Panko is a type of breadcrumbs with a bigger granulation, crispy and pleasant to touch. It looks like dry bread flakes and it behaves well during deep frying. As many other interesting things in the kitchen, panko comes from planet Japan.
I used panko rather often this year, either to bread shrimps, or to bread beef or lamb. I’ve used panko even for desserts, but those are not the topic now. Let me show you how to make a nice crust for some lamb chops (I used Maori Lakes from Gurmand Apetit), as you can never know when you’ll get bored of having them grilled or cooked in the oven.
First, I immersed the chops in boiling water and I took them out after a minute. They needed that time to start the cooking process. Then, I tossed them on za’atar.
I whisked well two eggs.
I then prepared a plate with flour and one with panko next to the plate with whisked eggs. I dipped the chops through flour, egg and panko, in this order.
The flour ensures protection of the meat and offers adherence for the egg, the egg ensures adherence for the panko.
I heated up a liter of sunflower oil and I fried the chops until they became really nice and brown on the outside. It’s important to make sure the oil isn’t (too) cold when you immerse such a mixture in it. If it’s cold, the mixture will soak with oil and if it’s too hot, it will burn on the outside and will stay raw on the inside (here’s where the one-minute boiling comes in). Test the temperature of the oil by pouring in it a few drops of egg. Don’t immerse too many chops in the hot oil, the temperature can suddenly drop, with unwanted results over the final product. Leave the chops to rest on a grate after removing them from the oil.
If you mix flour, egg and panko with salt and za’atar, you will obtain a light dough that you can fry in the same oil. You can use it as a side dish.
That’s about all for today.
Stay healthy.
