How to cook delicious juicy ones. How to cook minced meat cutlets, recipes with photos. Tender chicken cutlets: recipe

Products made from twisted minced meat with various additives from bread, flour, eggs and vegetables, fried in a frying pan in vegetable oil, steamed or baked in the oven is called cutlets. There are also many recipes for vegetable, mushroom, fish and offal cutlets.

Every housewife can prepare airy, tasty and appetizing cutlets using a different set of products available in the house. There is a whole list of general recommendations from experienced chefs, allowing you to make the finished products as juicy as possible.

1. It has long been noted that the more number of meat varieties used to prepare minced cutlets, the tastier the finished dish turns out. Most often it is recommended to cook cutlets from three types of meat. The combinations can be very varied, for example, turkey + chicken + lard, beef + pork + lamb, veal + pork neck + chicken, etc.

2. Exists two secrets to increasing the juiciness of cutlets:

Add lard to any minced meat.
When forming cutlets, place a small piece in the middle of each butter, better than homemade.

3. Classic recipe Cutlets involve the use of bread, since it helps to better preserve the juice inside the finished product. Experienced housewives try use crackers, previously soaked in boiled water or whole milk. This is done in order to remove as much gluten from the bread as possible.

4. Can be used instead of bread semolina , at the rate of a tablespoon of semolina for every half kilo of minced meat. The only condition is that cutlets can be formed from minced meat with cereal not immediately, but after 20-30 minutes, so that the semolina swells well. Or you can add boiled buckwheat instead of semolina, you will get original ones.

5. Gives extra juiciness to cutlets onion juice. Add onions to the minced meat, twisting them through a meat grinder along with the meat.

6. Special piquancy and tenderness finished products attaches in advance onions fried in corn oil. Divide the onion specified in the recipe into 2 parts, twist one of them into minced meat, and fry the other.

9. In addition to table salt sugar is also added to the minced meat, at the rate of: a teaspoon for every half kilo. It is sugar that makes the finished cutlets more juicy and appetizing.

10. An egg is used for high-quality minced meat, however, it is believed that the protein gives the finished cutlets excessive rigidity. To prevent this, there is little secret– add the yolk to the minced meat first, and at the very end of kneading the white, whipped into foam, and your products will turn out more fluffy and delicate in taste.

11. Most housewives beat the minced meat, throwing it on the work surface of the table or in a bowl for kneading. This simple manipulation allows you to make the cutlets more tender and juicy. The same effect can be achieved by kneading the minced meat longer (at least 10 minutes).

12. It is best to use corn oil for frying cutlets., which, according to scientific research, is most resistant to high temperatures. Never fry cutlets on flaxseed, as they cannot withstand heat and release large amounts of carcinogenic compounds at high temperatures.

13. Cutlets are better breaded in breadcrumbs, which create a tougher crust than flour, preserving as much as possible delicious juice inside the products.

14. Lay out shaped and breaded items. on a well-heated frying pan so that an appetizing crust immediately forms, and fry over medium heat.

16. After you have turned the cutlets, reduce the heat, and at the end of frying, cover the pan with a lid. This simple manipulation will allow them to “rise” and add juiciness and tenderness.

17. If you are preparing cutlets from tough old meat, then at the end of frying pour some broth or water into the pan, cover with a lid and simmer for 5-10 minutes.

18. Serve hot cutlets to the table, piping hot. Do not fry the entire portion of cooked minced meat at once. It’s better to put some of it in the refrigerator and fry it for your next meal to pamper your household with fresh cutlets, as they say, just from the frying pan.

Meat plus cream - a great combination

A city dweller rarely buys fresh meat, from which absolutely all dishes turn out to be delicious. Most often, housewives living in big cities even make cutlets from frozen minced meat. And how then to achieve their tenderness and juiciness? It’s quite difficult, but if you know some gastronomic secrets, it’s quite possible.

Noteworthy tip

Let’s say that the chef has only chicken breast, has been in the freezer for two weeks, but there is high-quality cream. Thanks to them, the cutlets can not only be saved, but also made delicious.

The meat needs to be ground, and a piece of wheat bun must be immersed in the cream, and always with a crust. When the bread is completely soaked, all of the above must be mixed.

All that remains is to add to the prepared semi-finished product a handful of any chopped herbs, a pinch of salty seasoning with hot pepper and sweet paprika, and can be formed into meat balls, although the shape is usually chosen according to preference.

