We definitely had a variety of schnitzels while we were living in Germany. One of the first ones that we had was considered a Hunter’s Schnitzel, so we decided to do a version of that for ourselves. Generally speaking, schnitzel is very easy to make and can be done with pork, chicken, or veal. The most important thing for making a good schnitzel is to pound the meat out to be about one-quarter inches thick and ensuring that the entire meat cutlet is the same thickness. Although you can buy a mallet to pound out the meat, we have found that if you wrap the meat in plastic wrap and the hit it with the flat side of a heavy skillet, it works even better to get it to a consistent thickness. The real flavor comes from the sauce, so we decided to make a hearty gravy to accompany the schnitzel. Although we used button mushrooms, you could certainly do a variety of your favorite mushrooms.
INGREDIENTS
- 4 Chicken Breasts
- 2 eggs
- 1/4 cup Whole Milk
- 1 cup + 4 tbsp All-Purpose Flour
- 1 cup Breadcrumbs
- 8 tbsp Unsalted Butter
- 1 tsp Paprika
- 4 cups Beef Stock
- 1 lb Mushrooms – sliced
- 1 small Shallot – chopped
- 1 tbsp Garlic Powder
- 4 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Salt and Pepper to taste
INSTRUCTIONS
Melt 4 tablespoons of butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat and then add the mushrooms and shallot. Cook until the mushrooms are slightly browned and the onion is soft and translucent, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and remove the mushrooms and onions to drain on a paper towel. Leave any remaining butter in the skillet. In a large sauce pan, melt the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter over medium heat and whisk in 4 tablespoons of flour in order to create a roux. Do not let the flour start to brown. Heat the beef stock in another pan or in a microwave until luke warm. Slowly add the beef stock to the sauce pan stirring constantly. Heat over medium-high heat, continuing to stir. Add the mushrooms, onion, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Once the gravy has thickened, reduce the heat to low and continue to simmer for 10 to 15 minutes. In three separate bowls or shallow plates you will place the ingredients for dredging the chicken, which has already been pounded to about a 1/4 inch thickness. In the first bowl, mix the cup of flour with salt, pepper, and paprika. In the second bowl, whisk together the eggs and milk. In the third bowl, add the breadcrumbs. Add the olive oil to the large skillet and heat to medium-high. Using one hand, dredge both sides of the chicken through the flour and then dredge through the eggs, and finally place in the breadcrumbs. Using your other hand, dredge the chicken until well-coated with breadcrumbs and place in the skillet. Using separate hands will keep the breadcrumbs from getting too messy from the eggs and flour. Cook the chicken in the skillet for about 5 minutes per side until evenly browned. Since the chicken is so thin, it doesn’t take long to cook and over-cooking will make the chicken dry and tough. Place the chicken on a plate to serve and then cover with the mushroom gravy.
