Breading food products is one of the most used and favorite cooking techniques in the modern culinary world. It consists in covering/rolling the product we have chosen with a layer of breading consisting of different components, which sometimes implies the presence of more than one layer.
We can bread virtually anything from meats, fish and vegetables, to white cheese, yellow cheese and even leafy greens like arugula, spinach and grains and legumes, which are grinded and formed into patties. The list is endless.
The covering layer ensures that the food product remains juicy and tender inside, and crispy or softer on the outside (depending on the breading itself), but we always have two different textures, which is the charm of this technique whether we are frying or baking.
Here we will focus on the crispier option - dry breading.
The name itself suggests that all the components in it are dry, that is, there is no egg or other liquids.
There are as many types and combinations of dry breadings as there are products we can bread them with.
The most famous and used are:
- breadcrumbs mixed with spices;
- crushed cornflakes;
- crushed potato chips;
- corn or rice starch enriched with various flavors such as garlic powder, turmeric and others;
- wheat flour, again flavored with spices and even milk or egg powder.
Everyone can experiment and combine flavors and textures of their choice and depending on the product they are going to bread.
Here's an advice - to have a thick and nice dry breading and a well-cooked but tender inside, it is good to grease the product before rolling it in the dry mixture. So it will stick perfectly and there will be no uncovered areas.
When breading meat, leave it at room temperature beforehand, because if it is too cold, there is a risk that it will remain slightly raw on the inside.
When frying, heat the fat well before putting the pieces rolled in dry breading into it.
If you are baking, lightly grease the baking pan and drizzle a little olive oil on top.
With this breading, you can make gorgeous chicken bites, breaded cheeses, breaded zucchini, breaded mushrooms or even breaded mussels.
Enjoy your meal!
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