Crust breading is not used products. Breadcrumbs - description, properties and recipe

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I think I mentioned that Food Lab by Kenji Lopez-Alta is one of my favorite recent cookbooks. It is thick - I have been reading it for more than a year, and I will probably finish reading it by the time Kenji releases the second book - and very informative: this is not a collection of recipes, but a manual written in a simple and understandable language for those who have already mastered the basics of cooking and wants to understand it at the level of an advanced user. The other day Kenji posted an excerpt from the book in his Serious Eats column and I decided to translate it for you.

Why do you need a batter

Have you ever deep-fried chicken breasts without skin and without breading? I strongly recommend not to do this. The moment a chicken gets into a container of oil heated to 200 degrees, two things begin to happen. First, the water contained in the meat rapidly turns into steam, escaping like a geyser, and the outer tissues of the chicken become dry.

At the same time, the soft mesh of interconnected proteins in her muscle tissue denatures and hardens, toughening the meat and squeezing out the juices. Take it out a minute or two later and you will find that it has become tough, with a layer of parched meat half a centimeter deep. At this point, you will quite rightly say: “Yes, I would rather use batter.”

How to cook batter or breading

Batter is made by combining flour—usually wheat flour, although cornstarch and rice flour are also used—with liquid and optional ingredients to make the dough fluffier or hold better, such as eggs or baking powder. The batter wraps the food in a thick, viscous layer. Breading is made up of many layers. Usually, the products are first rolled in flour to make their surface dry and uneven, and then the second layer - the liquid binder - will stick as it should. This layer usually consists of beaten eggs or some kind of dairy product. The last layer gives texture to the food. It may consist of ground grains (flour or corn grits in which chicken is usually breaded), ground nuts, or a mixture of toasted and ground bread, and similar products such as crackers, crackers, or breakfast cereals.

No matter what your breading or batter is made of, they still serve the same function: to add a “protective layer” to the product, which will not be so easy for the oil to penetrate during frying, so it will absorb most of the heat. All the heat energy that is transferred to the food must pass through a thick coating pierced by microscopic air bubbles. Just as the air gap in the walls of your house smooths out the effect of cold air from outside, batters and breadings help the foods hidden under them to cook more delicately and evenly, without burning or drying out under the influence of hot oil.

What does batter do during frying

Of course, while foods are cooked slowly and delicately, the exact opposite happens with batter or breading: they dry out, become more solid. Roasting is essentially a drying process. The batter is designed to dry in a particularly pleasant way. Instead of burning or turning into rubber, it turns into a crunchy, dense foam filled with many air bubbles, which gives both taste and texture.

Breading works in a similar way, but unlike frothy batter, it has a brittle, crunchy texture. The depressions and bumps in good breadcrumbs increase the surface area of the product, which gives us more crunch in every bite. In a perfect world, the batter or breading gets perfectly crispy, while the food underneath, whether it's onion rings or a piece of fish, comes to perfection. The ability to achieve this balance is the hallmark of a good cook.

5 types of batter and breading: pros and cons

flour breading

How to make flour breading: Aged in brine or marinade (often whey is used for this), pieces of food are rolled in flour and spices and fried.
Per: Properly cooked flour breading turns into a very crispy, dark brown crust.
Against: Gets dirty (by the end of frying, your fingers will also be breaded). Oil deteriorates very quickly.
Classic Recipes: Southern style fried chicken, breaded schnitzel
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Breadcrumbs

How to make bread crumbs: The products are rolled in flour, dipped in a beaten egg, and then rolled in breadcrumbs.
Per: It is very easy to prepare, although you will need several dishes. The result is a very crispy, firm, dense crust that pairs well with sauces.
Against: Breadcrumbs sometimes have a strong flavor that overpowers the flavor of the food itself. Ordinary crackers soften quite quickly. Oil deteriorates relatively quickly.
Classic Recipes: Chicken in parmesan breading, schnitzel in breadcrumbs.
Crispy level (from 1 to 10): 5

