K-Mag - Kikkoman

for culinary insiders
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Dear Friends,
When it comes to texture, I’m all about the crunch.
I’ve been a fan of everything crispy and crunchy ever
since I bit into my first potato chip as a little kid.
And once I discovered onion rings, I was a confirmed
crunchivore for life.
So you can imagine how happy I was when Kikkoman
first introduced Panko Japanese Style Bread Crumbs
to consumers in 2005. These days many home
cooking enthusiasts know panko as the ultimate
coating for making the crispiest, crunchiest foods.
But I’m proud to have been part of the team that
helped bring this magic ingredient into the American
mainstream.
Once you try panko, I know you’ll never go back to
ordinary bread crumbs. It’s the secret ingredient that
does it all. And just because it’s called “Japanese
Style,” don’t think of it as an ingredient that only
works for Asian cooking. True, it makes the world’s
best tonkatsu pork cutlets, but that's just the
beginning.
I always have a box of panko in my pantry, and
I’ve found a million ways to use it—from a quick
cheesecake crust (just mix it with melted butter and
a pinch of sugar and press it into the pan) to Scotch
eggs, chicken cutlets and the crunchiest grilled
cheese ever.
Biting through a crispy coating to find something
delicious inside always makes me smile. That’s why
I’m excited to share this issue of K Magazine with
you. So go ahead. Get your hands on
a box of panko ‘cause it’s time to
get your crunch on!
CRUNCH
Which sounds better to you: chicken tenders or crispy chicken tenders?
Cheese-stuffed pepper poppers or crunchy cheese-stuffed pepper
poppers? Cinnamon French toast or crispy cinnamon
French toast?
If you went with crispy and crunchy, don’t
be surprised. We humans have an inherent
attraction to foods we can sink—or crunch—
our teeth into.
It goes all the way back to our hunter-gatherer
ancestors, who knew instinctively that crispy,
crunchy foods not only taste great, but supply valuable
nutrition that wasn’t always easy to find, such as vegetables. No wonder
modern-day crunch hunters still go for the breaded and battered goodies
as they stalk supermarket aisles and restaurant menus.
One place they’ll find plenty of what they’re looking for is Japan, which
has a crispy cuisine of its own. Entire shops are dedicated to tempurabattered specialties, like crunchy-coated karaage chicken, which gives
fried chicken a soy-sauce-and-ginger accent.
And then there’s panko, Japan’s answer to the Western bread crumb,
which spreads a crackling crunch over everything from pork cutlets to
potato cakes. It’s one of Japan’s greatest gifts to cooking and Kikkoman
is proud to have helped introduce it to American home cooks and chefs.
Panko is a crunch-lovers secret weapon for all kinds of foods that go
way beyond Japanese cooking. Whether you’re coating a crab cake or
topping a casserole, panko can add its cross-cultural crunch appeal just
about anywhere. So follow your instinct, and chase crispiness wherever
it takes you.
Chef Helen Roberts, CCP
Manager of Culinary Development
and Public Relations
www.kikkomanusa.com
www.facebook.com/kikkomankitchen
INSIDE
THE HUNT FOR
C
WHY WE CRAVE CRUN
ISSUE 15
F E AT U R E S
SIDEBARS
1
The Hunt For Crunch!1 Why We Crave Crunch
5
What is Panko?
2 Shortcuts for Better Cutlets
Tracing the Panko Trail
3
RECIPES
Yoshoku3
Crispy Stuffed French Toast
7
Bread crumbs Without Borders
4
Coconut Panko Shrimp
7
Crispy Chicken—and 6 Fast Ways
Tonkatsu8
to Serve It
4
Easy Cassoulet
8
Panko Chicken Goes Global
5
PRODUCT SP OTLIGHT
Beyond Crunch: Panko’s
Hidden Virtues
6 Kikkoman Panko Japanese Style
Bread Crumbs9
More Panko Tips and Tricks
6
H
The sound effect: When measuring a food’s appeal, taste
can take the cake. But we eat with our eyes, our noses—and
our ears. This explains why the crispy, crunchy foods that “talk
back” are so craveable.
The chew factor: There’s something satisfying about having
to work for your food, and that includes chewing it. Crunchy
foods engage our jaws and mouth, keeping boredom at bay.
To crunch is human: Putting food to flame makes us human.
And it makes foods crunchy, crispy and texturally enticing. So
whether you’re grilling, baking, broiling or frying, you’re playing
out a time-honored tradition of building texture.
1
WHAT IS PANKO?
