Chef and food writer Ben Lippett’s take on a classic Schnitzel à la Holstein from his best-selling book, How I Cook …
“Ordinarily, this is made with bashed-out veal cutlets, but as my partner is pescatarian I go for cod. I actually find it’s much easier to cook breaded fish in this fashion than meat: there’s no panicking about doneness; once it’s browned, it’s ready. The other flavours are like peas in a pod: brown butter, lemon, parsley, capers and anchovies come together to produce a stunningly simple but delicious dressing. A big fat pile of chips on the side wouldn’t go amiss, either.” @dinnerbyben
Preparation: 25 mins
Cooking: 30-35 mins
Ingredients
Serves 4
4 x 120g cod loin portions
150g plain flour
6 eggs
250g panko breadcrumbs
2 lemons
200g unsalted butter
4 tbsp capers
75g flat-leaf parsley
1 tin of good-quality tinned anchovy fillets
Olive oil
Fine sea salt and flaky sea salt
Black pepper
Method
1. Grab a large piece of parchment paper and fold it in half. One by one, pop the cod fillets between the two halves and use a rolling pin or frying pan to gently bash them out flat. Take your time and try to get them as thin as you can. You’re shooting for thinner than a pound coin.
2. Set up your breading station: that’s one bowl of flour, one with 2 beaten eggs and one of breadcrumbs. Season the breadcrumbs, flour and eggs well with salt and pepper. Season the cod fillets with salt and carefully pass them through the three bowls, dusting off the excess flour and allowing excess egg to drip away before thoroughly coating with the panko.
3. To segment the lemons, use the paring knife to remove the top and tail, before cutting away the peel and pith. Working over a bowl to catch the juice, use your knife to carefully cut out each of the segments, cutting either side of the white pith that separates them. Work your way around the lemon methodically, until you have just the husk of the lemon left. Squeeze it over the segments and juice in the bowl and discard.
4. Preheat the oven to 120°C fan/140°C/275°F/gas mark 1.
5. Grab a large frying pan and cover the base with a generous layer of olive oil. Place over a medium heat; once the surface of the oil starts to shimmer (if you’ve a thermometer, aim for 180°C), carefully layer in the schnitzels, one or two at a time depending on the size of your pan. Fry for about 3 minutes on each side until golden brown and crispy (just be careful when flipping them as they are a little delicate) – they’ll be fully cooked by the time they’re looking delicious. Pop onto a rack set over a baking tray and slide into the oven to keep warm.
6. Fry the remaining cod. Tip the oil out into a heatproof bowl and set aside.
7. Return the pan to the heat and add the butter. Melt the butter, allow it to foam and then caramelise in the hot pan. It will turn nut brown and smell like toasted hazelnuts. Once your butter has reached this point, crack in the eggs, season with salt and pepper and fry to your liking. Once cooked, remove the eggs and throw the capers into the residual butter. Cook for 30 seconds before adding the lemon segments, lemon juice and parsley. Season and mix together.
8. Divide the crispy cod among warm plates and top each with a fried egg and some of the brown butter sauce. Finish with a couple of anchovies then get stuck in.
Chef’s tip: You can breadcrumb the fish in advance to save on some time before you hit the pans. To make sure the breadcrumbs don’t go soggy, store the schnitzels buried in a little extra panko, above and below the fillets. You should have a little left once you’ve crumbed the fish!
Notes: While cod is relatively sturdy when raw, you want to be a little careful when you’re bashing it out from fillet to schnitzel. Go gentle or you’ll break down the muscle fibres too much and the fish will be super delicate and hard to work with.
Shoot from the hip: You can add seeds or spices to the breadcrumb coating for an extra pop of flavour; some mixed sesame seeds, fennel or cumin seeds would be delicious.