German Chicken Schnitzel Recipe

Chicken schnitzel for breakfast, lunch and dinner? Absolutely! There is no easier and quicker way to cook chicken than this super simple recipe, and it just goes down a treat. Golden and crispy on the outside, and tender on the inside, it hardly needs any seasoning and it tastes beautifully.

In a rush in the morning? Just grab two slices of toast and a chicken schnitzel, and you are good to go. For lunch or dinner you can get as creative as you want, it goes nicely with any salad, vegetable, mashed potatoes, rice, or pulses. I love to have it with garlic sauce, but anything else would do.

Schnitzel is so popular all over the world, and rightly so, it's so delicious, even fussy eaters will have a go. And it's so much better than some greasy fast-food that has no real chicken in it.

While schnitzel is a German term, chicken escalope, which is a French term is also widely used, and they are pretty much the same recipe, although techniques could vary.

Ingredients needed

• chicken breasts - if they are too thick, you can slice them in half then tenderize them
• sunflower oil - for frying
• egg - for coating the chicken breasts
• breadcrumbs - any kind you have
• plain flour - for coating
• salt and ground black pepper - to taste

Step-by-step photos and instructions

It might not be the healthiest way, but the traditional way rather. The chicken schnitzel is shallow fried in oil, although you can also bake it in the oven. Once you make it once, you will never go back to those fast-foods to buy chicken meals.

The secret to making the very best schnitzel is making sure you have a thin piece of chicken, otherwise it will not cook through.

• grab a meat tenderizer, or just a rolling pin, place the chicken between 2 pieces of non-stick paper, and flatten is out as much as you can.
• once you have the right thickness, coat it with flour, then egg wash, breadcrumbs, and it's now ready to cook.

You can season with the herbs of your choice, if you want a deeper flavour, although the good old pepper and salt work just fine.

• fry in a pan on both sides until golden and cooked through

Expert tips

It is crucial to have the chicken breasts cut thinly or tenderised really well, otherwise it won't cook through.

Make sure the pan is not set over a too high heat, otherwise the outside will brown too quickly, while the inside is still raw.

Other similar chicken recipes

This chicken schnitzel is a favourite of ours, it's quick, it's delicious, and it goes down well with kids and grown-ups too.

The Japanese Chicken Katsu is based on a similar chicken recipe, but it uses a delicious mild curry to up its flavours. So, if you are looking at something yummy for dinner, I whole-heartedly recommend it.

A similar texture, just different size are the Breaded Chicken Tenders, although these are deep-fried rather than shallow-fried. Still so good though!

The Buttermilk Fried Chicken Burgers use buttermilk for deeper flavours, but are as crispy and so easy to make too.

Do give them a go, these dishes are super popular with us, and definitely recipes that can be cooked again and again with great results every single time.