If you’re unfamiliar with panko, Japan’s take on Western bread
crumbs, you’re in for a crispy treat. The very name combines
Japan’s term for “bread”—pan—with ko, which means “flour,” or
“crumb.” But panko aren’t just any bread crumbs. In fact, chefs
consider panko the gold standard for creating shatteringly
crisp coatings, toppings and breadings.
NOT YOUR
ORDINARY
BREAD CRUMB
• Panko bread is made from
strong, high-protein wheat flour
and high levels of yeast. The
yeast generate long, oval air cells
in the rising dough that, in the
finished bread, shatter into glasslike shards that resemble oblong
flakes more than pebbly crumbs.
• Special ovens “bake” panko by sending heat through the dough,
heating it evenly from the inside out and creating a pale, crustless
bread that’s similar to an old-fashioned pullman loaf.
• Panko’s oblong geometry prevents the flakes from packing in tightly
amongst themselves when used as a coating; less packing means more
air pockets, and that enhances panko’s light, crisp texture and helps
prevent sogginess.
We may be biased, but at Kikkoman, we
prefer panko to traditional bread crumbs.
Here’s why you should, too:
• Panko delivers a powerful crunch thanks to the flakes’ unique shape, size
and density. This helps foods stay crisp longer, even at room temperature.
• Because of their size, surface area and density, panko flakes absorb less oil
than regular bread crumbs.
• The large size of the individual panko flakes makes small pieces of food look
larger—and more visually appealing.
• Panko stays exceptionally crispy when baked, letting cooks recreate the
satisfying crunch of fried foods without frying.
• Panko is traditionally unseasoned and unflavored, lending it sweet-to-savory
versatility and adaptability to any cuisine.
• Panko works as a coating for individual pieces of food (think chicken
tenders) and as a topping for casseroles, gratins, even cobblers and stews.
• Made with only recognizable “kitchen-cabinet” ingredients—flour, sugar,
yeast, oil and salt—Kikkoman Panko has a “cleaner” label than most
processed bread crumbs.
• Kikkoman Panko is available in gluten free and 100% whole wheat varieties.
2
TRACING THE
PANKO TRAIL
When foods migrate from one cuisine to another, nuances can get
lost in translation. But when Japan is on the receiving end
of a culinary transaction, nuances get found. That’s what
happened when bread crumbs became panko.
In the 1500s, Portuguese traders introduced Japan’s
rice-growing culture to wheat-based Western
bread—or pao, as the Portuguese called it. And it
didn’t take long after that for Japanese to adopt
bread and adapt its Portuguese name to fit their
own pronunciation: pan.
It took the Russo-Japanese War of 1905 for Japanese
to discover the foods of German troops—and to learn
what happens when you coat cutlets of pan-fried pork with
crumbs of stale pan: you get schnitzel, or as Japanese call it, tonkatsu
(from ton, meaning pork and katsu, meaning cutlet).
To this day, panko and pork remain a crispy couple in tonkatsu shops around the
country. In fact, panko was such a hit that Japanese cooks put it to work all over
the menu, creating delicacies that are unmistakably Japanese, but marked with a
European stamp. How’s that for culinary diplomacy?
洋食
Yoshoku is the Japanese term for the
Western-influenced dishes that started washing
ashore at the turn of the 20th century. You may
have tried some of these panko-crusted yoshoku
specialties yourself:
Tonkatsu:
The granddaddy of pankocoated dishes, these breaded pork cutlets
are practically a cuisine of their own; entire
shops are devoted to tonkatsu and nothing
but. Normally enjoyed with a sweet soybased sauce, tonkatsu can also appear atop
a bowl of rice in a dish known as katsudon.
Korokke:
These panko-crusted, deepfried balls of mashed potatoes trace
their roots to the French croquette. (Say
“croquette” and “korokke” out loud and
you’ll hear the resemblance.) Sometimes
stuffed or studded with ground beef and
green onions, korokke make irresistible
on-the-go snacks and are sold everywhere
from train stations to mini-marts.
Ebi furai:
Ebi is Japanese for “shrimp” or
“prawn”; furai is how Japanese pronounce
“fried.” And that’s the essence of this
Japanese spin on fried-shrimp, a staple in
bento lunches of young and old alike. Ebi
furai taste great on their own, but are also
delectable with tonkatsu sauce or Western
tartar sauce, which has its own fan base in Japan.
3
THE MIDDLE EAST
BREAD CRUMBS
WITHOUT BORDERS
Panko has come full circle and then some. What started as a
European import filtered through a Japanese sensibility is
venturing back out, making landfall on—and in—dishes from the
four corners of the globe. That’s a testament to panko’s versatility
and to the power of its crunch. Here are some suggestions for
fitting panko into your global cooking.
