Tonkatsu, invented in the 1930s, is one of the most popular dishes in
Japan. It consists of a breaded deep-fried
pork cutlet, and is generally served with shredded
cabbage, white
rice, and
miso soup. It is eaten with a brown sauce, the ingredients of which vary from place to place but which has a taste close to
Worcestershire sauce. Some people also like to eat their tonkatsu with a spicy yellow
mustard.
When ordering tonkatsu, diners generally specify either a hire (lean) or rosu (fatty) cut. The very finest tonkatsu is made from kuro buta (black pig) from Kagoshima prefecture, in southern Japan.