Dear chefs,

[Tarlam!]

31, it is common in Europe to call a crumbed veal escalope a Schnitzel Wiener style. To call anything a Wienerschitzel, the chef has to be pretty certain. It's like Port. It only comes from Portugal. It's the oldestb demarcation area in the world.

And believe me, no Austrian chef would put a Wienerschitzel in peanut oil and still claim it's a Wienerschnitzel.

[3irty1]

Re: Dear chefs,

Since we seems to have an abnormal amount of people with cheffing expertise, I thought I would start a thread were I and others, if they exist, can post for help on what the motherfuck went wrong with what I was cooking.

So to kick it off, I start with celery root puree, which was meant to provide a nice earthy bitter compliment to a couple steaks in the same manner blue cheese might.

I skinned and diced the root. simmered it for about 15 minutes in chicken broth and garlic with some salt until it was soft then we slapped it in the processor with a little butter and heavy cream.

It smelled great, but tasted like ass. The bitterness was still overwhelming on the back end. How can this be resolved next time?

I find that Celery root, like butternut squash, seems to respond well to being sauted first. Without really changing your recipe:

Next time, Saute 1 inch cubes of the celery root in the butter and then add garlic and onion if that's what you're going for. When the root is sort of soft and the onion/garlic gets fragrant add your chicken stock and boil until root is soft enough to puree. Use a stick blender if you've got one or puree the result in a bar blender. Season, I might grate a little nutmeg in there and then thin with as much cream as you wish to give you anything from mashed potato consistency to soup consistency.

[3irty1]

31, it is common in Europe to call a crumbed veal escalope a Schnitzel Wiener style. To call anything a Wienerschitzel, the chef has to be pretty certain. It's like Port. It only comes from Portugal. It's the oldestb demarcation area in the world.

And believe me, no Austrian chef would put a Wienerschitzel in peanut oil and still claim it's a Wienerschnitzel.

It is common in America for sensibility to trump obscure mother-land doctrine in matters of food. If it looks like Wienerschitzel and tastes like Wienerschitzel then we call it Wienerschitzel. Its beyond impractical for a country uncrippled by tradition and loaded with influences of global cuisine to specify between Wienerschizel and Schnitzel Wiener style.

Wine and liquor is a different matter as there are laws in place to protect the integrity of an actual export. How much Wienerschitzel does Austria export? For a dish of such humble origins its certainly starting to sound snobby. Lets not pretend like its not deep fried meat. Every country has a variation, Wienerschitzel is the popular name in America no doubt due to immigrants, but we also call it chicken-fried steak here but that doesn't sound as fancy on an October menu.

Peanut oil is nearly flavorless and a popular choice for deep fryers all over the world--even Austria I'm sure. The oil doesn't make the dish, isn't lard supposed to be traditional anyways?

[Tarlam!]

31, it is common in Europe to call a crumbed veal escalope a Schnitzel Wiener style. To call anything a Wienerschitzel, the chef has to be pretty certain. It's like Port. It only comes from Portugal. It's the oldestb demarcation area in the world.

And believe me, no Austrian chef would put a Wienerschitzel in peanut oil and still claim it's a Wienerschnitzel.

It is common in America for sensibility to trump obscure mother-land doctrine in matters of food. If it looks like Wienerschitzel and tastes like Wienerschitzel then we call it Wienerschitzel. Its beyond impractical for a country uncrippled by tradition and loaded with influences of global cuisine to specify between Wienerschizel and Schnitzel Wiener style.

Wine and liquor is a different matter as there are laws in place to protect the integrity of an actual export. How much Wienerschitzel does Austria export? For a dish of such humble origins its certainly starting to sound snobby. Lets not pretend like its not deep fried meat. Every country has a variation, Wienerschitzel is the popular name in America no doubt due to immigrants, but we also call it chicken-fried steak here but that doesn't sound as fancy on an October menu.

Peanut oil is nearly flavorless and a popular choice for deep fryers all over the world--even Austria I'm sure. The oil doesn't make the dish, isn't lard supposed to be traditional anyways?

Lard was the traditional way, like I said, it was a peasant farmer dish,difficult to control since pigs were in-bred etc and back in the day, they only had cast iron pans which really attack lard.

Peanut oil isn't used much outside of your country. No, it isn't used in Europe, so forget it. It's pungent and has no qualities that raps oil doesn't possess, it's not even an afterthought. How do I know? My very good friend, D.T. is the QA Director for Mcdonald's Europe, Africa and Middele East. His portfolio is potatos and fats. Talked to him a few minutes ago, and it aint even good enough for McD to use peanut oil in Europe.

Really 31, you can call chicken whatever Wienerschintzel if it pleases you. I know the difference and that is all that matters to me. I grew up on it. The only restaurants that can pull it off better than my Garandma and deceased MIL are in Vienna. My kids both agree, I can't do it. And I attempt it twice a month. So, believe what you will.

[Tarlam!]

Lets not pretend like its not deep fried meat.