Creamy chicken cutlets are fried almost in own juice- it will release abundantly as soon as the thick-bottomed frying pan is covered with a lid.

Alternative to frying

A great way to improve the taste of low-fat minced meat balls is to soak them in creamy steam, then they will definitely melt in a gourmet’s mouth. The technology is simple:

Pour 30 percent cream into a cast iron Dutch oven and bring to a boil.
Place the cutlets in them (no need to bread them); cover the dishes.
Reduce the burner flame to a minimum.
Without turning up the heat, simmer the product until it evaporates, and in fact, until the liquid is absorbed. By the way, already in the fifth or sixth minute it will no longer be white, like milk, but will turn into a kind of light, cloudy broth. This is the right metamorphosis, as it should be.

These chopped cutlets They are unlikely to retain their ideal outlines because they were not in hot oil. However, in this case the configuration is secondary, the main thing is taste palette. She will just turn out to be flawless. Anyone in doubt, let him stand at the stove and put into practice the advice given here. After tasting he will exclaim: “Meat and cream are a perfect tandem!”

Any housewife knows how to cook cutlets. Of course, many have their own secrets on how to make cutlets tender, fluffy and juicy. However, a few more tips on how to cook fluffy cutlets will certainly not be superfluous.

General principles for preparing fluffy minced meat cutlets

Firstly, fluffy minced meat cutlets are obtained if this minced meat is prepared by you and from the right ingredients.

Meat should be taken from the front of the carcass: sirloin, tenderloin, etc. However, you can expect especially tasty and fluffy cutlets if the minced meat is made from different types meat. For example, pork goes well with chicken or turkey, beef with turkey, etc.

Additives to minced meat. When thinking about how to make fluffy cutlets, do not forget that minced meat consists of more than just meat. Bread, vegetables, eggs, spices and herbs, butter or sour cream are also added to it.

Bread soaked in milk is by no means the best addition to minced meat. Bread adds extra stickiness, and milk adds density. It is better to replace the bun with a potato or a piece of zucchini. Then you will really get juicy and fluffy cutlets - the vegetables will give juice, and it will not curdle like milk protein.

Your unconditional ally in making fluffy minced meat cutlets is onions. Just don’t turn it together with the meat, but rub it finely on a grater. Put on your swimming goggles and get going.

Many chefs, when asked how to make fluffy cutlets, advise not to add an egg. But there is an opinion that the yolk will still be appropriate in the minced meat, but set the white aside: it will be useful for breading.

Fats will certainly make the dish more tender and fluffy, it’s just important not to overdo it. A little butter, sour cream, mayonnaise, lard - not all at once, but just one thing - will help you cook delicious cutlets.

And finally, spices and seasonings (dry herbs, nutmeg, cinnamon, garlic) will highlight the taste of the meat and complete the bouquet.

Secondly, the product must be correctly formed and breaded. To get juicy and fluffy cutlets, you need to ensure that the juice does not flow out of the product. This means, firstly, the cutlets should not be too small. You should put a piece of butter inside the cutlet. It wouldn’t hurt to dip the finished cutlet in lightly beaten egg white. You can cook cutlets in batter or in a potato “coat”. The breadcrumb coating is definitely not the best of the bunch. However, if you prefer it, under no circumstances use store-bought crackers, but only freshly crushed homemade ones.

Thirdly, it is important not to lose juice during cooking. Cutlets steamed or baked in the oven will be juicier than fried. But even in this case, you can cheat. Place the cutlets in a hot frying pan with oil and fry very quickly on both sides. Then reduce the heat to low and cook covered, making sure that the juice does not leak out. If you see juice coming out, turn the cutlet over. Do not overcook the cutlets - they will become tougher.

And now that we have figured out how to cook fluffy cutlets, let’s turn to the recipes.

Recipe 1. Lush minced meat cutlets with vegetables

Ingredients

Pork with fat – 350 g

Chicken (for example, breast fillet) – 350 g

Potato – 1 decent size

A piece of zucchini or zucchini - comparable in size to a potato

Onion – 2 medium-sized onions

Mayonnaise – 2 spoons

Eggs – 2 (white and yolk separately)

Garlic – 3-4 cloves

Dill, parsley, celery, cilantro (fresh herbs) - to taste

Salt, ground black pepper

Cooking method

Prepare minced meat and poultry, put zucchini and potatoes in a meat grinder. Finely grate the onion or chop it with a knife, also chop the garlic and herbs. Put vegetables, mayonnaise and yolks into the minced meat, add salt and pepper, mix everything thoroughly and beat, throwing the minced meat on the table with some force.

