Japanese Chicken Katsu Curry

To make the curry sauce, heat the vegetable oil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onions and spend 8-10 minutes stirring and sweating them down until they’re sweet and translucent (but not browned). Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Add the plain flour and cook, stirring for another minute. Then stir through the curry powder and garam masala. Add the vinegar and honey. Then add the chicken stock, apple juice and ginger. Stir until well combined. Add the carrot and simmer for 20 minutes or until the carrot is tender and the flavours are well developed. Then stir through the cornflour mixture. Simmer for a further minute to thicken. Taste and season with salt to taste. Keep warm. While the curry sauce is simmering, you can crumb and cook your chicken cutlets. Season each piece of chicken with salt. Place the flour, eggs and breadcrumbs in separate large bowls or trays. Coat each piece of chicken in flour, then egg and then in the breadcrumbs. Heat about a 2cm depth of oil in the bottom of a large frying pan over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add the cutlets (do this in batches if necessary) and cook for about 4 minutes each side or until the cutlets are golden and the chicken is cooked through. Transfer to paper towel to drain and season with a little salt while warm. When ready to serve, cut the cutlets into slices. Divide the rice among serving plates. Top with the chicken slices. And pour over the curry sauce. Add pickled ginger if using.