Sautéed Panko-Crusted Turkey Cutlets
An Easy, Crispy Accompaniment to Salads and Vegetables
- Servings: 4.
Panko are light, crunchy breadcrumbs, popular in Japanese cuisine and now easy to find in our markets. Using panko instead of store-bought or homemade fresh breadcrumbs give turkey cutlets a crunchier, less greasy crust. I've added a little finely grated cheese to the panko crumbs for a very subtle salty cheese flavor.
These crusted, pan-sautéed turkey cutlets are very flavorful on their own but they also are a great partner to tomato sauce, sautéed mushrooms, or any cooked vegetable that has lots of flavor. Once cooked, these cutlets can also be sliced into wide strips and added to a Caesar or other green salad.
Tip: Use your food processor to grate the cheese into very fine bits which work better in this recipe than the little soft flakes produced by a microplane rasper.
Tip: Turkey is both economical as well as low in fat. Many butchers sell fresh turkey breast cutlets, including excellent ones by Shady Brook Farms (4 to a package, about $6.00/pound).
You could easily do this recipe with chicken breasts or pork chops but make sure that you first pound them down to 1/2 inch thickness before proceeding.
Ingredients
- 4 turkey cutlets, about 1/2 inch thick (about 1 1/2 pounds)
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1 cup panko (Japanese bread crumbs); you may need more depending on the size of your cutlets
- 2 tablespoons finely grated Parmesan or Pecorino-Romano cheese
- 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
Directions
- Place the flour, beaten eggs, and panko each into their own wide shallow bowl or baking dish (you're setting up an assembly line of coatings).
- Add the grated Parmesan or Pecorino cheese to the panko and use a fork to gently combine so that you have a panko/cheese mixture.
- Season the turkey cutlets with salt and pepper.
- Working with one cutlet at a time, place a cutlet first in the flour, turning it to coat completely; shake off the excess.
- Dip the flour-coated cutlet into the beaten eggs, letting any excess drip off.
- Finally, place the egg-coated cutlet into the panko/cheese mixture, turning it and pressing the crumbs into the turkey to coat evenly.
- Repeat with the other 3 cutlets. Lay them on a plate, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 30 to 60 minutes (this helps the coating adhere).
- In a large fry pan or sauté pan (12" to 14", large enough to hold all 4 cutlets at once) over medium heat, heat the olive oil and butter until the butter foams.
- Place the turkey cutlets into the pan and cook slowly over medium-low heat until golden brown, about 6 to 7 minutes a side. Keep the heat at a low enough level so that the surface of the coated cutlets doesn't burn before the turkey has fully cooked.
- Turn and cook the other side, again for 6 to 7 minutes.
- Remove from the fry pan and serve.
The cooked cutlets can be kept in a warm (325° F) oven for about 10 minutes before serving. Don't keep there too long, however, because while the surface will stay crunchy, the meat will dry out.
