Panko is a very light Japanese breadcrumb, essential for your fried food like tonkatsu or ebi fry, presentation :
Panko, light breadcrumbs
Panko パン粉 is a flake breadcrumb used extensively in Japanese cooking for frying. It is made from bread with or without a crust and is much longer (3 to 15 mm) and lighter than European breadcrumbs. Panko retains less oil during frying which makes the dish much lighter in the mouth, more airy and less greasy. In addition, the dish remains crispy even when cold compared to European breadcrumbs which tend to soften quickly.
We could say that European breadcrumbs are more like small crumbs and Japanese breadcrumbs have fine and light flakes.
Panko was introduced into Japanese cuisine under the influence of the coming of the Portuguese in 1543. And since then, many dishes have appeared and are an integral part of Japanese cuisine. Here are some examples below.
Japanese dishes using panko
The tonkatsu is a fried breaded pork tenderloin usually eaten with Japanese rice
Menchi katsu is a Japanese deep-fried meatball
Crispy, gourmet breaded shrimp
The korokke is a Japanese croquette made of mashed potatoes and fried meat. A tasty little snack.
The kushikatsu is a skewer of fried meats, shellfish, vegetables…
Personally we have really seen the difference with European breadcrumbs. Today, we use panko even for French recipes like gratin, fritters for example. To try it is to adopt it!
How do you use it for your frying?
Prepare 3 salad bowls:
- 1 containing wheat flour
- 1 container of egg yolk
- 1 container of panko
Prepare your food (meat, fish, dumplings, vegetables, shrimp…), and coat your filling with flour, then dip them in egg yolk, panko, then a second time in egg yolk and Japanese breadcrumbs. Fry the whole thing until it browns, and you’ll get a crispy breading, greedy and light in the mouth. A real delight!