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Crispy panko-crusted eggplant slices stand in for meat in this scrumptious vegan katsu curry. This comforting meatless meal is loaded with flavor!
Have you ever had katsu curry? It’s a Japanese dish, traditionally made with a panko-crusted and fried slice of meat topped with curry sauce and served over rice. Everything but the meat sounded really good to me, so I decided to create a vegan version!
Eggplant makes a wonderful meat substitute in a dish like katsu curry — it fries up beautifully and goes great with the flavors of Japanese curry sauce.
Let’s talk about how it’s made!
Jump to:
- What You’ll Need
- How to Make Vegan Katsu Curry
- Leftovers & Storage
- Frequently Asked Questions
- More Japanese-Inspired Vegan Recipes
- Eggplant Katsu Curry
What You’ll Need
- Vegetable oil. Feel free to substitute just about any high-heat oil, such as peanut, corn, or canola.
- Onion.
- Garlic.
- Ginger.
- Flour. The recipe calls for all-purpose flour, but it will also work with whole wheat or whole wheat pastry flour.
- Japanese curry powder. I like S&B brand, which is available at lots of supermarkets. If you can’t find Japanese curry powder, try using a mixture of regular curry powder (something like McCormick or Trader Joe’s brand) and garam masala.
- Water.
- Tomato paste.
- Soy sauce. Feel free to substitute tamari or liquid aminos.
- Vegan Worcestershire sauce. Annie’s, Edward & Sons, and Whole Foods brands are all vegan.
- Eggplant. Just about any variety will work. I recommend sticking with smaller eggplants. Tip: If your eggplant is larger, a bit old, or shows browning when you cut into it, consider salting it to remove any bitterness.
- Non-dairy milk. Just about any variety that’s unsweetened and unflavored will work.
- Ground flaxseed. Ground chia seed will work as a substitute.
- Salt.
- Panko breadcrumbs.
- Cooked rice. I like serving this dish with a sticky, short-grain white rice.
- Scallions.
- Toasted sesame seeds.
How to Make Vegan Katsu Curry
The following is a summary of how to make this dish, along with some pro tips. Scroll all the way down if you’d like to skip right to the full recipe.
- Begin by making the sauce: sweat some onion in oil for a few minutes, then add ginger, garlic, and curry powder. Cook the spices briefly, just until the mixture becomes fragrant. Be careful: sautéing your spices too long can make them bitter.
- Stir in the flour until it coats the onions, then add water, tomato paste, soy sauce, and Worcestershire sauce. Bring the mixture up to a simmer and let it cook for about 15 minutes to thicken it up.
- Now bread and cook the eggplant. Mix up a batter from the milk, flour, flaxseeds and salt. Mix up a breading from panko breadcrumbs and flour.
- Cut your eggplant into thin slices, then batter and bread both sides of each slice. Fry the slices in a bit of oil for a few minutes on each side, until they’re golden and crispy. Tip: eggplant really absorbs oil, so make sure you’re using enough of it. It should be between ⅛ and ¼ inch deep before you add your eggplant. Add oil to the pan between batches if it dries up.
- To serve, spoon some rice on a plate and arrange the fried eggplant slices on top. Spoon the sauce over the eggplant, then sprinkle everything with chopped scallions and toasted sesame seeds.
Leftovers & Storage
Eggplant katsu curry is best served right away, as it won’t stay crispy for long. If you do have leftovers, they’ll keep in a sealed container in the fridge for about 3 days.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can this recipe be made gluten-free?
I haven’t made a gluten-free version myself, but if you’d like to try, I’d recommend subbing all-purpose flour with a gluten-free blend, using gluten-free tamari in place of soy sauce, and gluten-free panko breadcrumbs.
I don’t like eggplant. Is there a substitute?
Try zucchini, summer squash, or tofu.
Can this recipe be made oil-free?
Possibly, but I don’t recommend it, as the coating will probably turn out soggy and gummy. If you’d like to experiment with a reduced oil version, try lightly spraying your breaded eggplant with oil and baking it using a method similar to the one in this tofu nuggets recipe.
