Chicken Schnitzel

Fillet

1. Chicken schnitzel can be made from chicken breast fillet or from boneless thigh. But fillet is preferable. As a rule, fillet can be pounded into a larger piece, and schnitzels, whatever the meat, are famous for their large size. You can buy ready-cut chicken fillet, but there is no telling in advance how well it was cut from the carcass, and it may fall apart into several pieces. It is much more convenient to buy a whole chicken and cut the fillet off yourself.

2. Remove the skin, bones and cartilage from the fillet.

   

3. Chicken fillet is quite thick, so before pounding, cut it through its thickness so the meat opens like a book.

4. It is easiest to pound the fillet from the inside, preferably with the butt of a knife or the flat side of a meat mallet.

   Chicken meat is very tender, and any excess force when pounding will make it fall apart and lose its shape. In the end, the pounded fillet should grow considerably in area and be 5-6 mm thick.

5. Transfer the pounded pieces of chicken to a large plate, pounded side up. Season the meat lightly with salt and pepper.

   

Breading

1. For chicken schnitzel, the breading is white bread crumbs. Making them is a piece of cake.

2. Grate half of a dried French baguette. If you like, you can cut off the outer crust first, and then the crumbs will be white.

3. Sift the crumbs through a sieve or mesh colander. That is all.

4. Break the egg into a wide bowl and beat it lightly with a fork.

5. Dip the pounded chicken fillet in the egg and coat it very thoroughly in the breading.

   Meat moistened with egg holds quite a lot of breadcrumbs, so it is worth preparing more breading than you need. By the way, any leftover crumbs are great for pork cutlets, but it is better to keep them in the refrigerator, as at room temperature they quickly go rancid.

   

Frying

1. In a large flat-bottomed frying pan, melt 50 g of butter over high heat.

   The breading absorbs a lot of hot fat while frying, so you will most likely need to add more butter.

2. When the butter has melted and starts to bubble, reduce the heat to medium-high.

3. Place the breaded chicken schnitzel in the hot butter and fry for 2-3 mins. The surface of the breading should turn golden and begin to darken.

   

4. Turn the chicken schnitzel over right away and, if needed, add a piece of butter. Fry the schnitzel on the other side until golden.

5. Immediately reduce the heat under the pan to medium-low or even lower. Keep frying, turning often. The chicken must cook through and the breading must become crispy and golden-orange. This is important!

   Chicken cooks very quickly: a well and thinly pounded chicken schnitzel fries in only about 10 mins.

   

Serving

1. Mashed potatoes with milk and butter are an exceptionally good side dish for chicken schnitzel. I recommend adding pickled gherkins and cherry tomatoes. A lemon wedge will not hurt either: many people like to squeeze lemon juice over the schnitzel.

   A hot chicken schnitzel, breaded and fried in butter, is an incredibly tasty dish. The wonderful flavor comes from the combination of fried chicken and fragrant natural cow’s butter. If you cook chicken schnitzel in vegetable oil, you lose exactly the aroma and taste that set schnitzel apart from similar dishes.