Ham Cutlet With Cheese [Not Only For Obento]

Cutlet is called "katsu" in Japanese, food with the word of katsu attached is referred to something fried with breadcrumbs coating. For example, ton-katsu (pork cutlet), minchi-katsu (minced cutlet), and kushi-katsu (cutlet on a skewer). This kind of ham cutlet can be found in the supermarket's fried food area, together with other fried items like tempura and fried chicken. Katsu is often served with the Tonkatsu sauce but I prefer it plain without any sauce. I am just not a sauce person. My old and young boys love cutlet very much but only the old boy (true Japanese) eat it with Tonkatsu sauce. Hence, it is okay if you cannot find the sauce at your end.

This ham cutlet goes well with steamed rice, you can also have it as the filling for your sandwich. Katsu-sando (Cutlet sandwich) is one of the popular sandwiches in Japan, for the quick lunch and obento. I made this cutlet with homemade chicken ham but any ham will do.

Ingredients:
1 roll Homemade Chicken Ham or store-bought
3 - 4 sliced cheese
2 large eggs, whisk lightly together with milk or water
3-4 tbsp milk/water
All-purpose flour for coating
Breadcrumbs
Oil for deep-frying

For serving (if prefer):
Shredded cabbage
Lettuce
Tomato
Tonkatsu Sauce (Japanese Pork Cutlet Sauce)

Method:

1. Cut ham into 0.5cm thick slices. Sandwich sliced cheese in between slices of ham, you may need to cut the cheese to fit the size of the ham.
2. For coating, prepare flour, breadcrumbs, and egg mixture in 3 separate shallow containers. Coat each ham-cheese-ham sandwich with flour, egg mixture, and breadcrumbs. Again, with egg mixture and breadcrumbs IF you prefer thick crust.
3. Set aside for a few minutes for the breadcrumbs to absorb all the moisture.
4. Preheat oil, fry cutlets with medium-high heat till they turned golden brown.
5. Serve warm with salad and tonkatsu sauce.