Use Buttermilk Instead Of Egg Wash To Avoid Loose Breading (2024)
nick pisano
·2 min read
A perfectly fried chicken cutlet, pork chop, fish filet, or other protein can be among the tastiest centerpieces of a hearty meal. Unfortunately, many home cooks find out too late that creating that ideal breading isn't as simple as it may look. If you have problems with a loose coating, one easy swap can do wonders to resolve it.
Instead of the traditional flour and egg breading, use buttermilk as the liquid tostop the breading from falling off during frying.Beaten eggs and buttermilk work just as well in helping the outer coating of flour or breadcrumbs adhere to the meat. However,eggs tend to react when they hit the hot frying oil and expand, which can cause the breading to pull away.
This occurs as the moisture in the beaten eggs evaporates, followed by the proteins in the egg hardening and setting into a thick crust. Buttermilk proteins don't react the same way, helping the breadcrumbs or flour stay closer to the meat.
Using buttermilk as the second stage of your breading process comes with other benefits beyond fixing loose breading. Many enjoy the subtle tang that buttermilk can provide due to the mild acidity of the liquid.This acidic nature also helps lightly tenderize the meat, creating an even juicier, more succulent texture. Even a few minutes of soaking in buttermilk (or resting after breading) can make a big difference.
Despite these benefits, cooks should remember that buttermilk breading may not be suitable for dairy-free diners. Buying buttermilk for this specific purpose will also add to your grocery bill. However, you canmake buttermilk from your regular milk: Mix 1 cup of milk with 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or white vinegar.
While this simple switch can fix many breading issues, you can refine your frying technique even further with tips for creating a crispier coating.
Instead of the traditional flour and egg breading, use buttermilk as the liquid to stop the breading from falling off during frying. Beaten eggs and buttermilk work just as well in helping the outer coating of flour or breadcrumbs adhere to the meat.
THE BOTTOM LINE: We recommend using heavy cream when breading foods if you cannot use eggs. CREAM IS BEST: If you can't use eggs, use heavy cream to hold breading in place.
But taking the extra time to soak your meat in buttermilk and let the flour set will ensure that your breading is fully adhered for the perfect breaded pork chops or breaded chicken. This creates a final result that is crispy on the outside, juicy in the middle, and altogether irresistible.
The secret to making the perfect fried chicken is the use of buttermilk, as it helps tenderize each piece while leaving each bite juicy and crispy. After marinating, dredge your chicken pieces in the flour mixture and get to frying!
Use milk as a binding agent so bread sticks. Add the tenders to the bowl of breadcrumbs, one or just a couple at a time, and pat to coat thoroughly. Shake of the extra crumbs from each piece of chicken before placing carefully into the pan.
Breading also sticks well to cutlets that have first been marinated in buttermilk or yogurt, or coated in mayonnaise. Can you use milk instead of eggs? Yes, you can use milk instead of eggs as long as you coat the cutlets in a layer of flour first.
This acidic nature also helps lightly tenderize the meat, creating an even juicier, more succulent texture. Even a few minutes of soaking in buttermilk (or resting after breading) can make a big difference.
Place the breaded chicken on a cooling rack (or a platter) and chill in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes. This cooling time will help the layers of breading ingredients solidify and adhere better after the chicken cooks.
Not only did the chicken come out just as moist as with water brine, it was actually significantly more tender as well, due to the tenderizing effects of buttermilk on food (soaking it for more than one night led to chicken that was so tender that it bordered on mush).
Remember that marinating chicken for too long will make the meat mushy. The USDA says chicken can marinate in buttermilk for up to 48 hours, but we feel that's far too long. Twelve hours at the most is more than sufficient for the purposes of this dish, and we suggest it should be more like 6-8 hours.
While buttermilk is great for baking, it also does amazing things for meat. Its high acidity level helps tenderize everything from roast chicken to braised pork. We also won't fry our chicken without a buttermilk brine—it keeps the bird moist and juicy underneath that crunchy, crackly crust.
Thanks to its acidity, buttermilk is a great tenderizer. It's the classic soak for fried chicken, and you can also use buttermilk for dredging that chicken before breading and frying it. The buttermilk will help the flour mixture adhere to the meat, add flavor, and make it even more tender.
The typical three-step process is flour, eggs and then breadcrumbs. Instead of the egg, Moskowitz recommends a mix of cornstarch and water, which, when stirred together, forms a slurry. It, too, is an effective glue, and you may even notice more crispness to, say, your chicken parm.
If you don't have any eggs, or you can't be bothered making an egg wash, brushing your baking with milk or cream before it goes into the oven works great too. This technique is often used in scone recipes.
The standard breading procedure includes three steps: dredging in flour, moistening in egg wash (beaten egg plus a tablespoon or two of water or milk), then coating in breadcrumbs or Panko (Japanese bread crumbs with terrific texture!).
There are no “shoulds” with using egg washes. Use them if you wish or not. The shiny surface an egg (or egg white or yolk) mixed with a little water does give a very nice appearance to loaves and rolls as Effie May stated.
Introduction: My name is Aron Pacocha, I am a happy, tasty, innocent, proud, talented, courageous, magnificent person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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