Figlmüller Schnitzel with Four Potato Salads
Restaurant Figlmüller’s signature schnitzel is always larger than the plate that holds it. The real secret lies in pounding the schnitzel very very thin, then searing quickly in very hot oil, and frying a second time in slightly cooler oil to be sure the meat is cooked completely. A challenge for home cooks is finding a pan large enough to hold the napkin-sized schnitzel! You can cut the thin schnitzels into smaller pieces that fit your skillet; it will taste just as good. Chef Fargel serves his schnitzel with four potato salads and clove-scented rice; these side dishes are excellent with many other meats.
Ingredients
- Potato Salad
- Boiling-type (waxy) potatoes - 1 pound
- Beef Stock (see Basics) - 1 cup
- Red Onion - 1, finely chopped
- White Wine Vinegar - 3 tablespoons
- Vegetable Oil - 6 tablespoons
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- Potato-Mayonnaise Salad
- Boiling-type (waxy) potatoes - 1 pound
- Salt and freshly ground white pepper to taste
- White Wine Vinegar - 2 tablespoons
- Mayonnaise - 1 cup
- Lamb’s Lettuce - 1 bunch
- Potato-Cucumber Salad
- Boiling-type (waxy) potatoes - 3/4 pound
- Salt and freshly ground white pepper to taste
- White Wine Vinegar - 2 tablespoons
- European-type (long) cucumber - 1, or 2 small cucumbers
- Salt - 1 tablespoon
- Paprika for dusting
- Potato-Celery Root Salad
- Boiling-type (waxy) potatoes - 3/4 pound
- Salt and freshly ground white pepper to taste
- White Wine Vinegar - 2 tablespoons
- Celery Root - 1
- Juice of 1 lemon
- Salt - 1 teaspoon
- Water - 2 cups
- White wine vinegar - 2 tablespoons
- Celery Leaves - 1 sprig, chopped
- Steamed Rice
- Butter - 2 tablespoons
- Onion - 1 small, chopped
- Uncle Ben’s or similar parboiled rice - 1 cup
- Chicken Stock (see Basics) - 2 cups
- Salt to taste
- Cloves - 2
- Schnitzel
- Pork Loin - 2 - 2-1/2 pounds, deboned
- Eggs - 2
- Milk - 1/4 cup
- All-Purpose Flour - 1 cup
- Finely ground bread crumbs - 1 cup
- Salt to taste
- Lemon - 1, cut into 4 wedges
Instructions
To make the potato salad: Boil the potatoes in water to cover and peel while they are still hot. Cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices and put in a bowl; pour the beef stock over them. Set aside 1/4 cup of onions. Add the remaining onions, vinegar, and oil. Season with salt and pepper and toss.
To make the potato-mayonnaise salad: Boil the potatoes in water to cover and peel while they are still hot. Cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices and put in a bowl; toss with salt, pepper, and vinegar. Pour off any excess liquid. Toss with mayonnaise.
To make the potato-cucumber salad: Boil the potatoes in water to cover and peel while they are still hot. Cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices and put in a bowl; toss with salt, pepper, and vinegar. Pour off any excess liquid. Peel the cucumber(s) and slice very thin with a mandoline or V-slicer. Toss with the tablespoon of salt and let sit for 30 minutes. Squeeze the liquid from the cucumbers. Mix the cucumbers into the cooled potatoes.
To make the potato-celery root salad: Boil the potatoes in water to cover and peel while they are still hot. Cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices and put in a bowl; toss with salt, pepper, and vinegar. Pour off any excess liquid. Peel the celery root, quarter it, and cut into thin slices. Put the slices immediately into a saucepan with the salt, lemon juice, and water. Bring the celery root to a boil in this mixture and add the white wine vinegar. Drain the slices and toss with the potatoes.
To make the rice: Preheat the oven to 350 F. Melt the butter in an ovenproof medium skillet over medium-high heat and saute the onions until translucent, about 1 minute. Add the rice and stir in the stock. Season generously with salt and add the cloves. Cover and bring to a boil. Bake for 30 minutes.
To make the schnitzel: Slice the meat into four pieces. With a very sharp knife, cut half way through the center of a piece from top to bottom. Turning the knife on its side, cut from the center slit outwards toward the sides, half way through the meat, leaving a half inch connected at each side. Open the meat out like a book. Repeat with remaining pieces. Place a piece of meat between two pieces of oiled plastic and pound with a meat tenderizer or other heavy object until the meat is very thin (1/4 inch) and has spread in size. Repeat with the other pieces.
Beat the eggs with the milk and place in a shallow bowl. Put the flour on a flat plate on one side of the egg mixture, and the bread crumbs on a flat plate on the other side. Season the meat with salt to taste. Dip in the flour and shake off the excess. Coat in the egg mixture and allow any excess to run off. Dip in the bread crumbs, pressing lightly.
Heat the oil in a very large skillet over high heat (180 F). Fry, one at a time, until golden, about 1 minute per side. Drain on paper towels. Reduce the heat to medium-high and fry each schnitzel a second time, 1 minute per side.
To serve: Place the potato salads in separate bowls. Top the potato salad with the reserved red onions. Surround the potato-mayonnaise salad with the lamb’s lettuce. Dust the potato-cucumber salad with paprika. Sprinkle chopped celery leaves over the potato-celery root salad. Place the rice in a serving bowl and remove the cloves. Place a schnitzel on each serving plate, letting the schnitzel hang over the edges. Place a lemon wedge in the center of each schnitzel.