Form into medium-sized round patties. Beat the egg white lightly (not into foam, but just so that it is not too viscous). Dip each cutlet in egg white and place in a hot frying pan with oil. Fry quickly on both sides, reduce heat, cover and cook for 15 minutes.

Recipe 2. Lush poultry cutlets with tomato and sauce

Ingredients

Chicken fillet– 500 g

Turkey fillet – 250 g

Pancake flour – 3 heaped spoons

Carrot – 1 root vegetable

Onion – 1 head

Butter – 100 g

Eggs – 2 large

Tomato paste – 2 tablespoons

Sour cream 20% – 200 g

Dill and (or) parsley - half a bunch

Pickled cucumbers – 2-4 pieces, depending on size

Horseradish - a couple of teaspoons

Salt, pepper - to taste

Cooking method

Finely chop the chicken and turkey with a knife. Grate the carrots and onions and lightly fry with the addition of vegetable oil. Cool and pour the contents of the pan into the minced meat. Add tomato paste and pancake flour, then a couple of spoons of sour cream, two yolks, salt and freshly ground black or white pepper, finely grated (or chopped) frozen butter.

Knead and beat out the minced meat. Form it into fairly large oblong cutlets, dip each one in the protein and fry: first a couple of minutes on each side without a lid over high heat, then 10 minutes under the lid over very low heat.

Mix the remaining sour cream with horseradish, add pickled cucumber and green stuff, chopped in any way. Whisk the sauce with a fork and serve over the cutlets.

Recipe 3. Lush minced meat cutlets in a potato “coat”

Ingredients

Pork (piece with fat) – half a kilo

Potatoes – 5 potatoes (or more, depending on size)

Onion - 2 large onions

Dry bun without crust – 4-5 pieces

Kefir - about a glass

Eggs – 3 (separate the yolk from the white)

Wheat flour – half a cup

Soda - teaspoon

Mix of dry herbs, salt, pepper

Cooking method

To make minced pork, it is better to mince it twice. Break the bun into small pieces and soak in kefir. Separate the yolks from the whites and add them to the minced meat. Also stir in the finely grated onion, the soaked bun with the remaining kefir, a spoonful of soda, salt and pepper. Knock the minced meat on the table several times.

Grate the potatoes very finely and mix with flour, salt and dry herbs. Beat the egg white and combine with the potatoes. Beat two more whites separately with a fork.

Form round or oval cutlets, wrap them in egg white, and then in potato batter. Fry quickly in a frying pan on both sides and finish in an oven heated to 180 degrees.

Recipe 4. Fluffy cutlets “To your health!” (baked in the oven)

Ingredients

Beef – 500 g

Beef liver – 100 g

Pork lard – 100 g

Onion – 1 head

Zucchini or zucchini – 300 g

Frozen corn and peas - about 150 g in total

Any greens (dill, cilantro, parsley, celery, spinach...) – a bunch

Eggs – 3 pieces

Cinnamon and nutmeg – a little bit

Tomato paste - as much as needed

Salt, pepper, garlic - to taste

Cooking method

Pass the beef (it is better to take a piece of tenderloin or brisket, only lean) through a meat grinder along with the liver and lard. Grate the onion and zucchini, chop the greens with a knife.

Mix all the vegetables and herbs with the minced meat, add the yolks, herbs and spices. Mix everything and knock it out on the table. Let stand for 10 minutes.

Form large cutlets and dip them in egg white. Place in a mold that has been pre-greased. Bake at 170 degrees.

Tomato paste mix with hot water(spoon for half a glass of water), add salt, pepper, chopped garlic. After 10 minutes, take out the form with cutlets and pour into it tomato sauce. Bring to readiness.

Recipe 5. Lush minced meat cutlets with “Nests” cheese

Ingredients

Chicken fillet – half a kilo

Onion – 1 large head or 2 small ones

Potatoes – 2 tubers

Smoked cheese (can be sausage) – 300 g

Smoked sausage– 100 g

Eggs – 2 pieces

Frozen French fries – 400 g

Soda - small spoon

Salt pepper

Cooking method

Chop the chicken fillet. Grate the onion and potatoes. Fry the onion until golden color, mix with chicken and potatoes. Pre-frozen smoked cheese finely grate and cut the sausage into small cubes. Separate the yolks. Mix all this into the minced meat, and then salt (don’t overdo it: the cheese and sausage are salty!), soda and pepper. Form into medium-sized round patties.