OMG, I just re-read your post and saw this!! You really have no idea! Schnitzel is ALWAYS shallow fried! In Austria, Chefs are hounded if they deep fry. It's an abomination!

[3irty1]

31, it is common in Europe to call a crumbed veal escalope a Schnitzel Wiener style. To call anything a Wienerschitzel, the chef has to be pretty certain. It's like Port. It only comes from Portugal. It's the oldestb demarcation area in the world.

And believe me, no Austrian chef would put a Wienerschitzel in peanut oil and still claim it's a Wienerschnitzel.

It is common in America for sensibility to trump obscure mother-land doctrine in matters of food. If it looks like Wienerschitzel and tastes like Wienerschitzel then we call it Wienerschitzel. Its beyond impractical for a country uncrippled by tradition and loaded with influences of global cuisine to specify between Wienerschizel and Schnitzel Wiener style.

Wine and liquor is a different matter as there are laws in place to protect the integrity of an actual export. How much Wienerschitzel does Austria export? For a dish of such humble origins its certainly starting to sound snobby. Lets not pretend like its not deep fried meat. Every country has a variation, Wienerschitzel is the popular name in America no doubt due to immigrants, but we also call it chicken-fried steak here but that doesn't sound as fancy on an October menu.

Peanut oil is nearly flavorless and a popular choice for deep fryers all over the world--even Austria I'm sure. The oil doesn't make the dish, isn't lard supposed to be traditional anyways?

Lard was the traditional way, like I said, it was a peasant farmer dish,difficult to control since pigs were in-bred etc and back in the day, they only had cast iron pans which really attack lard.

Peanut oil isn't used much outside of your country. No, it isn't used in Europe, so forget it. It's pungent and has no qualities that raps oil doesn't possess, it's not even an afterthought. How do I know? My very good friend, D.T. is the QA Director for Mcdonald's Europe, Africa and Middele East. His portfolio is potatos and fats. Talked to him a few minutes ago, and it aint even good enough for McD to use peanut oil in Europe.

Really 31, you can call chicken whatever Wienerschintzel if it pleases you. I know the difference and that is all that matters to me. I grew up on it. The only restaurants that can pull it off better than my Garandma and deceased MIL are in Vienna. My kids both agree, I can't do it. And I attempt it twice a month. So, believe what you will.

We're not talking about the cold-pressed peanut oil that is the olive oil of Chinese cuisine. The highly refined peanut oil available in American supermarkets is not pungent but rather a neutral oil and in all likelyhood the most appropriate one on the shelf for a home cook to deep fry. Raps oil breaks down slightly faster than peanut oil but most importantly is pretty rare in an American Supermarket in deep frying quantities.

I thought we were talking about gourmet food. Double arches uses the same industrial fry oil (soybean oil with anti caking agents) as most restaurants of the caliber. When you fry high volume the oil needs to be replaced more often and thus the cheapest oil wins. In the past they used beef tallow. In haute cuisine I've seen fryers filled with everything from clarified duck fat to .4 degree olive oil. When price is no issue, peanut oil is a logical choice and allows for frying temps of well over 400 degrees.

You know as I do that in a normal commercial cooking environment if one is going to prepare Wienerschintzel it will be done with whatever multipurpose oil is in the fryer. Peanut oil is such a multipurpose oil and is a reasonable substitute (I'd even argue improvement) for the most common palm or soybean oil.

The points you are arguing (2T of milk, which neutral frying oil to use, etc) are not the defining characteristics of the dish. Bold statement that the only good deep-fried meat in the world comes from Vienna. Have you tried them all? Either way the rest of the world is home to some pretty brilliant cooks and believe it or not, some of them have mastered the art of deep frying veal, much of which is indistinguishable from what you call Wienerschnitzel. Maybe you should try chicken-fried steak. You just might like it better than your Grandma's version of deep fried meat.

[3irty1]

Lets not pretend like its not deep fried meat.

OMG, I just re-read your post and saw this!! You really have no idea! Schnitzel is ALWAYS shallow fried! In Austria, Chefs are hounded if they deep fry. It's an abomination!

You think that's bad? At home I make the stuff in a wok. I'd probably be gassed in an impractical cooking-nazi society that treats deep-fried meat like its a religion and undervalues actual results. Luckily I live in 'merica.

[Tarlam!]

31, you call it what you want. I'm cool with it. You'll notice as this thread develops and we discuss other bdishes maybe a couple of things:

1) As a trained Chef, I will always be extremely conservative with titling dishes with history.

2) I don't live in 'merica and will always give a world view.

Obviously, you're trained and I appreciate your views. But, they are views. My comments are fact based, not opinions. Call me arrogrent ladi dah whatever. Wienerschnitzel is an institution. It is celebrated. It certainly isn't deep fried in peanut oil. Ever. And, I can't do a Wienerschintzel, but I can do a decent Schnitzel Wiener Art.

'merica is a few centuries old, it's like a little kid in the world of nations. Europeans have been here a heck of a long time, Asians longer and Africans even longer. Kids don't offend adults, so, you call your Wienerschnitzel with chickenmeat and peanut oil whatever you want. And, yes, I am being condascending, which is extremely unusual for me.

