The next stop on the chaffle train is Fusion Station with our Keto Chaffle Katsu Sandwich, or AKA Katsu Sando! Although the name might sound all fancy and the fact that it falls under a fusion makes it sound ‘exotic’, at the end of the day it’s really just a Japanese Fried Chicken Sandwich, that’s of course, modified to be low-carb/keto!
The fried chicken we will be using follows the traditional Japanese dish of Chicken Katsu (AKA Chicken Cutlet) along with the tonkatsu sauce we will be making from scratch (the store-bought ones are full of sugar). It does involve some steps, but nothing too difficult at all!
For the bread replacement, we will be using our base chaffle which is a great alternative to regular bread. For those of you that have not tried making a chaffle or have never heard of it, a chaffle means cheese + waffle. It’s a mixture of just cheese and egg cooked in a waffle iron for a few minutes and viola, you have yourself a very versatile bread alternative that’s perfect for this recipe!
After we’re done with all that, you just sandwich the 2 chaffles in-between the Chicken Katsu with some tonkatsu sauce and you have yourself one delicious tasting low-carb/keto Japanese fusion sandwich! Yummy!
Since this recipe does involve a few steps including deep frying, we would recommend meal planning with a Chicken Katsu or Tonkatsu dish. That way, all you’ll have to do is make the chaffle for a quick n easy snack!
For this one, the special ingredients you will need are Almond Flour, Unflavored Pork Rinds/Psyllium Husk , Sugar Free Ketchup, Oyster Sauce and Swerve/Monkfruit. All can be purchased on Amazon or local supermarket. You also can use ‘Pork Panko‘ instead of the Unflavored Pork Rinds/Psyllium Husk, which is basically pre-ground pork rinds which are ready to use out of the package. You will also need a waffle maker. We use the Dash Mini Waffle Maker because it makes the perfect size waffles, but any waffle maker will do.
Note – If you are preparing multiple servings, we would recommend using 2 Dash Mini Waffle Maker simultaneously to reduce the cooking time.
Now, if you’re ready, let’s chaffle!
Prepping Time 10M
Optional Brine Time 1H
Cooking Time 20M
Total Time 30M
Net Carb/Sandwich ~4g
Servings 2 Sandwiches
Ingredients
Chicken
- 1/4 lb Boneless and Skinless Chicken Thigh (about 2 pieces)
- 1/8 tsp Salt
- 1/8 tsp Black Pepper
- 1 Cup Almond Flour
- 1 Egg
- 3oz Unflavored Pork Rinds (1/3 Cup if using Pork Panko)
- 1/3 Cup Psyllium Husk (optional substitution for Unflavored Pork Rinds)
- 2 Cups Vegetable Oil for Deep Frying
Optional Brine
- 2 Cups of Water
- 1 tbsp Salt
Sauce
- 2 tbsp Sugar Free Ketchup
- 1 1/2 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
- 1 tbsp Oyster Sauce
- 1 tsp Swerve/Monkfruit
Chaffle
- 2 Egg
- 1 Cup Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
- 2 Leaves Green Leaf Lettuce (optional)
Directions
1) Gather all the ingredients.
2) Add 2 cups of water and 1 tbsp salt into a large mixing bowl. Add chicken to start brine process and brine for 1 hour. Note – you can skip this step if desired.
3) Pat chicken dry with a paper towel. Once dried, sprinkle salt & black pepper on both sides and set aside.
4) In a small mixing bowl, combine Sugar Free Ketchup, worcestershire sauce, Oyster Sauce and Swerve/Monkfruit. Mix well and set aside.
5) Pour Unflavored Pork Rinds into a food processor and pulse until ground into very fine crumbs. You can also use your hands to crush the pork rinds if you don’t have a food processor. Note – Skip this step if you are using Psyllium Husk or Pork Panko.
6) Fill 1 mixing bowl with Almond Flour, 1 mixing bowl with beaten eggs, 1 mixing bowl with crushed Unflavored Pork Rinds/Psyllium Husk.
7) In this order, dip and coat each chicken thigh: Almond Flour > eggs > crushed Unflavored Pork Rinds/Psyllium Husk. Once coated, place on holding a plate.
8) Add enough oil to cover about 1/2 inch of frying pan of choice. Place on high heat and heat up until 375F or until oil starts to lightly smoke.
