Have to thank the Austrians for introducing schnitzel: meat cutlets (traditionally veal) that are breaded and fried into deliciousness.
This recipe uses veal, but Ralph prefers pork or chicken, known as Schnitzel Wiener Art. We paired our schnitzel with sauerkraut and French fries (not homemade 😱).
The first small town we moved to in Walheim (Aachen), Germany had a restaurant called Bistro Blaustein that featured schnitzel— not just the traditional Wiener Schnitzel but a menu of schnitzel variations such as Jägerschnitzel (rich brown mushroom sauce), Zigeunerschnitzel (red pepper sauce), Rahmschnitzel (cream sauce with herbs and onions), Schnitzel Cordon Bleu (meat cutlet stuffed with ham and cheese) and Naturschnitzel (cutlets without breading).
You always knew when someone ordered schnitzel with the BANG, BANG, BANG, from the kitchen as the chef pounded cutlets. Ralph demonstrates this in the video below, using a wooden meat hammer passed down from his mother.
Bistro Blaustein became our regular haunt. We called it the ‘Red Room’ because, at the time, Germany had passed a law requiring restaurants to offer smoke-free rooms, and the walls in the smoke-free room we dined in were painted red.
The owners were very accommodating of our bad German, such as when we thought we were ordering pepperoni pizza and were shocked when the pizza arrived covered in spicy hot peppers: Peperoni in German. They replaced it at no charge and had a good laugh. So take note: if you want a pepperoni pizza in Germany, order Pizza Salami. If you want a pizza with just hot green peppers, although I don’t know why you would, order Pizza Peperoni.
Schnitzel is often served with sauerkraut (recipe also below), or you could pair it with Oma Marion’s German-Style Warm Potato Salad with Bacon.
Tips:
- If you have a dog, combine the remaining egg and bread mixture to fry a pancake in the pan after making the schnitzel. Your doggy’s tail will wag with delight.
- Double the recipe to freeze portions for quick weeknight meals. They heat up perfectly in an air fryer.
Schnitzel and Sauerkraut
Ingredients
Method
- Melt the bacon in a large pot over medium-high heat.
- Rinse and add sauerkraut to the strainer. Use your hands to squeeze out juice.
- Add sauerkraut to the pot with bacon. Sprinkle with black pepper. (Salt is not necessary as there’s enough in the bacon and sauerkraut.)
- Turn the burner down to low and let it brown, stirring occasionally. Should be finished in about 45 minutes, but can leave on simmer to stay warm.
- Preheat your oven to 120°C (250°F).
- Sprinkle meat with garlic salt or garlic powder and salt on both sides.
- Lay a slice of meat on a cutting board and cover it with a piece of rigid plastic (we use a freezer bag). Pound meat with a meat hammer to form ridges (see video).
- Heat a deep, non-stick frying pan on medium-high (7). Add enough oil for shallow frying (see video).
- Line a separate bowl with flour, add individual meat slices to cover both sides, and layer them on a plate.
- Whisk together eggs and milk (or water) in a bowl and set it beside the plate with the meat slices.
- Line a bowl or baking dish with breadcrumbs and set it beside the bowl with the egg mixture.
- Dip the floured meat slice in the egg mixture, covering both sides, then dip it in breadcrumbs, covering both sides. Make enough in advance to fill the frying pan (Ralph had three pieces).
- Cut a small piece of breaded meat (Probestück) and add it to the frying pan. If the oil sizzles, you can begin frying the meat. If it doesn’t, turn up the heat or wait a bit more.
- Add meat slices and fry on each side for 3-4 minutes. Turn the heat down to 6 if too much oil is splattering. Fry longer if using pork (5-6 minutes).
- Transfer finished pieces to the oven.
- Prepare remaining meat pieces with egg mixture and breadcrumbs (you may need to add more breadcrumbs to the bowl) and fry as above.
- Keep schnitzels warm in the oven while preparing your sides. Ours were in for 15 minutes.
- Serve with sliced lemon wedges. After squeezing lemon juice over schnitzel, toss the lemon into your glass of water for added vitamin C.