Japanese Tofu Katsu Curry

This Japanese Tofu Katsu Curry is the perfect vegetarian-friendly comfort food. Made in only 30 minutes, this dish makes a great bento lunch, too–if you have any leftovers from dinner, that is!

Guys, I have a serious problem. I just got back from Japan last week and am DYING to try every single Japanese recipe I can think of!

The versatility of Japanese cuisine is, simply put, extraordinary. From classic dishes such as shrimp tempura udon and sushi to beautifully reimagined adaptations such as matcha (green tea) mille crepe cake or this 3-ingredient Japanese cheesecake, there is no doubt in any foodie’s mind that Japan is considered something of a palette paradise.

Of course, if you happen to have dietary restrictions, tasting your way through Japan can pose a different challenge altogether. As a vegetarian, I had heard many stories about how dashi (a fish-based broth) is used in most traditional Japanese cooking, and many of my friends had warned me about the difficulty of finding suitable veg-friendly fare, so I promised myself I’d be open to trying dashi-made products if the need ever arose. But I had always loved Japanese food made in the States and had almost no trouble finding suitable vegetarian options, so I felt fairly confident that I wouldn’t have any trouble abroad. After all, isn’t that what tofu was for?

As it turns out, though, tofu–at least in the places where I went to visit, in Tokyo, Hiroshima, Kyoto, and the Shimane Prefacture–wasn’t ubiquitous at all. I might’ve seen the occasional cube of tofu bobbing up and down in my (very non-veg) miso soup, but aside from that I spent most of our free lunchtimes scouring Japanese restaurant menus looking for “safe” dishes such as omurice and yakisoba. Two nights in a row, I also ordered vegetable curry with rice that turned out to be super delicious, though my jaw ached for a bit more substance to chew on! That night, I quickly scribbled a note to myself about how great it would have been to have some tofu katsu (or cutlet) with that curry, and thus this recipe was born.

The best part of homestyle Japanese cooking is that it’s very simple to prepare and–as in the case of this Japanese Tofu Katsu Curry–few ingredients to assemble. All you need for the katsu itself is some tofu, flour, salt, pepper, eggs, and panko (Japanese-style breadcrumbs).

Once you’ve cut and pressed your tofu dry, you prepare it for frying by coating each piece in flour and then dipping it in a beaten egg.

After that, you dip the egg-covered tofu in some panko crumbs before frying it in a pan filled with hot oil.

From there, you can cut up some vegetables and cook them with a store-bought vegetarian curry sauce. If you want, you can also serve the tofu katsu with an easy katsu sauce made of ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, rice vinegar, and some sugar. And of course, Japanese-style rice (short-grained) is a must for any curry dish!

I’m still recovering from this trip but have more Japanese recipes up my sleeve already. Stay tuned to see what they are–and feel free to throw your favorite Japanese recipe suggestions my way, too, so that I can try them !