Air Fryer Homemade Chicken Katsu

This air fryer homemade chicken katsu from raw chicken is so easy to make! You do not need to buy a frozen chicken katsu because you can make it at home and adjust the taste to your liking!

WHAT IS CHICKEN KATSU?

Chicken katsu is basically a Japanese chicken cutlet. it’s crispy and crunchy on the outside and juicy on the inside. It’s very similar to chicken schnitzel. However, chicken katsu is supposed to be thicker.

Chicken katsu is usually served with white rice and a very simple salad (such as shredded cabbage and carrot topped with mayonnaise). Besides, chicken katsu is commonly topped with katsu sauce which is sometimes referred to as Japanese BBQ sauce.

What Is Katsu Chicken Made From?

Katsu chicken is made of skinless, boneless chicken meat (usually chicken breast or chicken thigh), breaded with flour, egg, and breadcrumbs. The seasoning in chicken katsu is usually quite simple, such as salt and pepper.

making chicken katsu in the air fryer

Chicken katsu is usually fried (either deep-fried or shallow-fried) using a lot of oil and a pan. While it’s normal to cook chicken katsu on the stove, you can actually use an air fryer to make chicken katsu.

Cooking chicken katsu in the air fryer is healthier because you use very little to zero amount of oil.

And honestly, cooking katsu in the air fryer just makes life easier. It’s less messy and less dangerous compared to cooking in the deep-fryer. You know, if you deep-fry something in a hot oil, there could be some oil splatters which is very convenient.

CAN YOU COOK RAW CHICKEN IN THE AIR FRYER?

Yes, of course, you can do that! You can cook fresh raw chicken in the air fryer very easily. In fact, frozen, unthawed raw chicken can also be cooked using this appliance! Air fryer really is an amazing invention.

CAN YOU COOK FLOUR ON THE CHICKEN AND PUT IT IN AN AIR FRYER?

Yes, you can do that! You can coat the chicken with a full breading consists of flour, egg, and breadcrumb and then cook it in the air fryer.

DOES PANKO WORK IN THE AIR FRYER?

It does. You can coat your chicken with panko breadcrumb and cook it in the air fryer for a crispy result. Just make sure to cook it long enough and hot enough so the panko comes out perfectly crispy.

air fryer HOMEMADE CHICKEN KATSU recipe

ingredients

For this recipe, you will need:

• Raw chicken fillet (I used skinless, boneless chicken breast). You can use chicken thigh for juicier result. Fresh chicken breast is best. But just in case your chicken is frozen, you need to thaw it first for hours until it’s ready for cooking. You can air fry it at 250 for 5 minutes to help the chicken defrost and speed up the thawing process.
• All-purpose flour. Just regular flour. It’s used as the base of the breading so the egg got something to bind on.
• Egg. You will need to beat it and get it ready in a large bowl or in a plate with edge. Egg acts as the binder of the breading.
• Panko breadcrumb. You need PANKO breadcrumb instead of the regular one. And yes, panko does work in the air fryer.
• Seasoning. This chicken katsu needs very simple seasoning i.e. salt and ground pepper.

EQUIPMENT

• Cutting board and a knife. You will need to trim the chicken so it’s not too thick and you need to flatten the chicken so each piece has uniform thickness.
• Meat pounder or rolling pin or anything else you have in the kitchen to flatten the chicken. You can even use a bottle and cover it with a plastic.
• Plastic wrap (or any plastic). It’s not mandatory but recommended. You can use it to cover the chicken when flattening it to avoid the mess. (You know, when you pound a chicken it’s really possible the chicken juice is splattering here and there).
• 3 large shallow bowls. You can also use a plate with edge, but make sure the edge is tall enough to avoid the mess. The bowls are needed to contain the breading ingredients i.e. flour, egg, and breadcrumb. On these bowls too, you will do the breading process (which can be a bit messy) so large bowls are needed.
• Most importantly, an air fryer. No matter how big or small your air fryer is, if it functions properly and it can reach at 200 Celcius, you’re good to go.

HOW TO MAKE CHICKEN KATSU IN THE AIR FRYER

It’s actually easy and you can do it in under 1 hour. But there’s quite a process you need to go through.

PREP THE CHICKEN

The chicken needs to be ready in the room temperature. Fresh chicken is best.

Wash the chicken and pat them dry with a paper towel.

Then, lay it on a cutting board and trim with a sharp knife. You want to be careful.

The idea of trimming the chicken is basically dividing 1 piece of chicken into 2 thinner pieces. So, you want to slice it horizontally.

Place your left hand on top of the chicken (very lightly press it). Then, slice the chicken from the right side through the left side using your right hand.

The chicken needs to be about 1/2 inch thick.

After slicing the chicken, you might notice some difference in thickness. You want to flat that out. Use a rolling pin or meat pounder to flatten the chicken.

SEASON THE CHICKEN

Rub the trimmed chicken with salt and pepper on both sides. Remember to avoid using too much salt because it can ruin the dish.

BREAD THE CHICKEN

Prepare 3 bowls and place them close to each other. Then, grab your air fryer basket and place them close to the bowls.

For the first bowl, add all-purpose flour.

For the second bowl, crack an egg in it and beat it well.

For the third bowl, add panko breadcrumb.

Start the breading with 1 piece of chicken. Use your right hand to place the seasoned chicken in the all-purpose flour and let it coat with the flour on both sides.

Then, move the chicken to the egg bowl using a tong or your left hand. You want to make sure both sides are coated with egg.

After that, transfer the chicken to the breadcrumb using your right hand. You want to give some pat or press so the breadcrumb can stick well to the chicken.

After it’s breaded, place it in the air fryer basket.

Do it to the rest of the chicken.

COOK THE CHICKEN

Arrange the breaded chicken in the air fryer basket in one single layer. Please do not stack them. If you feel that your air fryer cannot contain all of the chicken, do the cooking in batches. Air fryer cooks using flowing hot air. If your ingredients are stacked or not given a good space, there are a big chance they don’t cook perfectly.

Air fry it on 365 Fahrenheit for 16 minutes. Flip them halfway using a tong.

After 16 minutes, flip the chicken once again and change the aif fryer temperature to 400 Fahrenheit. Continue cooking the chicken for 4 minutes.

SERVE

Place the chicken katsu on a cutting board and slice it. Serve it on top of rice and top it with sauce. Don’t forget to sprinkle some chopped green onions on it.

MORE AIR FRYER HOMEMADE CHICKEN RECIPES (USING RAW CHICKEN)

Air Fryer Homemade Chicken Schnitzel

Air Fryer Homemade Chicken Meatball

Air Fryer Homemade Chicken Burger (Patties)