[Tarlam!]

I'd probably be gassed in an impractical cooking-nazi society that treats deep-fried meat like its a religion and undervalues actual results. Luckily I live in 'merica.

About 20 years ago, my sister and I visited Dachau. It was a Concentration Camp close to Munich. On the way there, we recited every Jewish joke we'd ever heard.

Once we visited the facility, we were ashamed.

Accusing me or any German citizen of harbouring Nazi ideals is a pretty low blow and I would thank you to remember that. In Germany, I could sue you for that remark. And, I would win.

I think you owe me an apology.

[swede]

I'm looking for weiner schnitzel recipes online and I can't find any that use weiners.

What's up with that?

[Zool]

I see this heading to the GC soon.

[HowardRoark]

I'd probably be gassed in an impractical cooking-nazi society that treats deep-fried meat like its a religion and undervalues actual results. Luckily I live in 'merica.

About 20 years ago, my sister and I visited Dachau. It was a Concentration Camp close to Munich. On the way there, we recited every Jewish joke we'd ever heard.

Once we visited the facility, we were ashamed.

Accusing me or any German citizen of harbouring Nazi ideals is a pretty low blow and I would thank you to remember that. In Germany, I could sue you for that remark. And, I would win.

I think you owe me an apology.

Geez, and all I was trying to do was give an example to Ziggy on egg wash, etc. A few years ago, I spent some time in Austria skiing, and would try the wienerschnitzel as often as I could. I couldn’t get enough of the stuff, but also realized that it must be very simple to make. I think you are right Tarlam, there is something that they do over there that makes this very simple food very good. In fact, if you don’t mind, post how you (or your family) would make it, I would appreciate it very much.

Also concerning Europe being around for awhile….in the Brett Favre thread, when I said “Only if you bring Pink roasted medallions of venison served with pasta and chanterelle Mushroom millefeuille with a thyme sauce and some gooey Valrohna chocolate tart infused with two kinds of Mocha for dessert,” that was lifted from the menu at St. Peter’s in Salzburg…..the place claims to be the oldest restaurant in Europe; over five times older than the USA.

It was good btw.

[3irty1]

31, you call it what you want. I'm cool with it. You'll notice as this thread develops and we discuss other bdishes maybe a couple of things:

1) As a trained Chef, I will always be extremely conservative with titling dishes with history.

2) I don't live in 'merica and will always give a world view.

Obviously, you're trained and I appreciate your views. But, they are views. My comments are fact based, not opinions. Call me arrogrent ladi dah whatever. Wienerschnitzel is an institution. It is celebrated. It certainly isn't deep fried in peanut oil. Ever. And, I can't do a Wienerschintzel, but I can do a decent Schnitzel Wiener Art.

'merica is a few centuries old, it's like a little kid in the world of nations. Europeans have been here a heck of a long time, Asians longer and Africans even longer. Kids don't offend adults, so, you call your Wienerschnitzel with chickenmeat and peanut oil whatever you want. And, yes, I am being condascending, which is extremely unusual for me.

1) This is fair. I have worked for foreign chefs exactly like you. My experience and preference is bleeding edge haute cuisine. If this thread continues (and I hope it will) you'll notice that while I have reverence for ingredients and good technique, I believe there is always room for creativity and change. I'd expect any cook who is worth their toque to understand as without it, they could be replaced by a monkey and a cookbook. Given the nature of my experience and my background as an engineer, my "views" will be based on logic and science. I'll be more concerned with the way things look and taste and less concerned with what to call them. I'm a better cook than that.

2) Or in this case an Austrian view.

'merica's youth is the best part about it. Ferran Adria's thoughts about the American food scene pretty much sum up my feelings on the matter:

"Without any doubt, America is going to be one of the places where one of the most important creative centers will develop. The lack of a strong tradition and no fear to change will contribute to that development. " - Ferran Adria, elBulli

I love cooking and food and won't be using this thread to tell people that their dish is wrong or that they can't do things a certain way. Instead I'll share my own successes and attempt to provide insight on their failures. I hope this doesn't become another iphone thread with you and me being Partial and Ty.

[3irty1]

I'd probably be gassed in an impractical cooking-nazi society that treats deep-fried meat like its a religion and undervalues actual results. Luckily I live in 'merica.

About 20 years ago, my sister and I visited Dachau. It was a Concentration Camp close to Munich. On the way there, we recited every Jewish joke we'd ever heard.

Once we visited the facility, we were ashamed.

Accusing me or any German citizen of harbouring Nazi ideals is a pretty low blow and I would thank you to remember that. In Germany, I could sue you for that remark. And, I would win.

I think you owe me an apology.

Whoa, didn't think we'd be getting racial here. Thought my comment was a far cry from accusing someone of harboring Nazi ideals but am very sorry none the less.

[Little Whiskey]

I pisses me off when we head up to the U.P. for deer camp and the noob orders an imitaion pasties! dont you dare call them old time hot pockets either!