ASIA
Pakora perfect: In India and South Asia, meat and veggie fritters called pakoras appear
anytime, anywhere: as snacks, before meals, at parties, in lunchboxes. And while pakoras
usually get their luscious crunch from a batter, coating them in panko—or adding some to the
batter—makes them that much crunchier.
Orange you glad you used panko: Everybody loves Chinese orange chicken; everybody doesn’t
always love the fact that this restaurant-style favorite is deep-fried. By coating the chicken
chunks in a panko breading and baking them, you can save calories and the mess of frying the
original.
Go bananas: Anyone who’s been to Bangkok knows that the sweetest end to a day of sampling
its legendary street foods is a Thai-style fried baby banana, served simply with honey or sweet
syrup. Coating the bananas with panko ensures that they stay light and crisp, even if you
double-dip.
EUROPE
Falafelicious: International disputes have broken out over who makes the best falafel, the
deep-fried balls of chickpeas or fava beans that rule pita stands from Egypt to Israel to Iraq.
If you want to enter your own into the contest, trying coating them in crispy panko and baking
rather than frying them.
A better crumb for kofta: The scent of kofta grilling over a wood flame is a sure sign of
mealtime in Turkey, where these ground-lamb patties are ever present. A proper kofta should
hold firm without being heavy or dense, which is why cooks bind them with bread crumbs. Make
them with panko and your kofta will remain light and intact.
Panklava: Across the Mediterranean and Middle East, cooks jealously guard their recipes for
baklava, a nut-filled, syrup-drenched dessert of crispy phyllo layers. A secret ingredient you’ll
find in many fillings is a sprinkling of cracker crumbs, but we think panko works even better.
LATIN AMERICA
The bites from Brazil: In Brazil, coxa is the word for a chicken thigh, and a coxinha is a
dumpling filled with shredded chicken, shaped like a drumstick and deep-fried in a coating of
bread crumbs. Panko added to the coating brings a new dimension of texture to these party
pleasers.
Fab fish tacos: Everybody loves Baja-style fried-fish tacos. But if you crave a break from the
typical battered fillets (which can get a little mushy next to the cabbage and salsa), try coating
yours in panko. It banishes sogginess and gives the fish a fun, spiky appearance that kids and
grownups love.
Crunchy meets creamy: Fried ice cream may not be “authentically” Mexican, but it’s an
authentic original on Mexican-American restaurant menus and a dessert that’s hard to beat. Try
frying the ice cream in a coating of panko tossed in butter, brown sugar and cinnamon.
THE UNITED STATES
Greater tots: Is there a kid—or adult—who doesn’t have a soft spot for potato tots? Try making
your own from scratch, and coat them in panko for a snappy crunch you’d never get from the
freezer case.
Rice and crunchy: Italian arancini might be the perfect finger foods. Why? Imagine a ball of
creamy Arborio rice encasing a central nugget of cheese, mushrooms, meat or more, coated
in bread crumbs and fried until golden brown. Now imagine replacing bread crumbs with airy
panko. You’ve just made arancini even crispier.
Mac ’n’ cheese makeover: Macaroni and cheese is a
quintessential comfort food—oozy, creamy and meltingly
rich. Add the perfect textural contrast with a topping of
panko tossed in butter and herbs and a few minutes under
the broiler.
Move over, matzoh: The hallmark of a well-made latke—those fried potato cakes originally
eaten during Hanukkah in Eastern Europe—is a crispy shell that cracks to reveal a soft potato
center. The traditional latke coating is matzoh meal, but panko gets the job done even better.
Craveable crab cakes: The capital of crab cakes is
Maryland, where pros know that the two secrets to a
great cake are quality seafood and a light touch with the
binders. That’s why airy panko should be on your crab
cake ingredient list. For extra crunch, dip the patties in
more panko before frying.
Haute panko: What could be more French than buttery braised leeks sprinkled with parsleyflecked crumbs of French bread? Swap those crumbs with panko and you’ve given this Parisian
favorite an Asian-cool twist and a superior crunch.
CRISPY CHICKEN—AND
6 FAST WAYS TO SERVE IT
A crispy chicken cutlet makes an irresistible base for all kinds of
meals. And panko makes it perfect. Here’s one basic recipe and
five suggestions for giving it global flavor. Make extra and use the
leftovers for fantastic sandwiches or salads to pack for school or work.
BASIC PANKO CHICKEN
Vegetable oil for frying
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 boneless chicken breasts, each
about ½ inch thick
½ cup Kikkoman Panko Bread
Crumbs or Whole Wheat Panko
1 egg
Pour oil at least 1 inch deep into electric frying pan or deep frying pan; heat to 350°F.