Panko breadcrumbs

How to make panko breadcrumbs: As in the case of regular breadcrumbs, the products are rolled in flour, then in a beaten egg, then in panko breadcrumbs.
Per: Panko crackers have a very large surface area, which creates an incredibly crispy crust.
Against: Sometimes panko crackers can be hard to come by. A thick crust means that the food underneath should have a strong flavor.
Classic Recipes: Tonkatsu are Japanese pork or chicken chops.
Crispy level (from 1 to 10): 9

beer batter

How to make beer batter: Flour and spices (and sometimes baking powder) are mixed with beer (and sometimes eggs) to make a thick batter similar to pancake batter. Beer helps to achieve a golden color, and its bubbles make the batter lighter. Products in beer batter can be additionally rolled in flour for more crunch.
Per: Great taste. Beer batter is thick and therefore protects delicate foods such as fish well. Easy to prepare, does not delaminate after mixing. Without additional breading in flour, it spoils very slowly.
Against: Doesn't give the same crunch as other batters. Quite a few ingredients are needed. Having prepared a batter, you need to use it quickly. Without additional breading in flour, the crust quickly softens. If breaded in flour, the butter spoils quickly.
Classic Recipes:, onion rings.
Crispy level (from 1 to 10): 5

Thin tempura batter

How to make tempura batter: High-starch, low-protein flours (such as a mixture of wheat flour and cornstarch) are combined with ice water (sometimes carbonated) or an egg, and mixed quickly, leaving clumps in the batter. Immediately after this, the products are dipped in batter and immediately fried.
Per: Very crunchy batter, large surface area promotes crispy pieces. Due to the low protein content, the batter does not cook as hard and does not hide the taste of more delicate foods such as shrimp or vegetables. Oil deteriorates relatively slowly.
Against: It is difficult to properly prepare the batter (easily over- or under-beaten). Cooked tempura batter should be used immediately.
Classic Recipes: , fried chicken in Korean.

A ruddy crust on a fragrant cutlet or juicy chop appears as a result of the skillful actions of the cook. Breading products before frying plays the role of a protective "blanket", preserving all the best qualities of the semi-finished product. Not only meat or fish can be breaded: vegetables, cheese and pieces of fruit, rolled in breadcrumbs or flour, show the world a new dish with an unexpected flavor range.

What are breading

Breading is the culinary processing of meat, fish, vegetable pieces before frying, rolling them in flour or breadcrumbs, and other bulk products. The word "breading" is of French origin, from "paner", literally translated - to sprinkle with breadcrumbs. Breading is needed in order to preserve the juiciness of the main product, to give it a new look, aroma, taste.

Most often, breadcrumbs are used for this type of processing, which are used not only for frying cutlets and other products, but also for some confectionery products, for example, strudel. Breadcrumbs are made from dry white bread, crushed to a state of fine crumbs.

The second most common breading is wheat, buckwheat, millet, corn, rice flour and mixtures thereof. Dishes in such a flour “coat” are more tender, do not have a hard outer crust, the flour does not interrupt the main taste of the product, it only complements it correctly.

There are a number of original breadings that radically change the taste and appearance of familiar dishes. For example, any nuts crushed in a coffee grinder will give not only a new flavor, but also add calories and nutrition to the dish. Carrot, potato or squash chips will also become an external decoration for cutlets or boiled cauliflower. To do this, grate the vegetables on a coarse grater and lightly dry in the oven. Such a breading will keep well if the cutlets are first dipped in an egg mash.

Oriental charm and unique flavor are given to pieces of fruit (bananas, apples, pears), meat and fish with sesame breading. Buckwheat, rice, cereals carefully wrap products in a beautiful lace veil. To do this, you need to roll pieces of meat or fish, cutlets or chicken in flour, dip in an egg and only then in cereal.

