Beef Schnitzel Recipe

This Beef Schnitzel recipe from the ranch kitchen is crisp, golden, and surprisingly simple to make. Shared by community contributor Jon Bennion (@IntermediateChef), it starts with tender ranch-raised beef coated in seasoned breadcrumbs and fried until perfectly crunchy. Serve it with lemon wedges, mashed potatoes, or a fresh salad for a meal that feels like comfort with a touch of class.

Guest blogger Jon Bennion (@intermediatechef) uses Felton Angus Beef cube steak, which according to Jon, almost takes the dish into chicken fried steak territory.

•••

In most places in the U.S., you are far more likely to find a nice chicken fried steak on a restaurant menu than an authentic schnitzel. While these close culinary cousins share some similarities, it’s worth noting a few tasty differences that will have you frying up your own schnitzel by the end of this column. 
 
“Weiner Schnitzel” is an Austrian dish popularized in the U.S. by German immigrants and is usually made with veal. Chicken fried steak was, by most accounts, developed in Texas by German immigrants working in cattle country and made from beef. Both dishes use a process to either thin and/or tenderize the cuts of meat and are breaded and fried. From there, the similarities mostly end. 
 
Schnitzel is often thinner and has a larger surface area, making for a larger crust ratio. Because of the thinness of the meat, the crust stays crisper than a chicken fried steak. While veal cutlets are the traditional form, you can “schnitzel” any of your favorite cut of meat – pork, chicken, turkey, lamb, or beef – and come up with a variety of toppings that don’t distract from the great flavor and crispy, crunchy exterior. 

But it makes no difference if you trace your heritage to German ancestors or not. This particular recipe is not one you will find in cookbooks, but it’s a specially developed version of schnitzel that gives additional nods to the birthplace of the dish. These deviations happen during the breading station process, usually consisting of flour, then eggs, then breadcrumbs. In my version, I add a bit of whole grain mustard to the egg mixture for flavor, and I finely crush pretzels as a substitute for traditional breadcrumbs. 

This particular recipe uses Felton Angus cube steak, which almost takes it back into chicken fried steak territory. I like using their quality cube steaks because they aren’t mechanically obliterated like the ones you find in grocery stores. They allow you to do the schnitzel thinning process without tearing or creating holes. 

Getting the right thinness in meat starts with cuts that are already sliced no more than ½ inch. From there using a rolling pin is the most ideal common kitchen tool to gently pound the meat even thinner while the cuts are situated in a Ziploc bag. The force from the rolling pin more evenly distributes the impact necessary to get a thin steak. 

BEEF SCHNITZEL RECIPE INGREDIENTS:

• 4 cuts of Felton Angus cube steaks (pounded thin with a rolling pin)
• 4 oz pretzels
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup flour
• Teaspoon of whole grain mustard
• Salt and Pepper
• Vegetable oil

DIRECTIONS:

1. Pulse your pretzels in a food processor. Take them out, sift the smaller crumbs onto a plate, and then re-pulse the larger crumbs until all you have are very small crumbs. Build your breading stations with three separate plates: a plate of the flour seasoned with salt and pepper; a plate with the two beaten eggs with the mustard, salt and pepper; and the plate of pulsed pretzel crumbs with pepper. 
2. Pat the thinned meat dry with a paper towel. Season both sides with salt and pepper. Coat one piece of beef on both sides with the seasoned flour. Pat the meat a bit to get off excess flour, then put in station two, the seasoned egg mixture. Allow excess egg to drip off the meat before coating it entirely in the seasoned pretzel crumbs. Repeat for the other pieces of beef. Before the schnitzel is cooked, let the breaded meat rest for 15-20 minutes.
3. Fill a large frying pan a quarter inch high with vegetable oil or another neutral oil and bring it to medium heat. Pan fry until the first side is golden brown. Flip and repeat. Serve topped with your favorite brown gravy and with either some spaetzle or mashed potatoes. 

Recipe & photography courtesy of community contributor Jon Bennion @IntermediateChef.

DOWNLOAD THE BEEF SCHNITZEL RECIPE

Jon Bennion is a Montana lawyer by day, but a home chef (@intermediatechef) and wood-carver (@bennionlumber) in his spare time. He lives in Clancy with his wife Jessi and son Jack.