Chicken Schnitzel Recipe - Easy Chicken Recipes (2024)

FAQs

Is it better to cook schnitzel in butter or oil? ›

Schnitzels are shallow-fried instead of deep-fried. That means they are not submerged in fat but only swim in about a finger deep of fat. Traditionally Schnitzels are fried in clarified butter which is called Butterschmalz in German. This gives you the great taste of butter combined with a high smoke point.

For the uninitiated, chicken schnitzel is merely a chicken breast pounded thin, breaded, and fried. It's one of those foods that you can't help but love, which is probably why it's so prolific—versions of the recipe can be found in cultures around the world.

The absolutely best way to perfect schnitzel is to shallow-fry them in neutral-tasting cooking oil (Vegetable, Canola, Peanut, Sunflower). So you don't need to use a lot of oil, but you want to use enough oil so that the schnitzel will “float” in the oil as it cooks and not touch the bottom of the pan.

Schnitzel enthusiasts agree: A good schnitzel, Viennese, Figlmüller or Milanese style must not only be accurately sliced but also flattened and tenderized. The flattening process should slightly stretch the meat fiber but not destroy it so that a juicy, tender result with a uniform thickness is achieved.

Clark reckons the secret to great schnitzel is to "trap air in the crust when you cook the meat by moving and shaking the pan".

The schnitzel tradition was brought from Europe to Israel by Ashkenazi Jews. During the early years of the state of Israel, veal was not obtainable, and chicken or turkey proved to be inexpensive and tasty substitutes. Packaged schnitzels are widely available in the frozen food section of most supermarkets.

schnitzel, a thin meat cutlet, pounded until tender and then breaded and fried, that is a culinary staple in German-speaking countries and communities. The Americanized version of the dish is chicken-fried steak.

The oil needs to be hot enough (it should be shimmering but not smoking) so that the chicken will cook well and crisp up. If the oil is not hot enough, the chicken will absorb too much oil and give you soggy, oily schnitzel. I use quality extra virgin olive oil, which has a high enough smoke point to fry the schnitzel.

Schnitzel is not typically highly seasoned, relying instead on bold toppings such as fresh lemon wedges, mushroom sauce, or cream sauce to add a boost of flavor.

Why do you put flour on schnitzel? ›

When making schnitzel why does one have to dip the meat in the flour twice? The reason you dredge the veal cutlet is so the flour absorbs any excess moisture, enabling the egg to better adhere to the meat. I double dredge when I want a double coating of egg.

Due to their thinness, these chicken breasts cook incredibly quickly. When pan-frying, the breading won't have enough time to achieve that desirable golden brown color before the chicken is fully cooked. This will result in undercooked breading or overcooked (tough) chicken.

Chicken breasts are the traditional cut of meat for this dish but I find thighs are juicier and add more flavour. I've been making schnitzel for years, tweaking and perfecting my recipe, never entirely happy with the result. This is my latest version and I think it's delicious.

Because it browns easily and can burn when cooked at high temperatures, butter is usually unsuitable for dishes that require a high cooking temperature. Instead, cooking oils are the best option and there are a variety of choices available from peanut oil, to avocado oil, vegetable oil and olive oil.

WHICH IS BEST FOR COOKING STEAK: BUTTER OR OIL? Unlike butter, many oils have higher smoke points, making them the better option for cooking steak. Furthermore, there are some oils e.g. olive oil or grape seed oil that are healthier alternatives to butter. However, don't expect oil to taste better than butter.

In conclusion, both options have their advantages and disadvantages depending on how they're used; however, overall I would say that Oil tends to win due to its lower calorie and fat content along with providing more beneficial fatty acids compared to Butter!

As you can see, between butter and oil, butter has a dramatically lower smoke point. Because of this, if you heat up a pan hot enough to sear your steak, putting a dollop of butter in first means it is likely to burn up. However, that doesn't mean you can't still get the delicious flavors of butter with your steak.