As the cool autumn weather starts to fend off the fading summer heat, one of the first things I start looking forward to is Oktoberfest. The Oktoberfest season naturally puts me in the mood for some German oriented dishes. One of my favorites is schnitzel, and I often lean to thin cut pork loin chops when I make it. I also love spaetzle with schnitzel. It’s a fairly easy noodle to make, dropping a loose batter into boiling water using a colander or ricer. Add a lemon wedge and a vegetable, and you have an easy and tasty meal. Here is my take on pork schnitzel with spaetzle.
Ingredients
Pork Schnitzel
4-6 thin pork loin cutlets
1 cup flour
½ tsp salt, plus more for seasoning the pork
½ tsp garlic powder
½ tsp onion powder
¼ tsp black pepper, plus more for seasoning the pork
2 eggs
¼ cup milk
1 tbsp dijon mustard
1 cup breadcrumbs
¼ cup chopped parsley
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp butter
2 lemons, quartered into wedges
Spaetzle
2 cups flour
2 ½ tbsp salt, divided
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp nutmeg
¼ tsp ground clove
4 eggs
½ cup milk
Lay each pork loin cutlet on a cutting board. Cover each loin with plastic wrap and then pound it flat with a meat mallet. Once they are all pounded thin, season each with salt and pepper on both sides.
Add the flour to a bowl large enough to toss the chicken in without creating a mess of spillage. Add the ½ tsp salt, ¼ tsp pepper, ½ tsp garlic powder and ½ tsp onion powder and mix together.
In another bowl crack the eggs, add the milk and the mustard, and whisk until completely blended and smooth.
Add the breadcrumbs to the last bowl (again use a bowl large enough to toss without messes).
Dredge each piece of pork with the flour so that it is fully coated. Shake off any excess flour, then dip both sides in the egg wash, ensuring it is well coated with egg. Lastly dredge both sides of the pork in the breadcrumb mix, ensuring both are fully and evenly coated in breadcrumb. Shake off any excess.
Add the vegetable oil and butter to a warm pan over medium heat. When the butter is fully heated add the pork. Fry in batches and be sure not to crowd the pan. Fry each chicken cutlet for 2-3 minutes on each side, until golden. Keep the batches warm in a 200 °F oven.
To make the spaetzle, mix the flour, ½ tbsp salt, 1 tsp pepper, 1 tsp nutmeg, and ¼ tsp clove together well in one bowl. In another bowl add the eggs and milk, and whisk until fully blended. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until all of the flour is fully incorporated into the batter. Stir until the batter thickens a little. Allow the batter to sit at room temperature for 15 minutes to thicken further.
While the spaetzle is sitting, fill a medium sized stock pot about halfway with water, and bring it to a rapid simmer over medium or medium-high heat. Add the two tablespoons of salt and stir to dissolve into the water. Adjust the temperature to maintain a rapid.
Using a potato ricer, pour the batter into the ricer and slowly turn the handle or press the level down and push the batter through the holes into the simmering water. This will create small drop noodles that will rapidly cook in the simmering water. You can also place a colander atop the pot of boiling water, pour the batter into the colander and then use a ladle to push the batter down through the holes of the colander to get the same effect.
The spaetzle noodles will cook rapidly, 1-3 minutes. They will float to the top of the pot when they are done. If you need to cook the noodles in batches, be sure the water in the pot is at a rapid simmer before you add more batter. Once all of the noodles are cooked, drain them into a colander.
Once the spaetzle have drained, add a tablespoon of butter to a pan over medium to medium-high heat. Once melted add the spaetzle noodles to the pan in one single layer. Fry them in batches if need be. Fry for 1-3 minutes per side, until slightly browned. If you need to cook in batches, add a tablespoon of butter to the pan before each batch.
To serve, place a portion of spaetzle onto the place. Top the spaetzle with a pork schnitzel cutlet. Garnish both with chopped basil. Serve with a lemon wedge. Additionally, you can serve with some dresses salad greens or red cabbage.