Beat the egg whites with a fork and moisten the fries with it. Lay out the fries in the form of nests, and place a minced meat cutlet in the middle.

Bake in the oven until done. You can add a little water to the pan if you are afraid that the cutlets will burn rather than bake.

Recipe 6. Fluffy cutlets in puff pastry

This fun recipe for fluffy cutlets is also suitable for festive table, and for a snack on the run.

Ingredients

Beef – 300 g

Pork – 300 g

Onion – 1 large

Carrot – 1 small root vegetable

Zucchini – 200 g

Cheese – 200 g

Eggs – 2 pieces

Salt, curry, sweet paprika powder

Puff pastry– 600 – 800 g

Cooking method

Grate the carrots and onions and lightly fry them in a frying pan. Pass the meat and zucchini through a meat grinder. Grate the cheese, separate the yolks from the whites. Mix the yolks, minced meat, fried and cooled carrots and onions, cheese, herbs and spices in one bowl. Knock the minced meat on the table and let it sit for 15 minutes. Form cutlets.

Roll out the puff pastry and cut into strips. Wrap the cutlets in these strips, trying to do it neatly and beautifully. Place the products on a baking sheet lined with parchment and brush the top with whipped egg white.

Bake for about 20 - 25 minutes at 180 degrees.

Recipe 7. Lush cutlets from two types of fish

Ingredients

Red fish (pink salmon, coho salmon, etc.) – 300 g (boneless fillet)

Catfish (can be halibut) – 300 g (also fillet)

Onion – 1 piece

Eggs – 3 pieces

Butter – 100 g

Pancake flour – 5 tablespoons

Potato – 1 large

Sweet red pepper - half

Dill – 5-6 sprigs

Salt, white pepper or curry

Cooking method

Pass through a meat grinder with a coarse mesh grid. fish fillet, peppers, onions and potatoes. Mix egg yolks, spices, herbs and flour into the minced meat. Let sit well (10 – 15 minutes).

Grind the dill in any way (knife, blender, food processor), mix it into the minced meat. Beat the whites.

Form cutlets, make a dent and put in a small elongated piece of butter. Seal the cutlet so that the oil is inside. Wrap the products in egg white and place in a heated frying pan with a sufficient amount of vegetable oil (any kind, as long as it is odorless).

Quickly fry the cutlets over high heat without a lid, then cover and reduce the heat. So bring it to readiness. If you wish, you can cook the cutlets in the oven at 170 degrees.

It is best not to grind the meat in a meat grinder, but to chop it finely with a knife. This especially applies to poultry cutlets. But if you still decide to turn the meat, it is better to use a coarse mesh grill.

Is the meat too tough? You can't cook very tough meat soft cutlets. An acceptable result can be achieved if, on the contrary, you take the finest mesh grate and turn the meat twice. It will save the matter and use it somewhat various additives: for example, semolina instead of bread, sour cream, chopped champignons, etc.

For a quick and easy way to grate butter or smoked cheese, freeze it in the oven.

Try serving the cutlets not with potatoes or pasta, and with vegetables, salad, mushrooms. You can also serve sauce: white, tomato, sour cream with horseradish, mushroom... The dish will become healthier and better digestible.

Bake the boiled meat inside the cutlet quail egg or a whole slightly cooked champignon - and you will get a funny dish, suitable for a holiday.

Many of our fellow citizens, born during the Soviet Union, remember how their mothers and grandmothers regularly prepared homemade cutlets. This simple dish was a frequent guest on almost any table of any family.

Years have passed and modern housewives, accustomed to semi-finished products, have forgotten how to cook cutlets. The few who tried to do this most often refuse to continue this practice, since the finished “dish” did not at all please their loved ones.

In fact, there is nothing easier than frying homemade cutlets, you just need to know a few secrets of preparing them correctly.

Meat

To make the cutlets tasty and juicy, you need to buy the right meat. You can, of course, purchase ready minced meat. However, it is unlikely to be made from premium meat. So it’s better not to risk your reputation as a good housewife, but to buy meat and make minced meat yourself.

For cutlets, you should not take the most expensive pieces of beef pulp - tenderloin. Parts such as shoulder, neck, back or brisket are quite suitable. True, for good minced meat Beef alone is not enough. You will also have to “splurge” on pork. Here the most acceptable option would be fatty pieces or lard in general. It is this additive that will make the cutlets juicy and tender.

