This post contains affiliate links. Please see our disclosure policy.
This Crispy Cheesy Chicken Katsu is one of my favourite things I have made in the last couple months. If you’ve been here a while you know how much I love making crispy chicken cutlets so when I saw this take on a fried chicken dish on TikTok I knew I had to give it a go.
Chicken Katsu differs from chicken cutlets in a few different ways, one being the breadcrumbs. In this recipe we use panko breadcrumbs rather than plain breadcrumbs which gives the chicken an incredible crispiness to it. With chicken katsu you make a “batter” for the chicken using a combination of eggs, flour, and a little hot water. The batter adds a nice flavour and thickness to the chicken that I really love.
I was on TikTok one night scrolling and this video showed up that received over 7 million views of this chicken katsu stuffed with cheese and fried and I knew I had to re-create it in my own way. I will leave the video link below of the recipe I saw and used as inspiration to create my own recipe below:
Table of Contents
My tips before getting started
Start by preparing three bowls, one with your chicken that you’ve rolled with Saran Wrap, one with the batter mixture and the last with the panko breadcrumbs.
Make sure you are using a vegetable or canola oil for frying as it will give you the crispiest chicken.
If you have a wire rack, be sure to use it when you remove the chicken from the hot oil. It will ensure the chicken doesn’t get soggy. As it begins to cool on a wire rack it will keep its shape and remain crispy.
You can stuff the chicken with whatever type of cheese you like best; I like to use mozzarella in this recipe as it comes out nice and stringy.
Crispy Cheesy Chicken Katsu
Ingredients
- vegetable oil for frying
- 6 chicken breasts, thinly sliced
- 6 pieces of mozzarella cheese, cubed
- sarana wrap
Batter Ingredients:
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup flour
- 1/2 cup hot water
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp pepper
Breadcrumb Ingredients:
- 2 cups panko, if using seasoned, don't add salt
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp paprika
Instructions
- Begin pounding your chicken breasts out to about 1/4 inch thick. This will also help to tenderize the meat.
- Season all sides of the chicken breasts with salt, garlic powder and paprika.
- Using a medium sized bowl, make your batter and set aside.
- Using a separate medium sized bowl, make your breakcrumb mixture and set aside.
- Add a piece of mozzarella to the end of your chicken breast, and using two hands roll it up, tucking the sides in as best as you can.
- Add the rolled chicken to a small piece of saran wrap and secure all sides tightly. *you dont need to do this step but I find it helps hold the chicken in place better which helps for frying. You can watch my video below*Repeat until all chicken has been stuffed with mozzarella, rolled up, and secured tightly in saran wrap.
- Add your chicken one by one to the batter, making sure all sides are covered evenly.
- Next, add your chicken to the panko, pressing down ensuring all sides of the chicken are coated evenly.
- Repeat until all chicken has been coated with the batter and panko.
- To a large pan, add your oil. You will need enough oil in your pan so that the chicken is almost fully submerged. Set to medium/high heat.
- Once your oil is hot, fry your chicken on each, turning every minute or two to ensure a nice even crisp. *Cooking time takes between 4-6 minutes*
- Once chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees, remove from the oil and transfer to a cooling rack to cool slightly before eating.
- Enjoy with a side salad, rice or pasta.
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
