Schnitzel () is a thin slice of meat. The meat is usually thinned by pounding with a meat tenderizer. Most commonly, the meat is breaded before frying. Breaded schnitzel is popular in many countries and is made using veal, pork, chicken, mutton, beef, or turkey. Schnitzel originated as Wiener schnitzel and is very similar to other breaded meat dishes.
Etymology The German word das () is a diminutive of , 'slice'.American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, s.v. The name Wiener Schnitzel is first attested in 1845.
Schnitzel is sometimes mispronounced or misspelled as "Snitzel" or "Snitchel".
Wiener schnitzel
is a popular Viennese dish made of veal and traditionally garnished with a slice of lemon and either potato salad or potatoes with parsley and butter.
In Austria and Germany, must be made of veal. When other meats are used, it can be called ("Viennese schnitzel of pig/turkey/chicken") or ("Schnitzel Viennese style").
Schnitzels worldwide The English term schnitzel means in general all types of breaded, fried flat pieces of meat. Due to the similarity between schnitzel and escalope, in many of the countries listed below, people sometimes refer to schnitzels as escalope, and vice versa.
Africa Egypt In Egypt, there are two dishes similar to schnitzel, one made with chicken and the other with veal. When chicken is used, it is called frakh pané (فراخ بانيه, lit. "chicken pané", where pané is from the French for "breaded", influenced by French "Escalope panée") and is also popular with French fries, in sandwiches, or eaten alone as an appetizer. Using veal, it is called boftik (بفتيك, from the French for bifteck).
Namibia Schnitzel, both chicken and pork, is common in Namibia due to the country's German colonial history. A majority of the restaurants in Windhoek, Walvis Bay, and Swakopmund offer it on their menus, often topped with a fried egg and accompanied by potato salad. It is often eaten in a Brötchen (German sandwich roll) with tomatoes, cheese, and other dressing.
South Africa Schnitzel is popular in South Africa, due to the European settlement during the colonial era. Chicken schnitzels and cordon bleu schnitzels are a common item on most restaurant and hospital menus, and in recent years, beef and pork schnitzels have also become widely available.
Asia
Japan
Japanese consists of a flattened pork loin, lightly seasoned, coated in flour, dipped in beaten egg, coated with panko crumbs and deep-fried. Tonkatsu is often served as an accompaniment to ramen or udon or featured with curry and rice.
Pork tonkatsu was invented in Japan in 1899 at the Rengatei restaurant in Tokyo. It was originally considered a type of yōshoku—Japanese versions of European cuisine invented in the late 19th and early 20th centuries—and was called katsuretsu (cutlet) or simply katsu. Variations include the use of pork fillet (hirekatsu), chicken (chicken katsu), beef (gyūkatsu), ham (hamukatsu) and minced meat (menchi-katsu). Korea Korean dongaseu came from Japan in the 1930s, and newspapers explained how to make it. In the 1960s, as more restaurants started selling dongaseu, it changed to suit Korean tastes. In Korean cuisine, pork (돈가스; , from Japanese ), chicken (치킨가스; ), and beef (비프가스; ) cutlets are popular. The most common types of are "" (경양식; Western-style) and ""(일본식; Japanese-style).
Europe Austria Wiener schnitzel, a very thin, breaded and pan-fried cutlet made from veal, is one of the best-known specialities of Viennese cuisine, and is one of the national dishes of Austria. A breaded schnitzel with sauce is considered unacceptable in Austrian culture.
Common variations are made with pork or turkey instead of veal, for one because it is cheaper than veal. Austrian law requires that is made of veal. A schnitzel made of pork can be called ('Wiener schnitzel from pork') or ('Viennese style schnitzel').
Popular unbreaded variants in Austria are:
Jägerschnitzel ('hunter's schnitzel') is a schnitzel with mushroom sauce. Rahmschnitzel ('cream schnitzel') is a schnitzel with a cream sauce, often containing some mushrooms. Zigeunerschnitzel ('Gypsy schnitzel') is a schnitzel with a zigeuner sauce containing tomato, bell peppers, and onion slices.
Bosnia and Herzegovina In Bosnia and Herzegovina, the dish is called bečka šnicla or bečki odrezak (bečki = "Viennese"; šnicla = transliteration of German Schnitzel) and is made of veal or beef and usually served with mashed potatoes. Common garnishes include a slice of lemon or some lettuce.
Bulgaria Called шницел (shnitsel), it is made from ground veal, formed as a thin patty, seasoned with salt and black pepper, then breaded and fried. The dish usually is served with a choice of mashed or roasted potatoes, French fries, or simply a tomato salad. It is common at truck stops, and it is usually ordered à la carte, coming with a lemon wedge, but one can also find it in the frozen sections in supermarkets or premade and ready to cook.
Croatia In Croatian, the dish is called bečki odrezak (or šnicl) (bečki = "Viennese"; šnicl = transliteration of German Schnitzel) and it is made of veal (sometimes substituted with cheaper pork) and served with French fries or potato salad and a slice of lemon. A similar dish is called zagrebački odrezak (šnicl) (a variation on cordon bleu). Baron Trenck's steak is veal or pork stuffed with Slavonian ham, boiled eggs and ajvar, stewed on red onion with mushroom sauce. Baron Trenk's Steak is a stuffed meat dish associated with the cuisine of Slavonia, a region of eastern Croatia. The dish is named after Franz von der Trenck, an 18th-century military commander whose estates and historical legacy are connected with Slavonia.
