Schnitzel

[emsny]

Consider also using good-quality lard or duck/goose fat for all or part of the frying fat. More Hungarian, perhaps, than Viennese, but also tastier.

[ludja]

How do you keep the breading stuck to the meat? I have done flour-egg-crumbs and just egg-crumbs and also corstarch-egg-cornstarch (for a lemon chicken recipe) and the breading always separates when the meat is cut into. I have had improvement by partially freezing the coated meat--but not complete success.  Should I freeze completely? Commercial breaded meats, like chicken fingers, do not have this problem. Does anyone know the the trick?

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The goal in a good schnitzel (pork, chicken) or Wienershnitzel (veal) is to have a slight separation between meat and breading with it puffed up a bit more in some places. Some people describe it as being able to slip a knife in between the crust and meat (after you have cut into it).

There is quite a good discussion of the ins and outs of making schnitzel in David Bouly's East of Paris: The New Cuisines of Austrai and the Danube cookbook (based on dishes from his NYC restaurant, Danube):

He discusses a whole bunch of important variables in making a good schnitzel but here is the part on the crust:

"You need the crust to puff like a souflee*, and to do that you have to trap the air inside the crust. Moving and shaking the veal while its cooking in oil creates steam that lifts the crust away from the meat. That way you don't get a damp crust stuck next to gummy meat. Your aim is for the oil to continually roll over the top of the cutlet like waves, so you have to use enough oil in the pan."

*emphasis added by me

A few other things he covers:

other factors in attaining the "puff":

1. Remove excess flour and egg at each step.

2. Don't overhandle the cutlet as you bread it. (Press crumbs on top, slide hand under cutlet and gently turn over and bread the other side)

3. Don't fry too many schnitzel in one pan; they need to slide around a bit as described above.

As with all frying, need proper temp--too hot and breading will burn before meat is cooked, too cold and meat will dry out before being cooked and/or breading will be greasy. As guideline, he says that it should take about 3 min per side to cook meat and get nice brown-golden crust. i.e. oil should be heated up to nearly smoking.

Best bread crumbs from simple country bread or baguette (not flavored, sandwich or processed breads).

Veal should be pounded to 1/8 inch thick as mentioned earlier

Their recipes use canola oil (1/4 inch). (I can't remember how much I use, but it seems like it is a bit more than that). And I agree with emsny that lard is also great.

Drain on paper towels after cooking and hold in warm oven while cooking the rest.

Serve as soon as the last ones are done!

He also mentions that pork is often used in Austrian homes.

I just have the book out of the library and thought of this thread as I was reading it...

Edited October 18, 2004 by ludja (log)

[Redsugar]

I would be very interested to read Chef Boulud’s full discourse on schnitzel.

The meat in classic Wiener Schnitzel is dredged in flour, dipped in beaten eggs, then rolled in breadcrumbs. For Natur Schnitzel, Paprika Schnitzel, and Pariser Schnitzel the cutlets are sprinkled with flour before being sautéed. In Vorarlberg Schnitzel, the meat is seasoned & sprinkled with grated parmesan, then dipped in a mixture of beaten eggs, breadcrumbs, and parsley.

The most memorable Weiner Schnitzel I partook was at Boston’s Locke-Ober in October, 1992. (It is not on the current menu.)

[Gifted Gourmet]

Perhaps it's my own personal primitive reaction to the change of the seasons, but something about fall makes me want comfort food.... the darker evenings send me seeking cozy, warm places for big, satisfying meals... and so when the thermometer dropped sharply today here in town, I decided to prepare something substantial and warmly reminiscent of the song from The Sound of Music ... stopping at the lines:

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens  ...

These are a few of my favorite things ....

Cream colored ponies and crisp apple streudels

Doorbells and sleigh bells and schnitzel with noodles

Noodles I had ...

no raindrops, no kittens ...

no crisp apple streudel ...

certainly, Atlanta ain't exactly the Alps ...

and to make the schnitzel? aha! white meat turkey tenders, now that I had! ...

Finally, after this very long lead-in, you are no doubt asking, "what is she driving at anyway here"??

