Crispy One-Bowl Oven-Baked Chicken Cutlets

No “breading stations” necessary, and you’ll never believe this oven-baked schnitzel isn’t fried!

It’s quite ironic how schnitzel has become such an icon in the Jewish world and yet schnitzel’s Viennese origins are not particularly Jewish. But that’s irrelevant, apparently. The pickiest of little eaters will ask for schnitzel. The yeshiva bachurim will want schnitzel. I mean, c’mon, there’s nothing better than biting into a piping hot, crispy, flavorful piece of schnitzel, right?!

There’s a lot of debate over the best coating for schnitzel and over the years, I’ve tried them all: panko, crispy bread crumbs, soft bread crumbs, homemade bread crumbs, flavored bread crumbs, unflavored bread crumbs, matzah meal, gluten-free crumbs, pretzel crumbs, crushed chips, corn flake crumbs. I’ve even crushed up some of my kids’ snack bags!  

You can really use any of these, but I pretty much always come back to the same panko-style crumbs. I find that they stay the crispiest.

I have been making schnitzel since I was a young girl. As much as I love schnitzel, I always HATED the process of making it. Hated the mess it made with all those bowls. Hated the smell it left in the kitchen. Hated standing over the stove waiting for the pieces to fry. 

Over the years, I changed two things about the way I make schnitzel:

1. I stopped frying my schnitzel and started baking it in the oven. Over time, I’ve figured out some tricks so it tastes just as good as fried.
2. I invented this one-bowl method for my oven-baked schnitzel one night out of desperation. I was exhausted and just wanted to be done with my Shabbos cooking. I didn’t care anymore at that point how the schnitzel was going to come out, so I just dumped it all in one bowl and…it actually worked! Tired or not, I’ve been doing it that way ever since! 

Shockingly, my post for this oven-baked schnitzel went viral on Instagram! All 153K people who have seen it seem to agree that it’s awesome! 

When baking this schnitzel in the oven, it is IMPERATIVE that you use a real cookie sheet. If you use a disposable one, you will not get that crunch. Flip the chicken in the pan as soon it comes out of the oven when the oil is still sizzling. Leave it there for a minute or two and then transfer to a wire rack so it doesn’t get soggy. I love this wire rack, because it fits right into a 9×13 pan. If you don’t have a rack, you can line up the pieces standing on their sides in a 9×13 as opposed to piling them on top of each other to keep them crispy 

When reheating, warm loosely covered just until heated through. Overheating can dry out the schnitzel and covering it tightly will result in it getting soggy. 

I love to serve my oven-baked schnitzel with my oven baked fries!

If you don’t care if your schnitzel gets a little soft (like if you’re putting it into salad or feeding lots of kids or hungry men who won’t know the difference), this is totally freezable! I like to make a batch and freeze some small portions separately. That way I can grab a portion or two as needed. For example, every week I make my deli salad and swap some of the deli for schnitzel. Just note that this doesn’t work to prepare in bulk — if you try making too much at a time it doesn’t come out right — so follow the recipe for the amount of cutlets to use.

Crispy One-Bowl Oven-Baked Chicken Cutlets

No breading stations necessary and tastes just as good as fried!

Print Recipe

Ingredients

• 1½ lbs. chicken cutlets (approx.), sliced thin
• ¼ cup flour
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1½ -2 cups bread crumbs (I like to use panko crumbs)
• Oil, for pouring on the pan

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 400℉.
• Place chicken pieces in a bowl.
• Add flour and toss well.
• Add egg and mix well to coat chicken pieces. (It might feel goopy; don’t worry.)
• Start by adding about 1 cup of bread crumbs, slowly adding more as needed. Gently toss well, coating the chicken. If there are some “bald” spots, you can coat with any crumbs that fell to the bottom of the bowl.
• Pace chicken on a well-oiled real metal cookie sheet.
• Bake for 25 minutes (no need to flip).
• As soon as schnitzel comes out of the oven, flip over the pieces. Leave there for a minute and then drain excess oil by cooling on a wire rack or stacking pieces in a pan on their sides.

Notes

This doesn’t work for large amounts of schnitzel, even if you use a huge bowl — I’ve tried it. It’s just too much!

Recipe by Faigy Murray | https://mykitchenmystudio.com/crispy-one-bowl-oven-baked-schnitzel/

Servings: 4 servings