Semolina - breading tenderness. Chicken meat, seafood, boiled leaves of white or cauliflower, breaded with semolina, acquire a unique taste. First, the pieces of food are rolled in flour, then in an egg or vegetable oil, semolina is sprinkled on top with a very thin stream so that an even sprinkle is formed on the surface of the semi-finished product, without mounds and seals. After frying, you will get a light crispy crust.

Crackers or chips, crushed into crumbs, can radically change the taste of banal cutlets or meatballs, meatballs. Cheese breading will add piquancy to the dish: the cheese is rubbed on a fine or coarse grater and the products are rolled in this chip. Finely chopped greens can be a spring outfit for pieces of meat, fish or chicken. If you add your favorite spices, oriental seasonings to any of the listed breadings, the dish will sparkle with new facets of taste. There is always a place for experiments in the kitchen, and a variety of breading can help with this.

How to properly bread products

In order for the breading to lay flat, gently enveloping the pieces, you need to know a few culinary secrets. Most often, the dish is breaded with egg mash, the so-called lezon, a mixture of milk and eggs. Sometimes only eggs are used for lezon, without milk, cream or kefir. This is only suitable for foods where high surface moisture and excess liquid will make it difficult to brown when fried.

Liezon is needed in order to connect the breading with the main product, to promote its good adhesion. The best ratio of eggs and milk is as follows: for two eggs - fifty milliliters of milk. You can beat only one yolks, the dish will turn into a sunny color, or only proteins - meat, fish or meatballs will become tender, aristocracy will appear.

First, prepared pieces of fish, meat, chicken, vegetables must be blotted with a napkin, if the product is too wet, salt and pepper, leave for a while to soak with spices. Then roll in flour, shaking off excess, dip in egg lezon, transfer to a container with breading. After all the preliminary preparations, put the breaded pieces in a hot frying pan with vegetable oil and quickly fry on both sides over high heat.

To get a denser crust, use double or even triple breading. After the product has gone through the usual breading procedure, it is again dipped into an egg masher and again rolled in breadcrumbs, flour or other types of sprinkles. This is how they cook, for example, cutlets in Kiev.

The final look and taste of the cooked dish depends on which breading the chef chooses. It is enough to experiment with a variety of breadings in order to get a new unexpected effect from familiar dishes every time.

There are no trifles in the art of cooking. Sometimes some small details can significantly change the properties of the product, give it a new aroma, texture and taste. Thus, breading not only contributes to the formation of an appetizing golden crust on fried foods, but also preserves their juiciness and gives them an original taste.

Types of breading

Breadings are products that are used to treat the surfaces of culinary products before frying, that is, for breading. Breading is necessary to preserve the juiciness of the product. This procedure dries the surface of a piece of meat, poultry, fish or even vegetables and fruits, promotes the formation of an appetizing crust, protects the product from intense heat and from the absorption of fats.

The most common type of breading is dry breadcrumbs. Translated from French, "paner" means "to roll in breadcrumbs." Bread breading is very popular. On sale you can find not only ordinary breadcrumbs, but also flavored, designed specifically for breading meat or fish, with the addition of appropriate spices. Many people prepare breadcrumbs on their own, since this is not difficult: you just need to grate a stale wheat loaf on a grater. Sometimes not very stale bread is used, cut into thin slices: this breading is not only tasty, but also gives the product a very original look.

Despite their prevalence, breadcrumbs are far from the best option when preparing many dishes. They often burn, and besides, they cannot always fully protect the product. But chopped dried bread is often used to absorb excess moisture in the fillings of pies, strudel, casseroles.

In second place in popularity is flour breading. The most commonly used is wheat flour. But you can roll pieces of meat, fish or vegetables in rice, corn, oatmeal, chickpea and buckwheat flour before frying. Depending on what type of flour is used, the taste and appearance of the finished product changes. Of great importance is the flour of which grinding is used. For example, breading from semolina allows you to get a denser, grainy and crispy crust than ordinary flour breading.

