How to turn a large piece of meat without losing breading
I have a mustard-crusted pork tenderloin recipe that I really like, but I have a presentation problem. Basically coat the tenderloins in a honey mustard sauce, then bread with panko. These are fried for a few minutes in a large skillet in clarified butter. Once brown on all sides, the loins are finished in the oven.
The problem is I always loose most of the breading while turning the loins to brown them or when I take them out of the pan. The ideal is that each medallion should be evenly coated around the outside. Instead I end up with a platter of saucy (and tasty) crumbs underneath my half-crusted meat. The challenge is that each piece of meat is quite large, about a pound, and pretty long. How can I turn and lift these tenderloins without ruining my crust?
I have tried both metal and plastic tongs, with no better result. I have tried some of the tips here: How can I get breaded chicken to stop from sticking to the frying pan?. Though my problem was not quite the same.
Best Answer
Here are a few ideas which might help:
- Toss the meat in some flour first, then put it in the sauce, then breadcrumb it. The flour will help everything stick better
- I haven't seen your honey sauce recipe, but if you can incorporate an egg or egg yolk in it, give it a go: it will work with the flour to make the sauce far stickier for the crumbs and you won't taste it
- After breadcrumbing the meat, leave it in the fridge a few hours or overnight before frying
- Don't try moving the meat until the surface in contact with the pan is genuinely cooked and golden - it will naturally start to unstick from the pan as the cooking surface caramelises so this is your best shot at keeping your crust. Before getting your spatuala under the meat, shake it loose first, and once it is moving you can go in for the flip
- If 4. just isn't working, you can even put a piece of siliconised greaseproof paper in the pan, put the oil on the paper and fry the meat on that - you can then flip it just by lifting the paper (I sometimes do this with fragile fish)
Hope it works out for you!
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How do you keep breading from falling off meat?
Chill. Place the breaded chicken on a cooling rack (or a platter) and chill in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes. This will help the layers of breading ingredients solidify, and adhere better when the chicken is cooked.How do you keep breading on meat?
After the final coating in crumbs, allow the cutlets to rest for about 10 minutes before frying, a step that also helps the breading stay attached. Make sure to use enough oil in the skillet, (for cutlets, about half an inch; more for thicker pieces of chicken).How do you keep breading from falling off chicken fried steak?
Another important tip is to place the breaded meat onto a sheet pan, cover and place back in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before frying. This will firmly adhere the breading onto the meat and help keep it from falling of when frying.How do you keep batter on fried meat?
First of all make sure the chicken pieces are dry, coat them with flour (I like to use Wondra instantized flour) or cornstarch and shake off any excess. Then dip them in beaten egg or buttermilk, or a combination of the two, and finally coat them with bread crumbs, panko, cornmeal, or cereal crumbs.How To Tenderize ANY Meat!
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