Panko vs. Breadcrumbs: 3 Differences Between the Ingredients

Japanese panko breadcrumbs are slivers of crustless white bread baked with an electric current. These Japanese-style breadcrumbs are fixtures of Asian cuisine. People often use panko to add a crispy texture to a variety of fried foods, including popular Japanese dishes like chicken katsu (fried chicken breasts), tonkatsu (fried pork chop cutlets), and shrimp tempura (fried shrimp).

The very crunchy coating of panko crumbs can also simulate the taste of fried foods. For instance, panko-crusted crab cakes and casseroles are popular in Japan—you can make both foods atop a baking sheet in your oven, no fryer required. So long as you’re liberally breading your panko recipes, they will still have a cracker-like, crunchy coating.

There are many food recipe applications of breadcrumbs, which consist of any type of crumbled regular bread. Breadcrumbs can be a beneficial addition to all sorts of recipes. They can add a crispy coating to macaroni, meatballs, meatloaf, and other foods. You can use them as if they were a seasoning—by just sprinkling them over a recipe—or douse your recipe more thoroughly.

Bread for breadcrumbs might incorporate white, rye, sourdough, or whole wheat flour. While Portuguese breadcrumbs, Italian breadcrumbs, and Japanese breadcrumbs (panko) might all have distinctive characteristics, they all still qualify as breadcrumbs in a more general sense. You can easily make breadcrumbs at home by drying bread and then crumbling it in a food processor.

When contrasting panko with standard breadcrumbs, it’s important to understand they possess many similarities, and you can, therefore, often use them interchangeably. Still, here are three areas of difference between the two:

1. 1. Crispiness: Panko is generally a very crunchy topping to include in your recipe, whereas regular breadcrumbs are still crispy but not as crackly when you’re biting into them.
2. 2. Oil absorption: Panko breadcrumbs are capable of absorbing less oil than plain breadcrumbs. This explains why they’re a little crunchier than most alternatives and also why they can simulate the taste of fried foods so well.
3. 3. Type of bread: Regular breadcrumbs can be wheat bread, white bread, or other types of baked breads. Crispy panko breadcrumbs are only white bread (or a gluten-free alternative) that is crustless and baked with an electric current.

Become a better chef with the MasterClass Annual Membership. Gain access to exclusive video lessons taught by the world’s best, including Mashama Bailey, Gabriela Cámara, Niki Nakayama, Chef Thomas Keller, Yotam Ottolenghi, Dominique Ansel, Gordon Ramsay, Alice Waters, and more.