Beat egg until blended. Coat both sides of chicken with flour, then dip into egg and
finally coat thoroughly with bread crumbs.
Fry chicken in oil until golden brown.
Makes 4 servings
4
PANKO CHICKEN GOES GLOBAL
Italian: Mix panko with grated Parmesan and
pre-blended Italian seasoning or your favorite
fresh or dried herbs, such as thyme, parsley or rosemary.
Greek: Replace egg wash with Greek-style
yogurt and lemon juice, and blend panko with
garlic, oregano and grated lemon rind.
French: Replace egg wash with Dijon mustard
blended with sour cream; season panko with
grated Parmesan.
Cajun: Blend panko with your favorite Cajun
seasoning mix or a mixture of thyme, garlic
powder, onion powder, black pepper and cayenne; serve
the finished chicken with hot sauce.
Spicy Asian: Add Kikkoman Soy Sauce and
Sriracha Sauce to the egg wash; blend panko
with sesame seeds.
Mexican: Squeeze lime juice into egg wash and
mix panko with cumin, garlic powder, ground
arbol chile, oregano and a sprinkle of cornmeal.
SHORTCUTS FOR
BETTER CUTLETS
• Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
are a must. And the thinner they are,
the more quickly they’ll cook without
drying. Ask your butcher to split them
in half lengthwise.
• For more tender cutlets, pound
the chicken with a meat mallet or
even a frying pan to loosen the fibers.
Pounding also helps you achieve a
uniform thickness, so cutlets cook
more evenly.
• Use one hand when working with
the dry ingredients (flour and panko)
and the other for dipping in the egg.
You’ll find it’s less messy this way.
• Test the heat of your oil by tossing
in a few panko crumbs. They should
float and start to sizzle and bubble
right away. Watch and adjust the heat
constantly; as you add more chicken
the oil temperature will drop and
you’ll need to raise the heat. But don’t
raise it for too long, or the coating will
brown too much.
• For the crispiest results, cook
the chicken in batches to avoid
overcrowding the pan. You can keep
finished chicken warm in a 200˚F oven
while you fry the remaining cutlets.
• Flip the cutlets with tongs, not a
fork, so you’ll keep the juices in the
chicken.
• Try the same technique with thinly
sliced veal or pork, too.
5
BEYOND CRUNCH:
Panko’s Hidden Virtues
Panko is justifiably famous for its crunch-appeal.
But it’s also ideal in fillings and as a garnish.
Better binder: Blending bread crumbs moistened with
milk (a mixture known as a panade) into a meatloaf
or meatball mix is standard operating procedure. But
panko is actually a better binder, because its fluffy
texture and large grain resist packing. The upshot is a
lighter meatloaf or meatball, without a hint
of mushiness.
The good stuff: A bread crumb stuffing
is a scrumptious way to dress up
vegetables like squashes, eggplants,
mushrooms, peppers—even artichokes.
But vegetables give off a lot of water as
they cook. Panko’s light texture can handle that.
Thickening trick: Instead of thickening soups, stews,
sauces and gravies with flour or starch, try using
panko instead. Its mild flavor will blend right in, and its
texture is hearty enough to lend real substance even
to a chowder or chili.
MORE PANKO
TIPS AND TRICKS
•Garnish: Sprinkle panko on sautéed or steamed vegetables,
creamy soups or casseroles as a crunchy garnish.
•Crouton alternative: Panko makes for a light change of pace
from croutons on salads.
•Oven frying: Coat chicken, fish or veggies with panko, drizzle
with oil and bake for a crispy deep-fried texture.
•Coat rounds of goat cheese with panko, drizzle with olive oil
and bake briefly to toast the crumbs. Serve as an appetizer or
salad topper.
•Sauté panko in butter or flavored oil, mix with herbs or cheese
and use anywhere you want a little extra crunch, from pasta to
vegetables and more.
•Fab French toast: Coat French toast in panko before frying for a
restaurant-style golden-brown crust.
•Casseroles: Switch out the fried onion rings and crushed
cornflakes with a panko topping on your next green-bean
casserole.
•Monte “crispo”: Give Monte Cristo sandwiches extra crunch by
coating in panko before frying.
