Name: Crispy Curried Chicken Cutlets With a Lot of Cabbage
Yield: Serves 2
Ingredients: 2 Tbsp. rice vinegar; 2 Tbsp. sugar; ½ tsp. kosher salt; ½ lb. (about 3 cups) green cabbage, cored and as thinly sliced as possible; 2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce; 2 Tbsp. ketchup; 1 Tbsp. dark brown sugar; 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (6 to 8 oz. each); Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper; ¼ cup mayonnaise; 2 Tbsp. Dijon mustard; 1 cup panko bread crumbs, plus more as needed; 1 ½ tsp. curry powder; 1 tsp. garlic powder; 4 Tbsp. vegetable oil; Cooked white rice, for serving

A breaded chicken cutlet on a plate with rice and cabbage salad.

Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Kaitlin Wayne

Donkkasseu (also known as tonkatsu in Japanese) was a regular staple in our house, and undeniably a favorite TV dinner. My mother, Jean, would bread the pork cutlets ahead of time and store them in the freezer in individual bags for us to make. Whenever we wanted to eat them, all we had to do was take them out, thaw them in the microwave, and pan-fry them in a little oil. I’m almost hesitant to say fry here because you’re really just searing them. Contrary to popular belief, you don’t need to deep-fry cutlets for them to get crispy and delicious; you just need a hot pan and a thin layer of fat.

Here I’ve replaced the pork chops with chicken breasts and added a little curry powder to the breading as an echo of the fabulous combo that is kkasseu and curry. A classic kkasseu sauce comes together in just three ingredients (and tastes way better than bottled). The most important component of this dish is, however, the cabbage slaw, which I’ve quick-pickled like “chicken mu,” those sweet white cubes of Korean radish often served alongside Korean fried chicken. As much as I adore chicken, cabbage will always be, for me, the star.