My new tonkatsu sauce

For those of you who don't know what "tonkatsu" is, it's a Japanese-style deep-fried pork fillet. The fillet is usually pounded as flat as possible (and to make the cut of meat appear more impressive than it actually is), dusted with flour, dipped in an egg-wash (2 T of water scrambled with each egg), then coated with Japanese-style breadcrumbs called "panko". Note: European breadcrumbs, I have to say, are a poor substitute for panko - might as well try to find it, even ordering it online, if need be.

Anyway, you deep-fry it in enough heated vegetable oil to fry the fillets whole (peanut oil is actually best because of its high smoking point). Deep-fry until the crumbs turn crispy and golden brown (they burn easily, so you'll really need to watch the temperature of the oil). Drain.

After the fillets have been fried, you usually serve them in thin slices with a plate of shredded cabbage and a dark sauce based on Worscestershire sauce (the Japanese name is so much easier to say: oosuta soosu). Anyway, I didn't have any of the Worscestershire sauce around, so I made the following sauce substitute:

Mock tonkatsu sauce

2 T dark soy sauce
2 T sugar
2 T oyster sauce
2 T basalmic vinegar
1-2 T Chinkiang (black) vinegar, or to taste
1 T Shaoxing wine
Juice of half a lemon
1/3 C water
2 T cornstarch dissolved in 3 T water
salt, pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients except for the cornstarch mixture in a medium saucepan and put over medium-low heat. Mix well and cover until the mixture simmers. When it begins to simmer, uncover the sauce pan and simmer for 5 more minutes. Then gradually stir in the cornstarch mixture and cook until the sauce becomes glossy and glaze-like. Turn off heat and let cool slightly.

Enjoy!