6
K
K
for culinary insiders
ISSUE 15
CRISPY STUFFED FRENCH TOAST
for culinary insiders
ISSUE 15
TONKATSU
1½ cups Kikkoman Panko Bread Crumbs
½ stick butter
1 loaf French bread
4 oz cream cheese, softened
¼ cup berry jam
3 large eggs, beaten
½ cup milk
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla flavor
¼ cup all-purpose flour
Vegetable oil for frying
4 boneless pork chops, each about ½ inch thick
1 egg
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
½ cup Kikkoman Panko Bread Crumbs or Whole Wheat Panko
Kikkoman Tonkatsu Sauce
Pour oil at least 1 inch deep into electric frying pan or deep frying pan; heat
to 350°F.
Melt the butter in a nonstick frying pan. Add the bread crumbs and sauté
them together over medium heat until the panko browns; set aside to cool.
Cut the French bread into 2-inch thick slices. Cut a thick incision down
the middle of each slice of bread; don’t cut through to the bottom or sides.
Combine cream cheese and jam in a medium bowl and carefully spoon 1 to
2 tablespoons of the mixture into the bread; set aside. In a large flat bowl,
mix together the eggs, milk, cinnamon and vanilla flavor together. Pour the
flour onto a plate. Dredge each slice of stuffed bread in the flour, coating
both sides and all edges. Coat each slice with the egg mixture and then roll
in the toasted panko crumbs. Bake in 350°F oven for 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, pound pork to ¼ inch thickness. Beat egg until blended. Coat
both sides of pork with flour, then dip into egg and finally coat thoroughly
with bread crumbs.
Fry pork in oil until golden brown, about 3 minutes on each side.
Serve with tonkatsu sauce.
Makes 4 servings
Makes 4 servings
K
K
for culinary insiders
ISSUE 15
COCONUT PANKO SHRIMP
2 large eggs
1
⁄3 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup Kikkoman Panko Bread Crumbs
1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined with tails attached
Vegetable oil for frying
In a medium bowl, beat the eggs. Add flour to a medium bowl, and combine
the panko and coconut together in another bowl. Dip the shrimp into the flour,
then the eggs and then dredge the shrimp in the panko/coconut mixture,
pressing gently to adhere. Set aside and repeat the process with the remaining
shrimp. Add enough oil to cover the bottom of a large skillet. Once the oil is
hot, carefully fry the shrimp over medium-high heat in batches; do not crowd
them. Turn the shrimp after they brown on one side, about 2 minutes, and fry
for another 1-2 minutes. Remove from the oil and drain on paper towels.
for culinary insiders
ISSUE 15
EASY CASSOULET
1 pound dried white bean,
(cannellini, lima, etc)
8 chicken legs or thighs
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 pound smoked sausage, cut into
2-inch pieces
1 large onion, chopped
2 carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch
pieces
3 stalks celery, cut into 2-inch
pieces
1 whole head garlic, peeled and
chopped
4 bay leaves
1 quart chicken stock
1 cup Kikkoman Panko Bread
Crumbs
Soak the beans overnight and drain. Season chicken with salt and pepper,
then bake for 45 minutes at 350°F. In a large Dutch oven, combine the
beans, baked chicken, sausage, onion, carrots, celery, garlic and bay
leaves. Pour in the chicken stock and stir to combine all of the ingredients.
Bake at 300°F for 4 hours, check liquid levels and add water as needed
to prevent burning or drying out. Sprinkle with panko bread crumbs, turn
oven to 500°F and cook for 5 minutes to get a golden crust.
Makes 4 servings
Makes 6 servings
product spotlight
Kikkoman Panko Japanese
Style Bread Crumbs—The
Better Breader
Kikkoman Panko
Japanese Style
Bread Crumbs are
the ultimate coating
for crispy fried and
oven-fried foods. Its
texture, size and shape
guarantee a satisfying
crunch on everything
from baked chicken breasts
to pan-fried fish and veggies.
Even better, Kikkoman
Panko Bread Crumbs are
“clean label.” You won’t
find any chemical-sounding
surprises inside; only wheat
flour, sugar, yeast, oil and
salt. What’s more, Kikkoman
100% Whole Wheat Panko
Bread Crumbs pack in three
times more fiber per ½-cup
serving than the original.
But no matter which one you
choose, all Kikkoman Panko
products contain zero grams
of trans fat, are unseasoned
for maximum versatility and
are made in the U.S. with the
Kikkoman quality standards
you’ve come to trust.
K
for culinary insiders
ISSUE 15
K Magazine is a journal of tastes, techniques and trends for food enthusiasts,
published twice a year by KIKKOMAN SALES USA, INC.
www.kikkomanusa.com
415-956-7750
KIKKOMAN SALES USA, INC.
50 California Street, Suite 3600
San Francisco, CA 94111
©2015 KIKKOMAN SALES USA, INC.
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