Breading from wheat flour sets off the taste of products, improves their appearance. Rice breading makes the products very tender, promotes the formation of a golden crust. It is a pleasure to fry vegetables, meat, fish or poultry in rice breading: the dishes are not only tasty, but also beautiful. The situation is different with chickpea flour - it is more suitable not for breading, but for making batter - batter. Cornmeal is needed to create an appetizing golden yellow crust. Oatmeal breading changes the taste of the product, gives the dishes a piquant flavor.

You can bread foods in chopped nuts - this will not only enrich the taste, but also make the dishes more nutritious. Sesame breading is ideal for oriental dishes. Wheat, rice or millet flakes used as a breading will give the dish a special taste and aroma. Finally, crushed chips or popcorn are also suitable for breading - the dishes will be distinguished by their original taste and bright aroma.

culinary magic

From the same product, you can cook completely different fried dishes, if you use different types breadings and various seasonings for them. What can be added to breading?

How to bread products

The easiest way to use flour breading: you just need to roll the products in flour. In other cases, in order for the breading to securely envelop the pieces, the products are first moistened in oil, beaten eggs, or a mixture of eggs and dairy products. The most common egg lezon, since the egg white coagulates at high temperatures, forms a thin film that reliably protects products from loss of juiciness.

You just need to beat the eggs, adding salt, spices, lemon juice to them, depending on the recipe. Products are thoroughly moistened in this mixture, after which they are breaded in breadcrumbs, nuts, crushed cereals and any other breading mixtures. Sometimes only egg yolks or only whites are used, sometimes the mixture is whipped, and sometimes it is simply stirred, sometimes cream, milk, sour cream or vegetable oil are added to the eggs - there are many options.

If it is necessary to obtain a dense, appetizing crust, or if coarsely chopped products are used for breading, then the breading can be double or even triple. First, the product is rolled in flour, then moistened in a beaten egg, and only then carefully breaded in breadcrumbs. If necessary, repeat the procedure.

Breaded products are usually fried in a large amount of oil. You can also bake them in the oven or fry them in a dry non-stick pan, and although the crust will not be as appetizing with this method of cooking, the calorie content of the dish will be significantly reduced.

Maria Bykova

A ruddy crust on a fragrant cutlet or juicy chop appears as a result of the skillful actions of the cook.

Breading products before frying plays the role of a protective "blanket", preserving all the best qualities of the semi-finished product. Not only meat or fish can be breaded: vegetables, cheese and pieces of fruit, rolled in breadcrumbs or flour, show the world a new dish with an unexpected flavor range.

What are breading

Breading- this is the culinary processing of meat, fish, vegetable pieces before frying, rolling them in flour or breadcrumbs, and other bulk products. The word "breading" is of French origin, from "paner", literally translated - to sprinkle with breadcrumbs. Breading is needed in order to preserve the juiciness of the main product, to give it a new look, aroma, taste.

Oriental charm and unique flavor are given to pieces of fruit (bananas, apples, pears), meat and fish with sesame breading. Buckwheat, rice, oat flakes will carefully envelop the products in a beautiful lace veil. To do this, you need to roll pieces of meat or fish, cutlets or chicken in flour, dip in an egg and only then in cereal.

HOW TO CORRECTLY BREAD FOOD

Breading in semolina:

There are small children at home, so I always have semolina. It is delicious to bread vegetables in semolina. To do this, just beat the egg. Dip vegetables in egg, roll in semolina and fry over medium heat in vegetable oil.

Breading in flour:

Everything can be breaded in flour. Plus, to the listed products, you can add cutlets. The technology is just as simple. Dip the product in a beaten egg, roll in flour and you can fry. In the case of flour, you can make a double breading, it tastes better. First roll out the desired dish in flour, then dip in the egg. And roll in flour again. Then move on to frying.

Alternatively, you can take not ordinary flour, but flour for making pancakes. This flour contains milk powder, egg powder. And from such a breading, a full-fledged batter is obtained.

