SCHNITZEL!!! A night with Mirna: part 1

Mirna rocks. in case you couldn't tell by the fact that these two posts are schnitzel and gnocchi... who makes these things? Its amazing!

I am not sure how to give you measurements on this for two reasons: first, we made a TON, and two, you're dipping the chicken into everything, not necessarily mixing it in. So basically you can always add more, but whatever you don't use is wasted.

I'll make some estimates, but please don't worry so much about the exact measurements

Chicken

     ~ we used tenderloins, so they're small strips; about 7 of them

     ~ if you use breasts, cut them in half before you pound them; three breasts, cut in half

Salt

1 egg, scrambled

3/4 c flour

3/4 c breadcrumbs

oil for frying; about 1/3in in the pan

Preparing the chicken: 

The first step is to tenderize the chicken. If you have a meat tenderizer, then put it to good work beating the chicken on a cutting board (beware: Salmanilla sucks...). 

If you don't have a meat tenderizer (the thing that looks like a metal judges gavel) put one or two pieces at a time in a plastic bag and use the bottom of a heavy pan to beat it on the countertop. Does granite crack?

The meat will spread and get thinner as you beat it. You can make it as thick or thin as you'd like. The ones I had in Vienna were really thin and made great sandwiches!

Salt both sides of each piece

Coating:

Prepare the flour, scrambled egg, and breadcrumbs on plates/in bowls so that you can easily dip the chicken in them. Now do so, in that order.

Make sure to knock off the excess flour and breadcrumbs as you go.

Frying:

On medium high heat about 1/3 and inch of oil in the pan, turning it down if its obviously getting too hot - like if the oil is all bubbles instead of sitting in the bottom, or if your chicken gets scorched the second you put it in. 

It seems that the amount of oil is a matter of preference. If its not enough then you don't get the even, nice crispy outside. If you're frying a lot, you might have to change out the oil at some point. Pieces of breadcrumbs, for example, will start blackening on the bottom of the oil. This is not so yummy. Hot oil, however,  is hot. Let it cool before handling, and don't put it down the drain!

Put a few pieces of chicken in the hot oil at time, using a fork to check the bottoms. When one side looks done, turn them over. 

This was my first time frying anything, so I was really intrigued by how the oil bubbles all over the chicken. We also agreed that really crispy is best, but I wonder if it would be more tender if we cooked them less.

As each piece finishes, put it on a plate covered in paper towel. This will just make you feel better by making you think some of the excess oil comes off. Or maybe it helps keep them

 crispy. I don't really know.

Dip it in ketchup? Make a french mayonnaise sauce? Sandwiches the Viennese way?