Paneed Veal & Fettucini
Submitted by Portia
Paneed veal fried golden in seasoned bread crumbs served over fettuccine in a rich Parmesan cream sauce with cayenne. A Cajun-Italian restaurant classic made at home.
YIELD
6 servingsPREP
20 minCOOK
40 minREADY
60 minPaneed veal is a New Orleans staple, the Cajun answer to Italian scallopini. Thin veal cutlets soaked in an egg-Parmesan wash, dredged in seasoned bread crumbs, then fried until golden and crispy. Served here over fettuccine tossed in a butter-cream-Parmesan sauce with a kick of cayenne, it’s the kind of plate you’d find at a white-tablecloth spot on Magazine Street.
The Parmesan cream sauce needs attention. Butter and heavy cream come together over medium-low heat, then the heat goes up and you whisk constantly as it boils and reduces. Seven to eight minutes of steady whisking until it coats a spoon. The Parmesan gets stirred in off the heat so it melts smoothly instead of clumping into stringy clumps. If the butter starts separating, a tablespoon of cream or water whisked in fast will bring it back.
The bread crumb mixture is more than just crumbs. Parsley, olive oil, white pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder all get mixed in, creating a flavorful, slightly moist coating that fries up with real crunch. Soaking the veal in the egg-Parmesan wash for at least five minutes ensures the coating sticks and doesn’t slide off in the pan.
Fry the veal about one minute per side. Golden brown is your target. Don’t crowd the pan or the oil temperature drops and the coating absorbs grease instead of crisping.
Kitchen Tips
- Change the frying oil halfway through if burnt bread crumbs start accumulating on the bottom. They’ll stick to the next batch and taste bitter.
- Press the bread crumbs firmly onto the veal with your hands after dredging. A loose coating falls off in the oil.
- Heated plates keep everything warm while you plate all six servings. Cold plates cool the sauce and make the pasta sticky.
- Roll fettuccine portions onto a large fork for a restaurant-style plating.
Variations
- Use chicken cutlets pounded thin if veal is hard to find or too expensive. Same soaking and frying technique.
- Add a squeeze of lemon over the fried veal right before plating for a bright, acidic contrast to the rich cream sauce.
Ingredients
Directions
Place the water, the 2 tablespoons oil and the salt in a large pot over high heat; cover and bring to a boil.
When water readdds a rolling boil, add small amounts of fettucini at a time to the pot, breaking up oil patches as you drop it in.
Return to boiling and cook oncovered to al dente stage (about 3 minutes if fresh pasta, 7 minutes if dry); do not overcook.
During this cooking time, use a wooden or spagheti spoon to left fettucini out of the water by spoonfruls and shake strands back into the water. (It may be an old wives’ tale, but this procedure seems to enhance the pasta’s texture.)
Then immediately drain in a colander and stop its cooking by running cold water over strands (if you used dry pasta, first rinse with hot water to wash off starch)
After it has cooled thoroughly, about 2 to 3 minutes, pour a liberal amount of vegetable oil in your hands and toss fettucini. Set aside still in the colander.
Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat; add the cream and cayenne pepper.
Turn the heat to medium-high. With a metal whisk whip the cream in mixture constantly as it comes to a boil.
Reduce heat and simmer until the sauce has reduced some and thickened enough to coat a spoon well, about 7 to 8 minutes, whisking constantly.
Remove from heat and gradually add ¾ cup of the parmesan, whisking until cheese is melted. Set aside.
Heat 6 large serving plates in a 250F oven. In a shallow pan (cake and pie pans work well) combine the bread crumbs, parsley, olive oil, white pepper, onion and garlic, mix well.
In a separate pan beat the eggs well, then beat in the remaining 4 teaspoons parmesan.
Soak the veal in the egg mixture for at least 5 minutes, being sure to coat it thoroughly.
Meanwhile, heat ¼ inch oil to about 400 degreees F in a large skillett. Then, just before frying, dredge veal in the bread crumbs, coating well and pressing the crumbs in with your hands; shake off any excess.
Fry the veal in the hot oil until golden brown, about 1 minute per side. Do not crowd. (Change the oil mid-way through frying if the crumbs in the bottom start to burn.)
Remove veal to a large platter and set aside.
Reheat the cheese sauce over medium-high heat, whisking frequently. (NOTE: If butter starts separating from the sauce, whisk in about 1 tablespoon cream or water.)
Add the fettucini and loss until thoroughly coated and heated through, about 1 minute.
Remove from heat and serve immediately.
To serve, place a piece of veal on each heated serving plate. roll each portion of fettucini onto a large fork and lift onto the plate. Top the fettucini with additional sauce from the skillet.
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