Miso Katsudon　

Miso katsudon is a winner and sure to be your go-to for a satisfying and flavorful meal! It consists of a combination of crispy breaded pork cutlets (katsu) with a tasty umami miso sauce, all served on a bed of steaming rice. It is a popular “fast food” choice like many other Donburi dishes and a staple of Japanese home cooking.

What is Miso Katsudon?

Miso katsudon is a popular Japanese dish that combines two delicious components: crispy panko-crumbed, fried pork cutlets (tonkatsu) and a delicious sweet miso-based sauce packed with umami. The cutlets are served on a bed of steamed rice with some cabbage to create a sort of all-in-one rice dish known as “donburi.” There are many other types of donburi dishes including tempura donburi and unagi (grilled barbecue eel) donburi. Miso katsudon originates from the city of Nagoya in Japan, but can now be found throughout the country. It’s a comforting, satisfying meal that’s perfect for lunch or dinner.

Nagoya Miso Katsu

Nagoya is a vibrant city in central Japan, known for its unique food culture, including the popular dish: Miso Katsu. Miso katsu is a delicious deep-fried pork cutlet covered in a tasty miso katsu sauce, giving it a rich umami flavor. It is a local specialty of Nagoya but is now popular elsewhere as well. The crispy pork cutlet pairs perfectly with the spicy and slightly sweet miso katsu sauce, creating a mouth-watering combination loved by locals and tourists. In Nagoya and other parts of Japan you can find many restaurants serving this delicious dish. It can be served over rice as a donburi dish or on its own as part of a set meal with side dishes such as pickles, soup and rice.

Ingredients needed to prepare Miso Katsudon

Katsudon

Pork cutlets: Pork cutlets or pork chops cut into thin slices, coated in breadcrumbs and fried until crispy.

Rice: Miso katsudon is generally served over steamed white rice, which helps balance the savory flavors of the dish and makes it filling.

Chopped cabbage : Cabbage is often served with katsu because it adds a refreshing element to the dish that helps balance the heaviness and rich flavors of the fried meat.

Main ingredients of miso katsu sauce

The miso on top of the top katsu is not just plain miso paste coated on the pork. It’s actually made with dashi broth, mirin, sake, sugar, and miso mixed together. This is how the unique sweet and savory flavor is created.

Miso : Miso is a fermented soybean paste that adds a rich umami flavor to dishes. It comes in different varieties, such as white miso (which is more delicate and sweet), red miso (which is deeper and earthier), and awase miso which is a mix of white and red miso. Miso It goes with any protein, but the flavor pairs especially well with pork.

Miso katsu in Nagoya typically uses a special type of dark red miso paste called Hatcho Miso, or “haccho miso” (八丁味噌). It is made from 100% soybeans, without added grains, fermented over a long period of time. This results in a dark-colored paste and gives a very umami-rich, intense flavor with less sweetness than other miso varieties. But when hatcho miso is combined with mirin, sake and sugar it becomes sweetened and truly delicious. Hatcho miso can be difficult to find outside of Japan, so you can use any type of miso. I use my homemade miso to make this special sauce.

Miso sauce can be used not only for miso katsudon but also as a marinade, glaze or sauce for other meats, vegetables, tofu or noodles. Experiment with different ratios of these ingredients to find the perfect miso sauce recipe!

Miso Katsudon step by step instructions

Here is a step by step guide on how to prepare this tasty dish at home:

1. Cook the rice: Set up the rice cooker first if you don’t have rice ready. If you don’t have a rice cooker, see this post for instructions.

2.Prepare the Tonkatsu

• Mix the egg, flour, water and mayonnaise in a small bowl to form a batter.
• Prepare the pork chops: Pound the pork loin chops until they are about ½ inch thick. Season both sides with salt and pepper.
• Mix the egg, flour, water and mayonnaise in a small bowl to form a batter. *note that I have found it to be easier and faster this way. I don’t set up a breading station but mix them all together to create the batter.
• Coat each slice of pork tenderloin in the batter and then top in the panko crumbs.
• Coat the pork cutlets in the panko breadcrumbs (Japanese breadcrumbs), pressing gently to adhere them to the meat.
• Heat the vegetable oil in a deep frying pan over medium heat until it reaches about 180c.
• Fry the breaded pork cutlets until golden brown on both sides, about 3 to 4 minutes per side.
• Remove the tonkatsu from the pan and place it on a rack lined with paper towels to remove excess oil.

3. Prepare the Miso Katsu sauce

• Tonkatsu is usually served with tonkatsu sauce (a sweet-spicy sauce made from Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, ketchup, sugar and other seasonings). But miso katsudon uses miso sauce which is also easy to prepare.
• Simply place all the miso sauce ingredients in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat and stir to combine.

4. Serve

• Place some rice in a bowl and drizzle some miso sauce, then top with salad/cabbage leaves and sliced ​​tonkatsu pork.
• Pour miso sauce over and sprinkle with sesame seeds

Variations and substitutions of Miso Katsudon

Whatever your reason for not eating pork, you can replace it with chicken, fish, seafood, and even vegetarian options like tofu (use firm tofu).

You can also bake cutlets instead of frying them to make them healthier.

Tips for preparing the perfect Miso Katsudon

A key ingredient in miso katsu is hatcho miso, a type of miso paste known for its deep umami flavor and robust taste. This unique variety of miso adds depth and complexity to the dish, perfectly complementing the crispy texture of the pork cutlet. As I mentioned above, because it is a special type of miso, it can be difficult to find outside of Japan. You can use any other type of miso but, if possible, use red miso which will have a more similar richness.

Miso katsudon is a hearty and comforting traditional Japanese dish that’s easy to make at home. It combines the crunchiness of fried pork cutlets with the umami-rich flavor of miso sauce that makes it so irresistibly delicious.

Here is my recipe for Miso Katsudon and if you liked it, rate it and leave a comment below. Also, don’t forget to follow me Youtube, Pinterest, Facebook , Twitter AND Instagram to keep you updated with all the latest Chopstick Chronicles news. Don’t forget to use the hashtag #ChopstickChronicles so I can see your wonderful creations!