L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, MAY 27, 2021 www.italoamericano.org 22 L'Italo-Americano I could become vege- tarian any moment of my life, save for a few f o o d s w h i c h I p a s - s i o n a t e l y l i k e . M y mom's stuffed involtini rolls, a slice of well-aged prosciutto di Norcia and our family's c o t o l e t t e s e r v e d w i t h a green salad and a few lemon wedges. My mother's coto- lette is revered in my family. A cotolette dinner is consid- ered a special event and, no matter how many cutlets are cooked, there will never be leftovers. The secret is in the s e a s o n i n g o f t h e b r e a d - crumbs and in using thinly sliced meat, fried to luxurious crispness in plenty of hot oil. The recipe is obviously similar to the world-famous veal cutlets, cotolette alla Milanese, but more fragrant a n d i n t e r e s t i n g . B e i n g Umbrian, I use top quality pork loin, but I would not be o p p o s e d t o u s i n g b e e f o r thinly sliced chicken breast instead. Ingredients (serves 3-4) For the cutlets: • 400 g (1 lb) pork cutlets, thinly sliced • 1 egg • 1 cup seasoned bread crumbs (see next recipe) • vegetable oil for deep fry- ing For the seasoned bread crumbs: • 2 c u p s ( 3 0 0 g ) b r e a d crumbs (or GF substitute) • 3 t a b l e s p o o n s g r a t e d Parmesan cheese • 1 teaspoon salt • 2-3 tablespoon flat leaf parsley, finely chopped improve everything. Besides the cotolette described in this recipe, you can use the sea- soned breadcrumbs to make Italian style meatballs or to sprinkle over a fish fillet. In this case, add a little olive oil to the bread and decorate the fish with a teaspoon or two of capers, a handful of black olives and cherry tomatoes before baking. Y o u c a n a l s o a d d s o m e tomato sauce to the bread, and braised minced meat if desired, and use it as a stuff- ing for baked tomatoes, egg- plants or zucchini. I a m n o t r e a l l y f o n d o f store-bought breadcrumbs, so whenever possible I make my own. I use leftover bread which I break into chunks and air-dry inside paper bags or I toast it in an oven set to a low heat, then grate it in a food processor. Use the seasoned bread- crumbs fresh or make several batches and keep in the freez- er. To prepare the cutlets: Gently pound the cutlets to 1/8-inch (about 3 mm) thick- n e s s . S p r e a d t h e b r e a d crumbs on to a large shallow dish. Lightly beat the egg in another shallow bowl. Dip cutlets in egg, then dredge in bread crumbs. To obtain a quite dense and even c o a t i n g o f b r e a d c r u m b s , a f t e r d r e d g i n g , p r e s s t h e • 1 large garlic clove, very finely chopped • a sprinkle of black pep- per and salt T o m a k e t h e s e a s o n e d breadcrumbs: In my house, these fra- grant garlicky bread crumbs are used like gold dust, to slices with your hand against a cutting board. Dredge twice if necessary. Arrange on a clean dish. Heat 2.5 cm/1 inch veg- etable oil in a skillet over a moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then fry 2-3 of the cotolette at a time, turning over once, until gold- en, this will take about 2-3 minutes. Dry on paper towels, then transfer to a dish and serve immediately. As the meat is thin and the cutlets quite crisp, they can be served at room tempera- ture - but not refrigerated- as finger food for a party. You can prepare them a couple of hours in advance and tear them into bite size chunks. L e t i z i a M a t t i a c c i i s a cookbook author and owner of Alla Madonna del Piatto C o o k i n g S c h o o l a n d A g r i t u r i s m o i n A s s i s i , U m b r i a , h t t p s : / / i n c a m - pagna.com. This recipe has been previously published in M r s . M a t t i a c c i c o o k b o o k entitled "A Kitchen with a view." LETIZIA MATTIACCI The flavorsome breading of these cutlets makes them irresistible (Photo: Sergii Koval/Dreamstime) Parsley, garlic and parmigiano pork loin cotolette LA BUONA TAVOLA RECIPES COOKING TIPS SEASONAL DISHES

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