Schnitzel Dinner

Every now and then I crave dishes that I had a child or while on vacation. Schnitzel is one of those dishes that I was craving last week. This German classic bring back memories of visiting friends in Bielefeld, Germany and summer trips with my family. Several years ago, I had to opportunity to visit friends in Germany I had made while studying in Windsor, Ontario. Timo and Bjorn were most gracious hosts. Turns out that every Sunday Bjorn and Timo go to his Mother's house for brunch. I was lucky to be invited to one such feast and what a feast it was. Aside from my Mom's Schnitzel, I had the best Schnitzel ever. I will never forget the tenderness of the pork cutlet or the crispiness of the breaded covering. Before leaving Bielefeld to go back to Thessaloniki, Timo took me to a Bier Haus for a traditional German meal. Of course, I had to order the Schnitzel Dinner which was paired with creamy mash potatoes, beer gravy and a blonde ale. Mmmmmmmm! An Unforgettable dinner. Another memory pops up in my mind when I think of Schnitzel is our summer trips with the family. Where ever we ventured to, my Mom being the frugal housewife always packed a hearty lunch consisting of Schnitzel sandwiches. My Mom's Schnitzel Sandwiches were a nice marriage of the Classic Germany fare and Mediterranean Flavours. First, the Schnitzel would be placed in a toasted Greek Pita and then dressed with chopped tomatoes, parsley and a squirt of mustard. Mmmmmmm! Last week, I attempted at making my own Schnitzel. I found a very easy recipe on the Internet from Simple Recipes to follow and paired the Schnitzel with Greek Mash Potatoes (Skordalia) and Traditional Greek Salad.

SIMPLE SCHNITZEL

7 pork cutlets

2 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup flour

salt

pepper

bread crumbs

paprika

canola oil

1. You will need 3 separate shallow dishes for each breading step.

2. Breading station 1: mix flour with a dash or salt and pepper.

3. Breading station 2: beat eggs. 

4. Breading station 3: mix a good helping of bread crumbs and as much paprika as you want. I added 1 tbsp of paprika.

5. First dip your cutlet in the flour station. Then in the egg station making sure to cover both sides with the egg. Last coat the cutlet with the bread crumbs.

6. Fry on a hot skillet or non-stick frying pan for a couple of minutes on both sides. Doesn't take long.

7. Place each Schnitzel in a serving dish before serving. You might want to line the serving dish with paper towel to soak up the extra oil.

8. Serve with your favourite side dish.

SKORDALIA

5 large yellow potatoes

2 tbsp minced garlic

olive oil

salt

pepper

1 cup milk

1. Boil the potatoes for 40 minutes. Set aside to cool down so that you can peel them easily.

2. Mash the potatoes while adding salt and pepper. The salt helps to mash the potato easily.

3. Stir in the olive oil and mince garlic.