Before you grind the meat in a meat grinder, you need to prepare it. To do this, you will have to remove all the films from it, remove the veins, cartilage and small bones. As for the degree of grinding, chefs do not have a common point of view. However, practice shows that for homemade cutlets it is best to grind the meat once, placing a medium-sized wire rack in the meat grinder.

And, of course, about proportions. The best option is 0.5 kg of pork per 1 kg of beef. But you only need to put 250 g of lard per kilogram of meat. Otherwise, the cutlets will turn out too fatty.

Bread

Now about the bread. For some reason, a number of housewives believe that it is added to minced meat solely for the sake of quantity, i.e. for the purpose of saving. But no! Bread is one of the essential ingredients minced cutlet. True, here you also need to maintain the correct proportions. These are cutlets after all meat dish, not bread. But more on that later.

Stale bread is best for cutlets. You shouldn’t buy a fresh bun and stuff it into minced meat. It is advisable to buy a white loaf the day before and let it dry. The crusts must be cut off from bread “prepared” in this way. After this, the loaf is cut into pieces and soaked in cold milk. You can also soak it in water; this will not greatly affect the taste of the finished cutlets. The swollen bread should be kneaded and mixed with minced meat.

Returning to the proportions, we can say the following: for every kilogram of meat you will need 250 g of bread, soaked in 0.3-0.4 liters of milk or water.

Should I add eggs and onions to cutlets?

In addition to meat and bread, cutlets have one more ingredient that you can’t do without - eggs. They serve as the cement that prevents homemade cutlets from falling apart during the cooking process. However, here you also need to observe moderation: for 1 kg of original meat, 2-3 eggs are enough. If you put more, the cutlets will turn out too tough.

And now about the optional components. Many people add onions to minced cutlets. It is not prohibited. Experts believe that it is best to grind the onion through a meat grinder along with the meat. You can simply cut it, but only very finely. Otherwise, it will not be cooked through. ready-made dish There will be a sharp and slightly bitter taste. As for the amount of onions, expert opinions coincide: for every kilogram of meat you will need 200 grams.

You can also add various spices to the minced meat. Ground black pepper, paprika or chili pepper will perfectly complement the taste. If desired, you can add finely chopped herbs such as dill and parsley. Mint or cilantro can add special charm to the cutlets. But this is already for amateur gourmets.

How to make cutlets correctly

It is not recommended to make cutlets from freshly prepared minced meat. It’s better to cover the bowl with cling film and put it in the refrigerator for half an hour. This will allow the meat juices to be absorbed into the bread, and the spices to give the entire semi-finished product a spicy aroma.

After this, the minced meat must be thoroughly kneaded again so that it is saturated with air. Some cookbooks advise adding an additional handful of crushed ice. This seems to make the cutlets juicier. However, if the above proportions are met different varieties meat, you can do without ice.

Now it's time to start making cutlets. There are no special secrets here. Hands get wet in cold water, a certain amount of minced meat is taken from a bowl and rolled into a ball, which is then flattened on both sides. The resulting cutlet is placed on the board awaiting frying. Although you can immediately roll it in breading and place it in a frying pan.

Breading secrets

By the way, about breading. It is needed so that the cutlet is covered with an appetizing crust and all the juices remain inside it. You can use breadcrumbs purchased at the supermarket as a coating. However, most chefs do not recommend doing this. It is better to prepare them yourself by grinding them in a blender White bread.
You can also roll the cutlets in regular flour, adding a little salt to it. Some people prefer to bread semi-finished meat products in semolina or sesame seeds, but these are already controversial options.

But breading in lezone is a normal restaurant practice. The strange word “leison” hides what our housewives are accustomed to calling “batter.” Leison is made quite simply. You need to beat 3 eggs with 2 tablespoons of milk (or water) and a pinch of salt. There is no need to add flour to the lezon. But the cutlets must be rolled in it, and then dipped into the resulting mixture and sent to a hot frying pan.

How to fry delicious juicy cutlets

The cutlets should be fried exclusively in hot oil. It is best to use melted butter. However, plant-based is also suitable. In principle, you can even use margarine - whatever is more convenient for you.

