This recipe comes from Rach's favorite man in a bowtie, Christopher Kimball. It's a sneak peek from his cookbook Milk Street: Tuesday Nights, which is packed with fresh ideas for quick and easy meals to help you get food on the table FAST!—like this hearty pork cutlet sandwich.
"Tender, juicy meat with a crisp crust is the hallmark of schnitzel, which is popular in Germany and Austria," says Christopher. "For our schnitzel, we use pork tenderloin, an ultra-tender cut. But instead of cutting the tenderloin crosswise into medallions, we halve it lengthwise, then cut each half crosswise. This creates pieces that are easy to pound into even thick cutlets. When pounding, go slow and steady, working from the center outward and using a slight lateral movement rather than a straight up and down motion."
PRO TIP: Any tenderloin larger than 1 ¼ pounds may yield cutlets that are too large to fit two at a time in a skillet. When frying, don't crowd the cutlets in the pan; to brown and crisp properly, they must be in a single layer and not touch or overlap. Don't omit the cornstarch or baking powder; they help create a light, crisp breading.
Want more quick and easy meal ideas from Chris's book? Get his Milk Poached Chicken With Tarragon Salsa Verde here.
Adapted from Milk Street: Tuesday Nights by Christopher Kimball. Copyright © 2018 by Christopher Kimball. Used with permission by Little, Brown and Company. All rights reserved.
For the pork schnitzel, cut the tenderloin in half crosswise, making the tail-end half slightly larger, then cut each piece in half lengthwise. Place 2 pieces of pork between 2 large sheets of plastic wrap. Using a meat mallet, gently pound each piece to an even ¼ inch thickness. Repeat with the remaining 2 pieces. Season both sides of each cutlet with salt and pepper.
Set a wire rack in each of 2 rimmed baking sheets and line a large plate with a triple layer of paper towels. In a pie plate or wide, shallow bowl, stir together flour, cornstarch and baking powder. In a second similar dish, beat eggs with a fork until well combined. In a third, stir together panko, ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper.
Dredge each cutlet first through the flour, turning to coat and shaking off any excess, then through the egg and finally through the panko. Arrange the cutlets on one of the racks.
For the mayo, mix all ingredients together in a bowl.
In a 12-inch skillet, heat 6 tablespoons oil over medium-high until shimmering. Add 2 cutlets and cook, undisturbed, until golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes. Using tongs, flip the cutlets and cook until the second sides are golden brown, about another minute. Remove skillet from heat. Transfer cutlets to the paper towels, flipping to blot excess oil. Transfer to the second prepared wire rack. Repeat with remaining 4 tablespoons oil and cutlets.
To assemble the sandwiches, spread the mayo on the cut-side of each bread roll and assemble with the arugula and schnitzel. Serve immediately.