Katsu Sando (カツサンド) – Sandwich with Breaded Pork Cutlet

A katsu sando is a 2 cm thick pork cutlet in a panko crust between two slices of white milk bread. In Japan the sandwiches sit in the refrigerated shelves of convenience stores and station shops, crustless and cut into halves or thirds. You spread the bread with mustard mayonnaise, put finely shaved cabbage under the cutlet and soak the cutlet in tonkatsu sauce.

By Laura Chen · November 4, 2026

45 Mintotal

4servings

780kcal

JapaneseCuisine ›

Jump to recipe

For a clean cut, wrap each sandwich in plastic wrap and press it with a board for 10 minutes. That presses bread, cabbage and meat together, and your knife does not pull the crust off while cutting. Use shokupan from an Asian grocery store or an untoasted white sandwich loaf with a fine crumb. Dark bread or grilled toast tastes too strong.

You fry the cutlet following the instructions for tonkatsu. Stir the sauce with the recipe for tonkatsu sauce and the mayonnaise with the one for Kewpie mayo. A leftover cutlet ends up the next day with egg on rice as Katsudon.

Image: AI-generated.

Katsu Sando (カツサンド) – Sandwich with Breaded Pork Cutlet

Name: Katsu Sando (カツサンド) – Sandwich with Breaded Pork Cutlet
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Japanese
Ingredients: 4 pork loin steaks, 130 g each, 2 cm thick; 1/2 tsp salt; 1/4 tsp black pepper; 40 g all-purpose flour; 2 eggs; 80 g panko (Japanese breadcrumbs); 1 l vegetable oil for deep-frying; 8 slices shokupan (Japanese milk bread) or white sandwich bread, 1.5 cm thick; 4 tbsp mayonnaise; 2 tsp medium-hot mustard; 120 g cabbage, finely shaved; 8 tbsp tonkatsu sauce

Laura Chen

Servings

Prep time

25 minutes

Cook time

20 minutes

Calories

780

Cuisine

Japanese

Ingredients

For the cutlets:

4 pork loin steaks, 130 g each, 2 cm thick
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
40 g all-purpose flour
2 eggs
80 g panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
1 l vegetable oil for deep-frying

For the sandwiches:

8 slices shokupan (Japanese milk bread) or white sandwich bread, 1.5 cm thick
4 tbsp mayonnaise
2 tsp medium-hot mustard
120 g cabbage, finely shaved
8 tbsp tonkatsu sauce

Instructions

Cut into the fat edge of the steaks every 2 cm so they do not curl when frying. Season them with salt and pepper.
Turn the steaks in flour and tap off the excess. Pull them through the beaten eggs and press them firmly into the panko.
Heat the oil in a pot to 170 °C. Fry 2 cutlets at a time for 5 to 6 minutes and turn them halfway through.
Let the cutlets rest on a rack for 5 minutes. The meat keeps cooking and stays juicy.
Stir the mayonnaise and mustard smooth. Spread it on one side of each slice of bread.
Dip each cutlet in tonkatsu sauce on both sides. Spread the cabbage over four slices of bread, put a cutlet on each and cover with the second slice.
Wrap each sandwich tightly in plastic wrap. Put a board on top and weigh it down with a pot for 10 minutes.
Unwrap the sandwiches, cut off the crust with a bread knife and halve them. Serve them lukewarm or cold.

Reviews

No reviews yet. Did you cook this recipe? Tell us how it turned out.

Katsu Sando (カツサンド) – Sandwich with Breaded Pork Cutlet

Ingredients

For the cutlets:

For the sandwiches:

Instructions

Reviews

Rate this recipe

Choose options

Katsu Sando (カツサンド) – Sandwich with Breaded Pork Cutlet

Ingredients

For the cutlets:

For the sandwiches:

Instructions

Reviews

Rate this recipe

New recipes by email