Don't put too many cutlets in the pan. It's better to fry them in two or three batches. First, the cutlets need to be fried on both sides over high heat to form a crust. Then you can reduce the gas and, covering the pan with a lid, fry until fully cooked. You shouldn't turn the cutlets often. It is enough to do this 2-3 times.

Cutlets can not only be fried. If desired or on the recommendation of a doctor, they can be steamed or stewed.
The finished dish can be served with almost any side dish. If you have time, you can make some interesting sauce for them. Although juicy homemade cutlets are delicious on their own, without any additions. That's all the basic secrets of making juicy, delicious minced meat cutlets.

Sometimes letters come to the site about how to cook this or that, if you have no culinary experience at all. Strictly speaking, we try to make and explain all recipes in as much detail as possible. But they probably mean very simple ones, basic dishes. For example, homemade cutlets. Today is just such a topic - dedicated to novice cooks.

It is better to cook such cutlets from minced meat. You can buy it from a store if you are confident in the quality and freshness of the meat, or from something you make yourself if you have a meat grinder or other suitable equipment. In the second case, we simply buy a piece of meat and chop it in a convenient way.

It should be noted that homemade cutlets turn out tastier if you add a piece to the minced meat. This will make them a little fattier (and higher in calories, unfortunately), and much tastier. However, here too it’s a matter of personal preference: if you like lean meat, prepare dietary ones, it’s completely possible.

Homemade cutlets according to this recipe are tender, juicy on the inside and crispy on the outside.

Ingredients

minced meat -600 g
onion - 1 pc.
egg – 1 pc.
milk -1 glass
loaf or white bread – 5 pieces
salt pepper
vegetable oil for frying cutlets

Preparation

Peel the onion and grind it in a blender. You can also scroll it through a meat grinder or simply grate it on a fine grater. Do not forget to wet both the onion and the knife in cold water more often - this is “ folk remedy"will keep you from crying.

Pour milk over the bread and leave for 10 minutes to swell. An important point, and necessary if we want to get fluffy cutlets.

Then in a large bowl combine the minced meat, onion, bread, which must be thoroughly squeezed out of the milk, salt and pepper. Beat the egg in there.

Mix the entire mixture thoroughly and beat the minced meat. It must be homogeneous, so we work with our hands. Another tip: you need to “beat” the minced meat literally, that is, a small forceful action (without fanaticism) is suitable for preparing the future cutlet, for example, throwing pieces of meat onto a hard surface or at least just into a bowl of minced meat. This is a proprietary technique with, but it can be used in relation to any others: the meat becomes elastic, “alive”, excess liquid leaves it, and in return the softness increases.

Form small cutlets.

Pour a few spoons into the pan vegetable oil(I use olive oil) and fry the cutlets first with one,

and then on the other side until golden brown.

OK it's all over Now. The cutlets are ready. It was the right recipe homemade cutlets, enjoy them for your health!

When serving, they can be decorated with herbs and vegetables. It is recommended to eat it hot, especially if you have added lard. If the cutlets are dietary, then they are tasty both hot and cold.

Fried or steamed cutlets, baked, deliciously fluffy, the delight of any gourmet. How to cook minced meat cutlets, what kind of meatballs are they, what should you put in them and how long should you simmer (or bake)? Which cutlets are considered the most tender and juicy? The secrets of making the most delicious, juicy and fluffy minced meat cutlets are presented in the article.

On the way to the juicy ones, delicious cutlets There are several pitfalls; it is impossible to make cutlets truly tasty without overcoming these obstacles.

No cook can be considered a master if he does not know what is needed to prepare cutlets. They are found in almost every cuisine in the world: Kazakh, Russian, Turkish and, of course, the most common - homemade. Cutlets with a complex or simple side dish are a real find for the housewife. Some people don’t even want to eat anything other than cutlets. Of course, this simple dish can be taken in any cookery or dining room, but it’s easier to master cooking at home in order to please your family, especially since it’s convenient.

Why cutlets?

Meat cutlets are very filling, a child needs one medium serving with a side dish, and an adult needs up to two.
Yes, they will take a lot of minced meat, but you can fry a lot of cutlets for the whole week and the problem with lunch will be resolved. Children come and even without their parents, they can calmly boil their own pasta or buckwheat as a side dish. Simply remove the cutlets from the refrigerator and put them in the microwave for 30 seconds or a minute. Cook the pasta for 10-12 minutes and lunch is ready! Moreover, it is tasty, fresh and nutritious. Many children love cutlets with garlic and eat them with pleasure.