Schnitzel: deep-fried breaded meat cutlets .. and they are often made out of veal or pork or chicken breasts or turkey tenders ... and topped with an egg or something else ...

Have you ever made any type of schnitzel?

What did you top it with? (i.e. when made a la Holstein, the traditional topping is a fried egg with anchovy strips crossed on top and capers)

Have you ever done some variations on this theme? perhaps using veal or pork or chicken cutlets?

[Jinmyo]

Veal. Breaded with panko. Fried in bacon fat instead of the traditional lard.

Nice with tiny fried perogies and mediterranean style yogurt but also nice with egg noodles with sage.

[Gifted Gourmet]

Ach! Of course! Wunderbar, Frau Newell!

Danke schoen!

[Carrot Top]

Ah, my little schnitzel....how you have changed

Panko and chicken breast and tonkatsu

They claim!

No, my little schnitzel it can not be so...

To be one with you in

Paradise

These ways will not go!

Dear little schnitzel of Viennese fame

Grown men cry upon hearing your name

With a few fine wines quaffed and some thoughtful time spent

In well-spun drunk argument over

Whose cooking will make the final event.

A pale slice of veal....tender and young, untouched

Untoughened

By age, sorrow or shame

A fine thick paddle to stretch it, paddle it

Into a frumpy papyrus shape, no blame

Sweet milled soft flour, and more from the hearth

Breadcrumbs to tumble in, quite briefly, dear heart

A chicken? What use could that bird be here!

Ah, yes...for an egg to coat...a tender crust to persevere.

You must be quick you must be deft the heat must be just right

The pan thick and clear

The fat must be lard or butter (clarified, no fear!)

And then perfect timing

Will make you, my dear...

My glorious little charming

Bite of schnitzel.

P.S. I have always had a fantasy of having an Eastern European lover who insinuates himself in a lounging sort of way close to me...and murmurs in my ear..."Ah, my little schnitzel..."

(Well okay not always but at least for the last five minutes... )

Edited November 6, 2004 by Carrot Top (log)

[andiesenji]

I would rather be called schnecken.........

Wait! Come to think of it, I have been, however that was a long, long time ago.

Edited November 6, 2004 by andiesenji (log)

[Carrot Top]

I would rather be called schnecken.........

Wait!  Come to think of it, I have been, however that was a long, long time ago.

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Everybody knows you are much sweeter than I, andiesenji. Me...just cook me slightly the wrong way and I am terribly tough and hard to chew on....

Edited November 6, 2004 by Carrot Top (log)

[andiesenji]

A boyfriend who used to pick me up after work at my Mom's bakery would, instead of kissing me when I got into his car, would nuzzle my neck. I finally asked him why he did that and he said I smelled just like his grandma's schnecken.

I was a bit put out at first but then decided it was probably a compliment as German farm boys aren't much on flowery prose.

I never wore perfume, never needed it!

[Carrot Top]

Very nice story, andie...

[bloviatrix]

I love schnitzel, but it wasn't always the case.

I spent a year in Israel after high school at yeshiva. We frequently would be served turkey schnitzel for lunch. It was pre-made from extruded turkey and the little old women who were kitchen workers would serve saying "Aht Rotzeh Schnitzel" (do you want schnitzel?) with european accents. The highlight was when they served it on Thanksgiving with the rationale that it was turkey

After that year I didn't touch it until Blovie and I went to Vienna in '97. There I ate Wiener Schnitzel. It was fresh and perfectly prepared with lemon wedges on the side. It was fabulous!

So, I decided that I had to make it at home. It's without a doubt one of my favorite meals so much so that Blovie knows that I get to eat whatever is leftover. I frequently serve it with potatoes roasted in duck fat and some sort of vegetable such as roasted cauliflower.

[Gifted Gourmet]

again with the duck fat!! Do you folks ever think about those poor ducks?? Is your breakfast spread on toast, this can't be duck???

I love schnitzel as well ... made with either veal or poultry ... and a golden crispy panko crumb crust ...

[bloviatrix]

again with the duck fat!! Do you folks ever think about those poor ducks?? Is your breakfast spread on toast, this can't be duck???

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Of course I think about those ducks. I think they would make a delicious dinner.

