I love Schnitzel.  It doesn’t really matter if it’s from a pub, from Una’s (a Sydney institution) or elsewhere, it’s delicious.  The other night on Masterchef Junior, the kids decided to make one and I decided to make it for dinner tonight – my wife grinning that I had drawn inspiration from a kids cooking show.  I don’t care, it was awesome.

Schnitzel is German for a “little cut”, schnitt meaning cut and “zel” or “chen” going on the end of German words makes them smaller or cuter, “diminutive” in linguistics.  If we put “let” on the end of “cut” in English, we get the same effect – “cutlet”.  A little cut. 

Tonight I made chicken schnitzel with an avocado and kalamata olive salad dressed with a white wine vinegar and dijon mustard dressing.  It was a great Saturday dinner, took next to no time, and was increadibly filling.  Read on for how I did it.

Take a chicken breast per person and outright dismiss the Internet’s opinion that you should butterfly them before you fry them. Butterflying chicken breasts gives you a result that is much too thin and you’ll get a crispy yet dry result. Take each breast and put it between two large sheets of cling film and bash it until it’s at most 1cm thick. You can bash it with a meat tenderiser, a pestle or in a pinch you can use a rolling pin or empty wine bottle.

Set up a plate with a generous dash of flour, one with a generous dash of breadcrumbs and a bowl with two beaten eggs in it. Take each flattened breast and dust it heavilly in the flour, then run it through the egg and then roll it in the bread crumbs. Put it in the fridge for a half hour to allow it to set, and don’t be gentle – you want the breadcrumbs to stick.

Heat the biggest frypan you own with just over half a centimeter (or half the thickeness of your schnitzells) until it’s really hot.  Using tongs, place them in the pan and after about four minutes, turn them and give them four minutes on the other side.  Serve with a lemon wedge and a sprig of parsley with the salad.

{October 30, 2010} {Tags: , , , }