This dish is easy to take with you to work; many have microwaves and you can easily heat it up for yourself. They are delicious to eat even cold. Take as a side dish instant porridge or boil some pasta for yourself the night before.

But in order for cutlets to please you, you must first understand how to cook delicious cutlets, what kind of cutlets they generally are:

Meat, made from ordinary minced meat (pork, for example, or lamb, beef);
Chicken ( minced chicken you can buy it or make it yourself, they turn out lighter and take less time to prepare);
Fish (tasty and healthy);
Liver (yes, anyone who loves liver should definitely learn how to properly prepare this dish).

Meat selection

The key word here is “minced meat”, because cutlets are also made from minced meat, adding spices and other ingredients. Therefore, be extremely careful when choosing products. It is best and safest to prepare minced meat for cutlets at home, although many stores that sell meat offer ready-made ones. It is unknown what they put there besides meat for mass. Maybe skins or leftovers, maybe the meat had already weathered and they decided to twist it. It is known that not the best meat is turned into minced meat; it is easier to sell it that way.

Important. Why cutlets from ground beef, dumplings or manti are not tasty? Poor quality minced meat is to blame. Alas, it is impossible to determine its future taste by eye; all types of minced meat look the same and smell the same. You will feel the difference after you cook something. Experienced housewives advise not to save money.

First, take the meat from a proven place, then twist the minced meat yourself. This way you will know for sure that there is only meat and spices inside. It doesn’t matter why you need it: to fry cutlets or make dumplings. Believe me, the quality of minced meat plays a huge role!

Which part of the carcass, if ground beef or lamb, is best suited for mince? Fillet or front end.

Important: Before searching for meat, explore the depths of the freezer. There may be previously unused scraps remaining. You can combine them with purchased fillets. For example, the same pork goes well with pieces of chicken or lamb or beef. The minced meat will be rich in shades. Especially if you plan to make minced beef cutlets.

Delicious minced meat - delicious cutlets

Yes, we have already figured out the choice of meat and the method of obtaining minced meat. But how to make it really tasty? It would seem nothing complicated. Cut the meat into pieces, then pass through an electric or mechanical (the kind you have at home) meat grinder. However, minced meat cutlets turn out different every time. And for every housewife. Where's the secret?

It is important to make really correct minced meat, and here any experienced housewife I have a couple of my own tips. For example, some people put there a raw egg, others add pieces of bread or a loaf previously soaked in milk. Classic minced cutlets allow the addition of garlic. Well, spices.

Important: Egg or bread can be replaced with grated potatoes. Some housewives consider it the secret of delicious minced meat cutlets. This way the meat gets extra volume and fluffiness from the inside, a new taste, but you need a little potato so that it doesn’t overwhelm the meat.

Other additional ingredients - you can add a couple of tablespoons of kefir or sour cream. Eggs are not necessary; on the contrary, they add rigidity. Many recipes for delicious cutlets do not include eggs. Of course, you can use only the yolk, adding it inside the minced meat, beat the white thoroughly and dip the cutlets there, using it instead of flour or breadcrumbs. Then there will be no rigidity.

How to soften minced meat? A drop of boiled but warm water, literally a couple of spoons before mixing and making cutlets. To make the minced beef cutlets fluffy, add a little butter or replace it with a pinch of soda. Pass the meat through a meat grinder not once, but two or three times, beat the minced meat thoroughly, mix with your hands.

This way you can make delicious minced meat cutlets. Especially do not stand on ceremony with pork or beef. Chicken is considered lighter and tender meat, fish even more so. Each type of minced meat requires an individual approach.

Advice: In order for the dish to acquire a rich and piquant taste, do not be afraid to use herbs, different spices, and watch the amount of salt.

Inexperienced and even experienced housewives are afraid not of minced meat, but of the frying process. For many, the outside crust is overcooked, but everything inside is raw and impossible to eat. It would seem that you can’t stew it too much in a frying pan. Others are unable to form dense patties without losing their shape when flipped and after frying. Therefore, many people try to replace the frying pan with a multicooker; it is easier for them to set the mode and, having placed the cutlets there, steam them.

Of course it's delicious and really healthy dish, but fried minced meat cutlets have their own unique taste and a beautiful, golden brown crust. You can master the secrets of cutlets that are cooked inside and not overcooked on the outside.

