Pork Schnitzels with Lemon Thyme Sauce

sauce drizzled over schnitzel on mash potato with green beans and lemon wedges blurred in background

5 from 5 votes

These Pork Schnitzels are crunchy on the outside and juicy on the inside. They're served with a simple and delicious Lemon Thyme Sauce!

Prep Time15

Cook Time25

Total Time40

Course: Dinner, Main Course

Cuisine: german

Servings: Schnitzels

Author: Chris Collins

Cost: £2 / $2.50

Equipment

Large Frying Pan & Tongs
Wooden Spoon
3 Large Shallow Bowls (for dredging)
Cling Film & Mallet/Rolling Pin (for pounding pork)
Cooling Wrack & Paper Towels

Ingredients

Schnitzels

6x 7oz/200g Boneless Pork Chops, brought to room temp (see notes)
1 1/2 cups / 90g Panko Breadcrumbs (see notes)
1/3 cup / 50g Plain/All Purpose Flour
2 Eggs, beaten
1 tsp EACH Paprika, Garlic Powder
1 cup / 250ml Vegetable Oil, or as needed
Salt & Pepper, as needed

Lemon Thyme Sauce

3/4 cup / 180ml Heavy/Double Cream, at room temp
3/4 cup / 180ml Chicken Stock
2 tbsp Butter
2 tsp Fresh Thyme Leaves
1 Echalion/Banana Shallot, finely diced (or two small regular shallots)
2 cloves of Garlic, minced/finely diced
1 Lemon, zest and juice (to taste)
Salt & Pepper, to taste

Instructions

Lemon Thyme Sauce

Melt 2 tbsp butter in a pan over medium heat and add in shallots & garlic. Fry until they soften and begin to brown, then add in the zest of 1 lemon. Fry for another 30 seconds or so then pour in stock and cream.
Add in fresh thyme and a pinch of salt and pepper (to taste). Begin gently squeezing in your lemon juice, working to taste as you go. I find the perfect balance to be the zest + 1 tbsp lemon juice (approx 1/2 lemon). Give it a good stir then reduce to a gentle simmer until thickened. Pour in jug to one side and clean out pan.

Pork Schnitzel

Ensure you've taken your pork out the fridge around 20mins before needed. Trim off all the fat from the chops (important or they'll curl up in the pan). One by one lay cling film over the pork and bash until nice and thin, but not so thin they start breaking apart. Season both sides with a good pinch of salt and pepper.
Set up 3 bowls: 1st with flour, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, 1/2 tsp paprika and a heft pinch of salt and pepper. 2nd with beaten eggs. 3rd with Panko breadcrumbs, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, 1/2 tsp paprika and a hefty pinch of salt and pepper.
One by one dredge the pork through the flour, into the eggs then finish in the breadcrumbs. Really ensure you thoroughly coat the pork at each stages, namely the breadcrumbs.
Heat up enough oil to comfortably fill the bottom of your pan. If you drop a few breadcrumbs in the oil they should rapidly sizzle. 2-3 chops at a time, gently lower into the oil and fry for 2-3mins each side or until golden brown with the centre piping hot. They should be nice and thin so they won't take long to cook through, but to be sure they should be white all the way through with the juices running clear. Top up oil and bring up to temp in between batches if needed. Lay on wire rack with paper towels underneath once done.
Serve Shnitzels with lemon thyme sauce drizzled over (give it a blitz in the microwave to warm up if needed). Enjoy!

Video

Notes

a) Pork Chops - I quite like the smaller sized chops here because you can pound them nice and thin without the meat separating. You can use 4 larger pork chops if you wish, same rules apply though - trim the fat and work with the meat at room temp (important or the pork with seize up and go chewy as it cooks). You may also need to fry them for longer depending on how thin you pound them.

b) Panko - Panko breadcrumbs are great because they're larger and airy, meaning they come out extra crunchy when they're cooked. You'll find them in the Asian section of most stores.

c) Serving/Do I have to make the sauce? - You don't have to make the sauce, it's just an added bonus! Schnitzel is typically served with lemon wedges. Here I plonk it on some mash and serve with green beans.

d) Make Ahead - You can make these ahead of time but they don't come out quite as crispy/juicy. If you have leftovers though you can tightly store in the fridge for a couple of days or pop in the freezer. To reheat just thaw in the fridge if frozen then pop in the oven at 356F/180C until the pork is piping hot again.

e) Calories - based on using all the flour/eggs/panko (slight overestimate) and assuming 2 tsp oil per schnitzel soaked up. Also overestimate as it assumes pork fat is intact. Calories per schnitzel WITHOUT sauce.

Nutrition