Cotoletta alla Palermitana

Cutlets oiled rather than egged, crumbed with herbs and cheese, and grilled.

Veal. Not vegetarian — contains pecorino whose rennet the source does not name, veal.

Ingredients

• 4 veal escalopes, about 150 g each
• 5 tablespoons olive oil
• 200 g fine dry breadcrumbs
• 60 g pecorino, grated
• 2 cloves garlic, grated
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• a handful of parsley, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 lemon

Method

1. Mix the breadcrumbs with the pecorino, garlic, oregano, parsley and salt.
2. BRUSH THE MEAT WITH OIL INSTEAD OF DIPPING IT IN EGG. That is the whole difference in the coating: oil holds the crumb on well enough for a grill and leaves it dry and loose, where egg sets into a sealed shell that needs frying to cook through.
3. Press each escalope firmly into the crumb mixture on both sides.
4. Drizzle a little more oil over the crumbed surface.
5. GRILL THEM, over coals or under a hot grill, 3 to 4 minutes a side. No pan and no fat to fry in — the crumbs toast in the dry heat and char in places, which is what you are after.
6. Watch them closely: with no fat conducting heat the crumb goes from toasted to burnt faster than a fried one does.
7. Serve with lemon squeezed over.

Our own recipe. This one was written for this site rather than taken from anywhere, so there is no source to point you at. The quantities and the order of the steps are choices, not the only way to do it.

Filed under Italy · All recipes