To prevent the meat from sticking later, form the cutlets either with wet hands or wearing gloves (there are some for cooks, you can look at them on the hands of meat sellers or in the culinary department, sold in grocery stores);
Before frying meat cutlets, the frying pan must already be heated and oil must be poured in order to place them on a hot surface;
Large cutlets turn out more juicy, but be careful with the sizes; huge ones break easily. Classic cutlets - medium size;
First fry on both sides until a crust appears, then reduce the heat and cover the pan with a lid to simmer.
Important: to make minced meat cutlets not all day, first fry all the cutlets for 5-6 minutes so that the crust develops. Then place them on a prepared flat plate. Next, reduce the heat and place all the cutlets fried on the outside into the frying pan, because they are still raw inside. Cover with a lid and let everything simmer for 20 (even 30) minutes, checking periodically. When the homemade cutlets are ready, you can poke them with a fork or taste them. Watch carefully for readiness.

It is meat or liver cutlets that take longer to stew than other types. Chicken and fish cook faster. There are cutlets made from seafood and even vegetables, but meat-eaters like cutlets made from minced beef more than others.

Garnish

Here everything is a little simpler, but every housewife still wants variety. Everyone has been tired of pasta and potatoes since childhood, this is a classic approach. If you decide to make cutlets festive dish, you can play on the side dish. While the cutlets are slowly stewing, covered with a lid, it’s time to figure out the side dish.

Bean (why not, beans are extremely tasty, do not take long to cook and are healthy);
Colored rice (you can make it yourself by mixing regular rice with peas or corn);
Cauliflower - bright, delicious side dish, does not take long to prepare;
Rice – The Chinese consider it their bread and a cup of rice accompanies every meal. How to make delicious, beautiful rice? A rice cooker or proper rice cooking technique will help. Take coarse grain and do not cook it until it is completely cooked, let the structure be preserved. Rice tastes better when a little firm;
Pasta - yes, even that can be turned into an interesting side dish. For example, mix several types or take colored pasta. Now they even sell black pasta. They are well suited for minced meat cutlets. Experienced chefs advise not to cook them until fully cooked in order to maintain slight firmness and an attractive appearance;
Pea mash– if you like mashed potatoes, why not make peas? Perfectly complements very tasty cutlets, satisfying and healthy. To soften the peas, you must first place them in a container of boiling water. Then boil and mash like potatoes. Of course, pea puree takes longer to prepare, but it has its own unique taste;
Broccoli - Western children have long had difficulty eating it, but for different dishes Broccoli meat is an excellent addition. You can make it into an independent side dish or put two or three pieces per serving;
Cabbage – boiled or stewed, when the cutlets come out tasty and juicy;
Buckwheat - yes, recent changes in the market have significantly affected its cost, but it continues to be useful and delicious ingredient. Vary the types of side dishes; there is no need to constantly add pasta or peel potatoes. Tasty, fluffy buckwheat is no worse, and you don’t need to know much about how to cook it. It takes a little longer to cook pasta;
A complex side dish - a little peas, a little corn and mashed potatoes, or mix cabbage with broccoli, as your imagination or your favorite photo from a culinary recipe suggests.
How long will it take to prepare the cutlets, choose the side dish and decorate? About an hour or so, because you need to mince the minced meat, then fry the cutlets, and work on the side dish.

You can make it really easy juicy cutlets, for example, from minced pork, because pork is considered a complex meat? Yes, the main thing is to choose good meat and, if necessary, mix it with the same chicken or add a little lamb, then find a step-by-step recipe.

Salads

Any second or first course can be supplemented with an appetizer or salad. Soups are served with either hot flatbreads, pies or shanezhki, or crackers. And salads are better suited to second, denser dishes. What tastes better with homemade, classic cutlets?

Like any fried dish, they are considered a hearty lunch, so it is better not to overload the liver with mayonnaise. Take a simple salad, for example, tomatoes with a couple of cucumbers, a drop of oil or just a pinch of salt. "Caesar" is also suitable, sauerkraut, fresh cut vegetables. There is no need to make a complex salad; see what you can use in existing products.

Is it necessary to have fried minced meat? Many people love cutlets, but they should not eat fried food. No, they can be stewed in sauce or steamed, then the dish will turn out lighter and more dietary. You will need a pressure cooker or multicooker.

How to make cutlets for future use, where to store them? Fry with reserve, and place the leftovers in a special glass bowl for heating in the microwave. She will really keep the cutlets in fresh, will not allow the smell to spread, and if necessary, eat a little at a time, then prepare only a side dish for them.