From Midnight Diner: Tokyo Stories · 2016-2019 · Reconstructed
Tonteki
Serve when
Serve when Shigemi sits alone at the counter, working up the nerve to hand over another hand-knit sweater to a man who won't want it.
In the series
Season 1
- S1E3 · ~00:08:15 Shigemi, the real estate clerk who knits sweaters for men she likes, eats her regular order of tonteki at the counter
In the series
Tonteki is Shigemi's regular order, the plate she eats alone before working up the nerve to deliver another sweater to another man who doesn't want it. It's a simple pork steak, the kind of dinner you order on a night you'd rather not think too hard about anything else.
Ingredients
Method
- Score the fat edge of the pork steak in a few places so it won't curl as it cooks. Season with salt and pepper, then dust lightly with flour.
- Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat and fry the garlic slices until golden and crisp. Remove and set aside for garnish.
- Sear the pork steak in the same oil, about 3 minutes per side, until deeply browned and just cooked through — 145°F at the center, with the faintest blush of pink.
- Remove the pork and rest it briefly. Combine soy sauce, Worcestershire, ketchup, sake, and sugar in the same pan and simmer until glossy, scraping up the browned bits.
- Slice the pork, spoon the sauce over, and top with the fried garlic. Serve with shredded cabbage and a lemon wedge.
Substitutions
- Pork loin: Pork shoulder steak works if loin isn't available — just watch the cook time, since shoulder can dry out faster at high heat.