ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, sugar, and garlic powder.
2. Taste and adjust the sweetness or soy sauce for saltiness of you like.
3. Drizzle over the finished Katsu chicken.

Notes

Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to four days.

Reheat the chicken in the air fryer at 350 for 2-3 minutes until warmed through. 

Oven option: 400°F for 5-8 minutes (risk of drying).

Nutrition information is only for the chicken since the other components can be adjusted based on preferences.

• Prep Time: 20 minutes
• Cook Time: 10 minutes
• Category: Dinner
• Method: Frying
• Cuisine: Japanese

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