9) Once the oil is ready, reduce heat to medium and carefully add chicken. Cook time will depend on the thickness, but should be for about 3-4 minutes per side (if you have a meat thermometer, serving temp of chicken is 165F). Note – if you used Psyllium Husk, cook on lower heat as it will burn easily.
10) Transfer to a drying rack. If you don’t have a drying rack, use a plate with a paper towel to soak up oil.
11) Plug-in Dash Mini Waffle Maker to pre-heat.
12) In a small mixing bowl, beat egg.
13) Place about 1/8 cup shredded Mozzarella cheese on to the Dash Mini Waffle Maker, followed by ~1/4 of the egg mixture (enough to cover the iron) and another 1/8 cup of shredded Mozzarella cheese on top. Close lid and cook for 3 – 4 minutes. Repeat for as many waffles you are making.
14) Wash and prepare optional green leaf lettuce.
15) To assemble, place chicken katsu on top of chaffle, followed by ~1 tbsp of the sauce from step 4), the green leaf lettuce and another piece of chaffle. Enjoy your ‘katsu sando’!
Hope you enjoy your low-carb/keto Chaffle Katsu Sandwich!
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Keto Chaffle Katsu Sandwich
Ingredients
Chicken
Optional Brine
- 2 Cups Water
- 1 tbsp Salt
Sauce
- 2 tbsp Sugar Free Ketchup
- 1 1/2 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
- 1 tbsp Oyster Sauce
- 1 tsp Swerve/Monkfruit
Chaffle
- 2 Egg
- 1 Cup Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
- 2 Leaf Green Leaf Lettuce optional
Instructions
- Gather all the ingredients.
- Add 2 cups of water and 2 tbsp salt into a large mixing bowl. Add chicken to start brine process and brine for 1 hour. Note - you can skip this step if desired.
- Pat chicken dry with a paper towel. Once dried, sprinkle salt & black pepper on both sides and set aside.
- In a small mixing bowl, combine Sugar Free Ketchup, worcestershire sauce, Oyster Sauce and Swerve/Monkfruit. Mix well and set aside.
- Pour Unflavored Pork Rinds into a food processor and pulse until ground into very fine crumbs. You can also use your hands to crush the pork rinds if you don't have a food processor. Note - Skip this step if you are using Psyllium Husk or Pork Panko.
- Fill 1 mixing bowl with Almond Flour, 1 mixing bowl with beaten eggs, 1 mixing bowl with crushed Unflavored Pork Rinds/Psyllium Husk.
- In this order, dip and coat each chicken thigh: Almond Flour > eggs > crushed Unflavored Pork Rinds/Psyllium Husk. Once coated, place on holding a plate.
- Add enough oil to cover about 1/2 inch of frying pan of choice. Place on high heat and heat up until 375F or until oil starts to lightly smoke.
- Once the oil is ready, reduce heat to medium and carefully add chicken. Cook time will depend on the thickness, but should be for about 3-4 minutes per side (if you have a meat thermometer, serving temp of chicken is 165F). Note - if you used Psyllium Husk, cook on lower heat as it will burn easily.
- Transfer to a drying rack. If you don't have a drying rack, use a plate with a paper towel to soak up oil.
- Plug-in Dash Mini Waffle Maker to pre-heat.
- In a small mixing bowl, beat egg.
- Place about 1/8 cup shredded Mozzarella cheese on to the Dash Mini Waffle Maker, followed by ~1/2 of the egg mixture (enough to cover the iroand another 1/8 cup of shredded Mozzarella cheese on top. Close lid and cook for 3 - 4 minutes. Repeat for as many waffles you are making.
- Wash and prepare optional green leaf lettuce.
- To assemble, place chicken katsu on top of chaffle, followed by ~1 tbsp of the sauce from step 4), the green leaf lettuce and another piece of chaffle. Enjoy!
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Mmmm, I miss the “tonkatsu sando” from 7-11 or Lawsons. A tonkatsu pork tenderloin with shredded cabbage and tasty sauce…Heaven! The bread was always nice and fresh I’ll have to admit 🙂
Hey Tony! I love bentos from 7-11, lawson, famima and something I look forward every time I go to Japan! The katso sandos, salads, and the oden! Which reminds me that we have to get a low carb keto oden recipe this winter!