Duck schnitzel? How do you think that would taste?

[irodguy]

again with the duck fat!! Do you folks ever think about those poor ducks?? Is your breakfast spread on toast, this can't be duck???

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Of course I think about those ducks. I think they would make a delicious dinner.

Duck schnitzel? How do you think that would taste?

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Duck schnitzel now there's and idea! While the entire panko thing is ok, personally I made a half sheet size foccia bread. I dry half and make it into bread crumbs. Not really a schnitzel as such but close enough. All though I am sure my father who is from Vienna would slap me around or something

[Hector]

Here in Sweden (and someplaces else in europe) we garnish our Viennese Veal or Wienerschnitzel always with capers, rolled up anchovies and a wedge of lemon, and some parsely too. (if anyone know the origin of serving wienerschnitzel like this pleas say)

I know this is not the way to serve it in many countries, and especially not in Vienna. If you cook it in your region, town, how would you serve it? What sauce/ garnishes?

And is there a good technique of cooking wienerschnitzel without getting it too dry. Would be nice with suggestions.

[ludja]

Here in Sweden (and someplaces else in europe) we garnish our Viennese Veal or Wienerschnitzel always with capers, rolled up anchovies and a wedge of lemon, and some parsely too. (if anyone know the origin of serving wienerschnitzel like this pleas say)

I know this is not the way to serve it in many countries, and especially not in Vienna. If you cook it in your region, town, how would you serve it? What sauce/ garnishes?

And is there a good technique of cooking wienerschnitzel without getting it too dry. Would be nice with suggestions.

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It's actually pretty close to a classic Austrian preparation, Schnitzel a la Holtstein mentioned above. Holstein schnitzel also has a fried egg on top of the cutlet. Wedge of lemon is always de rigeur for Wienerschnitzel, too.

Some other variants are mentioned above. The most common variants we make in my family (in Austria and here) are: Schweinschnitzel (pork), and Naturschnitzel (just flour as a coating). My grandmother often makes a paprika cream sauce to go with the Naturschnitzel. With breaded Schweinschnitzel my Mom and I serve it with a mushroom sauce or not and serve with a lemon wedge and parsley.

If the schnitzel has a 'wet sauce' like paprika-cream or mushroom we usually serve with sidedishes of spaetzle and a cucumber salad. The latter dressed with vinegar and pumpkinseed oil from Styria, Austria.

When there is no sauce, we usually have the cucumber salad and a cold potato salad with bacon, parsley, oil and vinegar as a side. Another favorite accompaniment instead of the potato salad is to have homemade macaroni and cheese with it. Lots of carbohydrates, to be sure, and while it may sound strange, I think the idea comes from the southern part of Austria my famly comes from that has Italian/Alpine influences regarding the use of noodles and cheese.

As I mentioned above, we usually use pork as we find it to be "less dry" and my grandmother says it is, "more tasty". But with a real Wienerschnitzel using veal I think the main trick is to not overcook it and to serve it immediately or as soon as possible after cooking it. (i.e. Don't make the schnitzel ahead of time and let it dry out in the oven.)

A German restaurant out here serves lignonberry preserves ('Preiselbeern', in Austria), parsley and a wedge of lemon with their Wienerschnitzel. Is that done in Sweden, sometimes? Also, what sidedishes do you like to have with the meal?

Sorry to run on, but schnitzel is a favorite food! I need to make some this week!

Edited February 17, 2006 by ludja (log)

[Hector]

It's actually pretty close to a classic Austrian preparation, Schnitzel a la Holtstein mentioned above.  Holstein schnitzel also has a fried egg on top of the cutlet. 

Some other variants are mentioned above.  The most common variants we make in my family (in Austria and here) are: Schweinschnitzel (pork), and Naturschnitzel (just flour as a coating).  My grandmother often makes a paprika cream sauce to go with the Naturschnitzel.  With breaded Schweinschnitzel my Mom and I serve it with a mushroom sauce  or not and serve with a lemon wedge and parsley.

If the schnitzel has a 'wet sauce' like paprika-cream or mushroom we usually serve with sidedishes of spaetzle and a cucumber salad.  The latter dressed with vinegar and pumpkinseed oil from Styria, Austria. 

