52 | AUGUST 11 • 2022 

along. Just remember to keep your hands separate, so you 
don’t end up breading them, too!

5. When all the chicken has been breaded, it can wait for 
a moment to be cooked. I like to let breaded things rest 
on a rack for at least 15 minutes before I fry them because 
the air circulation around them helps the breading to get 
crisper and stay attached to the food better. If you don’t 
have a rack for them to rest on, there will be a buildup of 
moisture under the chicken, and that side of the breading 
will likely come loose when you’re cooking or eating.

6. Let the chicken relax for a moment and turn your 
attention to making mustard. Combine the ground 
mustard, whole mustard seeds, turmeric, dill weed and 
lemon juice in a bowl. Mix well to create an even paste 
and add water by the tablespoon (or less) to achieve a 
desired consistency. Once you’ve gotten a consistency 
you like, cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap or another 
airtight cover and let it sit off to the side while you cook 
the chicken. You’ll season this after the mustard flavor has 
had a chance to develop.

7. Find a pan big enough to cook one piece of at a time, 
at least. Don’t worry if you got dinner-plate-sized schnitzel 
pieces and can only manage one in a pan at a time! That’s 
kind of the goal. Heat the pan over medium-high heat and 
add enough oil to create a film on the bottom, then give it 
another tablespoon or so of oil — you need to shallow-fry 
the chicken, and the breading will use the oil in its journey 
to crisping, so you may find yourself adding more as you 
go. Prepare yourself a landing station once again, this time 
with a clean brown paper bag underneath a couple layers 
of paper towel.

8. When the oil is shimmering and hot, carefully place a 
piece of chicken into the pan. Make sure you don’t have a 
lot of loose breadcrumbs on the chicken, as these will burn 
quickly. When you place the chicken into the pan, your 
goal is that the last part of the chicken to hit the oil is at the 

far side of the pan; this way, if any oil splashes, it hits the 
back of the stove, and not your wrist or forearm. It should 
sizzle and bubble around the edges immediately. If it 
doesn’t, increase the heat and cook until the sizzling starts. 
After a minute or two of sizzling, use a spatula or tongs, or 
both, to lift up a corner of the schnitzel carefully. If it feels 
like it’s sticking, don’t force it, just roll some oil around the 
pan carefully to make sure all the areas of the chicken are 
frying and not just dry-cooking on a pan. When it releases, 
check and see how it looks. If it’s golden brown and crispy, 
flip over and cook the other side just the same. If it’s a little 
under, carefully lower your corner back down and let it 
cook until it is nicely crisped. This could take a quick few 
minutes or more if you’ve got a cooler stove. Once fully 
cooked, remove the schnitzel from the pan, let the oil drip 
off for a moment or two, then carefully transfer it onto the 
landing pad. Season with salt and pepper here, too, while 
the surface of the schnitzel still has a little oil moisture on it.

9. Repeat with the other pieces of chicken. As you cook, 
you may get a buildup of blackening loose breadcrumbs 
that have come off the chicken and are frying away in 
the excess oil. Carefully pour the oil out into a heatproof 
container on a heatproof surface and set it aside. Wipe out 
the pan with a wad of paper towel and return to cooking, 
after heating up new oil. Allow all the chicken to cool to 
room temperature on the counter before patting it dry 
with a paper towel and refrigerating until it’s time to pack 
your cooler. The drier you can keep these, the more of the 
breading will stay attached to the chicken!

10. Test your mustard now that it’s had time to sit. Is it too 
hot? Add some sugar or honey to it to calm down the 
pungency. Is it not hot enough? You can make a little paste 
of just the mustard powder and water in equal parts and 
let it sit for 10 minutes, then blend that in. You could also 
add horseradish, if you like. Season to taste with salt and 
pepper, and then pack away in a tightly sealed container. 
Use it up over the course of a week, but don’t try to keep it 
around like commercial mustard.

11. Pack your picnic basket with this schnitzel and mustard 
(serves 4) and make your way to a park for a luncheon 
some time — and look for a couple of side dishes in the 
next column. 

FOOD

“PACK YOUR PICNIC BASKET 
WITH THIS SCHNITZEL AND 
MUSTARD AND MAKE YOUR 
WAY TO A PARK FOR 
A LUNCHEON.”

FROM THE HOME KITCHEN OF CHEF AARON

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Chicken schnitzel

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