Der Wienerschnitzel

Years ago, when America was still new to me, it cracked me up when people told me with conviction that Wiener Schnitzel is a hot dog. While I was longing for a crispy breaded pork chop when driving by one of the tall Wienerschnitzel restaurants with their steeply pitched roofs, folks where happily chomping down on a hot dog.

The name is very tongue-in-cheek funny and a clever example of America 's ingenious way of playing with words. A “Wiener” is indeed the slangy name for a hot dog in Germany, coming from “Wiener Wuerstchen,” but that is where the similarities end.

A true Wiener Schnitzel is made of a thinly pounded piece of veal, breaded and quickly deep-fried. In its hometown of Vienna, Austria I've seen them larger than dinner plates, the meat thin as a sheet of paper, served with lemon wedges and sometimes with a little mound of local cranberry preserves. 

On the other hand, in Germany, I know Wiener Schnitzel as a boneless pork chop: tenderized, breaded and quickly pan-fried in butter. It's slightly chewier than veal with a pleasantly meaty taste. I have devoured Cotoletta alla Milanese in Italy where lean bone-in breaded veal is cooked in olive oil. And in Argentina, my beef-loving friend of same origin, Carola, tells me, a Milanesa is typically prepared with a flattened piece of filet (beef or pork).

In the end, it's always a lean cut of meat, pounded very thin, and dipped first in flour, then in a salt-and-pepper-seasoned egg wash, and lastly in fine breadcrumbs. It's quickly pan-fried to crispy deliciousness, served hot with a flavorful interior while mouthwatering scents hang around the kitchen. I pile a salad of spicy arugula and a few sweet cherry tomatoes tossed in a lemony vinaigrette on top. A perfect juxtaposition of hot and crunchy with cool and fresh. Nothing against hot dogs, but when it comes to Wienerschnitzel, this is what I'm talking about.

Wiener Schnitzel with Lemony Arugula

Serves 4

8 Pork loin chops, boneless and wafer thin, 2 ½ oz each

1 cup all-purpose flour

1-1 1/2 cups fine, unseasoned breadcrumbs

2 eggs, whisked and generously seasoned with salt and pepper

Trim any excess fat from chops and with a meat tenderizer, pound to about 1/4 inch thickness. Distribute flour, eggs and bread crumbs into three different soup plates and dredge one pork chop at a time first in flour, shaking off any excess, then into the egg mixture until coated evenly and finally in the fine bread crumbs. Sauté in plenty of olive oil approximately 3 minutes per side until cooked through and golden brown.

Lemony Vinaigrette

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed Meyer Lemon juice

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon mayonnaise

1/4 teaspoon sugar

salt and pepper to taste

Whisk all ingredients vigorously until creamy and brightly yellow. Mix a few handfuls of Arugula and a couple of halved cherry tomatoes and toss with dressing. Pile high on hot Schnitzel and serve immediately.