Austrian Pork Schnitzel

• porções: 6 servings

Ingredientes

1 pound plain (unseeded) kaiser rolls (6 to 8 rolls), torn or cut into 1-inch pieces (see headnote)

1 cup all-purpose flour

2 large eggs

4 ½- to ¾-inch-thick boneless pork loin chops (1 to 1¼ pounds), trimmed of silver skin

Kosher salt and ground black pepper

1 cup neutral oil

1 cup ghee or clarified butter

Lemon wedges, to serve

Instruções

Heat the oven to 300°F with a rack in the middle position. Distribute the torn kaiser rolls evenly on a rimmed baking sheet. Toast until completely dry but not browned, about 45 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes or so; cool completely. In a food processor, process the bread to fine, even crumbs, about 2 minutes; you should have 2 to 3 cups. Transfer to a wide, shallow bowl. Add the flour to a similar dish. In a third dish, beat the eggs with 1 tablespoon water.

Place a pork chop between 2 large sheets of plastic wrap. Using a meat pounder, pound each piece to an even ⅛-inch thickness. Repeat with the remaining chops. Season each cutlet on both sides with salt and pepper.

One at a time, coat the cutlets on both sides with flour, shaking off the excess. Dip into the eggs, turning to coat and allowing excess to drip off, then coat both sides lightly and evenly with breadcrumbs. Place the cutlets on a large plate. The cutlets can be covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated for up to 12 hours.

Set a wire rack in a rimmed baking sheet and set near the stove. In a large Dutch oven (about 11 inches in diameter) over medium-high, heat the oil and ghee to 325°F (a pinch of breadcrumbs dropped into the oil should sizzle slowly). Carefully place 1 cutlet in the fat. Using a potholder, immediately grip one handle of the pot, then gently tilt the pot back and forth so the fat flows over the cutlet. (Alternatively, use a large, long-handled, spoon to spoon fat over the cutlets.) Cook, bathing the cutlets with hot oil, until deep golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Using tongs, transfer to the prepared rack.

Return the fat to 325°F and cook the remaining cutlets in the same way, reducing the heat as needed if the subsequent batches brown more quickly than the first. Serve with lemon wedges.

Austrian Wienerschnitzel: Follow the recipe to make the breadcrumbs. Instead of pork chops, use 6 to 8 (about 1¼ pounds) veal cutlets; if they are thicker than ⅛ inch, one at a time, place them between 2 sheets of plastic wrap and pound with a meat pounder to an even ⅛-inch thickness. Continue with the recipe to season, coat and cook the cutlets. The cutlets can be cooked two at a time; it’s fine if the cutlets touch but they should not overlap.

Notas

177 Milk Street

At Wirtshaus Zwettler’s in Salzburg, chef Thomas Partl gave us a lesson in making proper Wienerschnitzel. We learned that the meat must be pounded especially thin, the breading should be only a light coating and clarified butter is essential for frying. Additionally, moving the pan during cooking is key, as it keeps fat flowing over the cutlets, eliminating the need to flip them. The result: evenly browned cutlets with the signature wavy, puckered breading that, when cut into, reveals its thinness, along with air pockets just beneath.

For our re-creation of Partl’s Schnitzel, we switched to pork, though veal works as well (see recipe below). Store-bought breadcrumbs taste stale and dusty, so we make our own using kaiser rolls. For frying, we combine equal amounts of neutral oil and ghee (or clarified butter), and instead of a skillet, we use a Dutch oven; its depth better contains the hot fat as it washes over the cutlets.