Breadcrumbs:

This is my favorite type of breading. Its only minus is that crackers run out quickly, so I often use the methods listed above. In this case, flour, egg and breadcrumbs are taken. The product is first rolled out in flour, then dipped in a beaten egg, then rolled out in breadcrumbs. And in a frying pan.

You can also use double breading in breadcrumbs. To do this, after you have rolled your dish in breadcrumbs for the first time, dip it again in the egg and roll it in breadcrumbs again.

And one more little secret which I have been using lately. After frying, I put my dish on a napkin so that it absorbs the remaining vegetable oil. So, it turns out, to keep the crisp, and reduce the amount of vegetable oil in the final product. Enjoy your meal!!!

Housewives use breadcrumbs for cooking different dishes. Cutlets or fish fried in breadcrumbs look attractive and are delicious. Do not rush to buy breadcrumbs in the store, try making your own breadcrumbs. But these are not just ground pieces of stale bread. Treat the preparation carefully, and you will get a product, the quality of which will determine the taste of the dish cooked with breadcrumbs.

Here are some helpful tips before making breadcrumbs:

make breadcrumbs from any stale but not moldy bread. Its variety affects the taste of crackers. Black bread crumbs have the richest flavor, but crackers are dark. Mix different types of bread;
collect pieces of bread in advance. Do not keep leftover stale bread for breading in a bread box or in a bag. Ready crackers may have a musty smell. Cut the bread into pieces and place on a baking sheet. Place the baking sheet where it will not interfere with you - in the microwave, in the oven or on the cabinet. Top with clean gauze. The pieces will dry quickly, and turn them into a breading;
store bread slices in the freezer. There will be a lot - start cooking breadcrumbs;
do not store bread for crackers for more than three days.

How to make breadcrumbs from a long loaf or white bread

Prepare a loaf, any white bread or unsweetened bun. About 300-320 g of breading comes out of 500 g of a loaf. Cooking process:

cut the crust off the bread;
cut the loaf into slices of medium thickness;
line a baking sheet with parchment paper;
lay out slices of bread on paper;
preheat the oven to 160 degrees and place a baking sheet with breadcrumbs there;
dry the bread in the oven at 180 degrees for 20 minutes. After 7-10 minutes, open the oven and turn each piece of bread over to the other side. Make sure that the future breading does not burn out, otherwise you will get bitter crackers;
take out the baking sheet and let the crackers cool;
chop the crackers in a way convenient for you. Use a food processor or blender, put it in a bag and go over it with a rolling pin or take a meat grinder for this purpose;
sift the chopped bread through a sieve, and grind large pieces again. If desired, add salt, your favorite seasonings or spices to the bread crumbs - you will get a fragrant breading;
pour the finished breading into a clean, dry glass container, cover tightly with a lid and use as directed.

How to make brown bread crumbs

Breadcrumbs from black bread will give nuggets and cutlets a piquant taste. You can mix black with white bread. Cooking process:

preheat the oven to 150 degrees;
cut off the crust from the bread and cut into slices;
lay out slices of bread in a single layer on a baking sheet and place in a preheated oven;
dry for 10 minutes and turn over to the second side;
keep in the oven for another 10 minutes;
grind the crackers into crumbs with a blender or with a food processor.

While chopping bread, you can add garlic, salt, a little olive oil or basil, which will give a sophisticated flavor. After grinding, fry the breading in a pan for a couple of minutes and stir constantly.

How to make breadcrumbs by freezing

Some breading recipes call for fresh bread crumbs. You can immediately grate the bread and dry it, or use this recipe:

cut the bread into slices;
cut off the crust from the slices;
put bread slices in a freezer bag and tie it up;
put the bag in the freezer
take the frozen bread out of the freezer and grate it. It's easy, the crumbs will come out uniform. If frozen bread does not separate well, separate the slices with a knife. Use the breading for its intended purpose.

Do not cook breadcrumbs ahead of time. With long storage, the breading loses its taste and aroma. Eat the dish in breadcrumbs immediately, while a crispy crust has formed on it.