When there is no sauce, we usually have the cucumber salad and a cold potato salad with bacon, parsley, oil and vinegar as a side.  Another favorite accompaniment instead of the potato salad is to have homemade macaroni and cheese with it.  Lots of carbohydrates, to be sure, and while it may sound strange, I think the idea comes from the southern part of Austria my famly comes from that has Italian/Alpine influences regarding the use of noodles and cheese

A German restaurant out here serves lignonberry preserves ('Preiselbeern', in Austria), parsley and a wedge of lemon with their Wienerschnitzel.  Is that done in Sweden, sometimes?  Also, what sidedishes do you like to have with the meal?

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Thanks for your nice reply. It was nice to know the presumable origin of the anchovy garnish on the "Swedish wienerschnitzel", now after a little private research, I'm beyond doubt tha Schnitzel Holstein is the origin of this.

The answer to the question "Why is the swedish way of serving wienerschnitzel actually different than the way it's served in Vienna?, when we call it the same thing" has been a mystery to the minds of swedish food writers for decades.

This is probably because serving anchovies with meat is not very common in sweden (the simmilar sprat, in pickle brine is traditionally used with meat though.)

So it's nice we can clear up things on the internet.

The ussual way of serving wienerschnitzel is with the whole anchovy, caper, parsley-lemon garnish, no sauce, and crisply fried potatoes or oven baked ones. Then probably a sallad, with radishes or something. Maybe a cream-sauce can be served sometimes. Sometimes the garnish is omitted and mushroom sauce is served aside.

Lingonberry, raw with sugar or in a jam-form is not very ussual with schnitzel, but sometimes you can get it.

Most dishes with lingonberry in Sweden are either dishes with much sauce or game dishes.

[Kerry Beal]

Lots of nice pork available right now - had a rather mediocre schnitzel at a restaurant last week - got me thinking it's time to pull out the cornflake crumbs, a jar of red pepper jelly and make some schnitzel.

I do enjoy veal or pork cutlets coated with panko (although probably not properly called schnitzel) too.

What do you tend to coat your cutlets in - and what do you prefer to serve as a condiment with them?

Edited October 26, 2010 by Kerry Beal (log)

[Beth Wilson]

I tend to keep it simple with regular bread crumbs and a mushroom sauce over top. I keep wanting to try something different but we always go with the usual mushroom sauce.

I am curious (since I have a few jars on hand) what do you do with the red pepper jelly?

[prasantrin]

I prefer panko, but cornflake crumb ones were a favourite in my childhood.

That being said, my absolute favourite schnitzel has breadcrumbs made from stale french-like bread. The restaurant makes their own baguette (which aren't true baguettes), and then grinds the leftover ones to make breadcrumbs. Their coating is fantastic, but I think that's also in part because they fry it in a cast iron skillet using a lot of oil.

[Kerry Beal]

That's just what I use as a condiment with them (ie instead of the mushroom sauce). Somehow red pepper jelly with breaded fried stuff is the best!

[janeer]

Schnitzel is one of my favorite meals. I make it all the time, pretty much like carrot top says and the way they make it in Sweden: veal (or pork), pounded in to a huge thin piece, flour, anglaise, FRESH breadcrumbs (I have absolutely no use for panko, ever), clarified butter, capers, lemon, anchovy. Roasted or sauteed potatoes,or noodles. When I lived in RI I used to go to a restaurant, Redlefsen's, when it was a small store-front and very charming place, and where they served schnitzel and schnitzel a la Holstein (egg) and it was very, very good. They have since moved and changed hands, and it is still on their menu, but it is not the same.

[Kerry Beal]

We've got a place in Hamilton called 'The Black Forest' that serves outstanding schnitzel. It's been there since I was a kid. I should head there for lunch sometime soon.

[Mjx]

Bumping this, since I'm interested in hearing whether anyone has come up with some fantastic recipe for schnitze, which they'd like to sharel. I've got some meat ready to prep., and I'm going with the previous advice to give it three minutes per side, although I'm wondering a bit about just how high a temperature is regarded as ideal.