Czechia Schnitzel is also very popular in the Czech Republic, where it is known as a smažený řízek or just řízek, and is made of pork, chicken, or veal. It is often served with fries, fried, boiled or mashed potatoes or potato salad. It also used to be and to some degree still is a typical packed lunch for day trips, when it was consumed with bread (often between two slices of bread with vegetables and dressing as a sandwich).
Denmark In Denmark, the dish is called skinkeschnitzel when made of pork and wienerschnitzel when made of veal, and is usually served with fried potatoes, gravy, green or snow peas, and a "boy" (dreng in Danish) consisting of a lemon slice topped with capers, horseradish, and a slice of anchovy.
Estonia
In Estonia, schnitzels (šnitsel) are commonly made with pork. There also exists a schnitzel made from cheese that has been breaded and fried, typically served with salad.
Finland
In Finland, the dish called Wieninleike ("Viennese cutlet"), is almost always made of pork, breaded and fried like the original. It is usually served with French fries, potato mash, or wedge potatoes. A slice of lemon, a slice of anchovy, and a few capers are placed on top of the cutlet. Usually, the dish includes a small amount of salad made from fresh vegetables. The dish was popular between the end of the Second World War and the 1990s, when it could be found in most low-end restaurants in Finland. In past decades, it has been overtaken in popularity by fast food.
Wieninleike and its variations remain a staple of menus in many non-ethnic or fine dining restaurants in Finland. Lunch restaurants, highway rest stops and restaurants attached to gas stations are most prominently associated with this type of menu in Finland.
Wieninleike ("Viennese cutlet") served typically with slice of lemon, anchovy, and caper Floridanleike ("Floridian cutlet") served with fried peach and served with Béarnaise sauce Havaijinleike ("Hawaiian cutlet") served with fried pineapple Holsteininleike ("Holstein cutlet") served with egg, anchovy, and caper Metsästäjänleike ("hunter's cutlet") served with mushroom sauce Oskarinleike ("Oscar's cutlet") served with choron-sauce, shrimps or lobster, and asparagus Oopperaleike ("opera cutlet") served with fried egg Sveitsinleike ("Swiss cutlet") is filled with smoked ham and Emmentaler cheese Talonpojanleike ("Peasant's cutlet") served with fried egg and bacon
Typically the dishes above are prepared from pork.
France Pariser schnitzel is similar to Wiener schnitzel but is floured and fried in an egg batter instead of using breadcrumbs.
Côtelette Menon or Côtelette révolution is made of veal and breaded.
Germany
In Germany, the term Schnitzel means cutlets in general, not just breaded, fried ones. Schnitzel Wiener Art ('Viennese style schnitzel') is a pounded, breaded, and fried cutlet, more often made of pork than of veal. Restaurants mostly serve it with a slice of lemon and French fries. Jägerschnitzel ('hunter's schnitzel') is a schnitzel with mushroom sauce. An East German variant of Jägerschnitzel is made of Jagdwurst sausage and without sauce. Zigeunerschnitzel ('Gypsy schnitzel') is a schnitzel with a zigeuner sauce containing tomato, bell peppers, and onion slices. This schnitzel is also called Paprikaschnitzel ('bell pepper schnitzel'), Schnitzel Balkan-Art ('Balkan-style schnitzel') or Schnitzel Budapester Art ('Budapest-style schnitzel'). Rahmschnitzel (cream schnitzel) is a schnitzel with a cream sauce. Münchner Schnitzel ('Munich schnitzel') is a variation on Wiener schnitzel prepared with horseradish or mustard before coating in flour, egg and bread crumbs. Schnitzel Holstein, topped with an egg sunny side up.
Hungary
Due to the strong Austrian influence of the Austro-Hungarian era, Wiener schnitzel is popular in Hungary, known as bécsi szelet (Viennese slice), borjú bécsi (Viennese veal) or rántott hús (breaded meat). It is served in restaurants, and is a common meal in Hungarian homes. It is typically served with French fries, mashed potatoes, or rice. Alternatively, green peas or other vegetables are used as a side dish. Bread and salad (or pickles) often accompany the meal. Some restaurants offer the cordon bleu variant, a slice of schnitzel rolled and filled with cheese and ham.
Italy In Italy, there is a similar dish called cotoletta alla Milanese, or simply Milanese. Cotoletta alla Milanese is very similar to the Austrian Wiener Schnitzel and it is at its origin. The Italian veal scaloppine is also somewhat similar although the meat is not breaded but enveloped with flour.
Netherlands and Belgium In the Netherlands and Belgium, schnitzel is typically made from either pork or chicken and served with fries and a vegetable salad. Zigeunerschnitzel ("Gypsy schnitzel", served with paprika) and cordon bleu (kordonbleu or blue ribbon, breaded meat cutlet filled with ham and cheese) are very popular. A typical Dutch variant is the 'gehaktschnitzel', a schnitzel made of minced meat.
North Macedonia In the Republic of North Macedonia, the dish called шницла () is a piece of pork seasoned with salt and black pepper, breaded and fried. Typically, it is served with mashed or fried potatoes with green salad garnish.
Poland Kotlet schabowy is a classic, popular recipe for boneless pork chop or pork tenderloin. It can also be made from chicken, which is called "kotlet drobiowy".
Portugal In Portugal, schnitzel is called bife panado or just panado ("breaded"). Different varieties of panado can be made with chicken (panado de frango), turkey (panado de peru), pork (costeleta panada for pork chop, febra panada for pork without bone), or veal (escalope de vitela panado). The meat is usually seasoned with black pepper, garlic, and lemon juice. It is commonly served with spaghetti, fried potatoes, or rice (plain or with beans). It is also popular as a sandwich, served in a bun with lettuce (sandes de panado).
Romania