Breaded and fried

Why

When you lower breaded meat into oil heated to about 160–180 °C, the water at the surface instantly turns to steam and rushes outwards, while the breadcrumbs quickly turn golden and set into a crisp crust. In lukewarm oil the coating fries slowly, sets late and takes up more fat, so it ends up pale, soft and greasy; cold meat, a wet surface or too many pieces at once all drag the oil temperature down. Flour on well-dried meat forms a dry layer for the egg to cling to, and the egg in turn glues on the breadcrumbs. The coating falls off mostly when the meat is wet, when there is too much flour, or when the cutlet is flipped over and over in the pan. Oil that is too hot, on the other hand, burns the coating before the meat inside is cooked.

How to do it

• Pat the meat dry with kitchen paper, season it and coat it just before frying: flour, beaten egg, breadcrumbs.
• Shake off excess flour and press the breadcrumbs on only lightly.
• Heat the oil to 160–180 °C; without a thermometer, drop in a crumb – it should sizzle and float up at once.
• Fry in small batches so the pieces float freely and the oil doesn't cool down between them.
• Turn only once, and drain the fried pieces on a rack, ideally set over kitchen paper; never stack them on top of each other.

If it goes wrong

A pale, soft coating can be crisped briefly in properly heated oil, but you can't get the absorbed fat back out; let the oil reheat before the next batch. If the coating fell off, the meat is still fine to eat, just without the crust – next time dry it better and coat it right before frying.