Jagerschnitzel with Sourdough Spaetzle

 The Hubs asked for Jagerschnitzel as his special Father's Day dinner. And I did my best to accommodate, except that we could not find pre-breaded pork or veal cutlets ANYWHERE, and I didn't have enough time on Father's Day to make everything from scratch. So, this dinner was a little belated, but still delicious and well deserved. I'm thankful to have husband who is a true partner in marriage, sharing responsibility for things around the house, taking care of the kiddo, while also having our own areas of expertise.  I do most of the cooking, not because he CAN'T, but because I enjoy it more.  He enjoys working with his hands and fixing things.  It's a pretty great situation.

Anyway...FOOD.  

I bought this spaetzle maker on Amazon---not joking, looked it up--A FULL DECADE AGO. 2013.   That's pre-kid, we still owned The Inside Scoop--purchased in June (full tilt ice cream season) so this was probably a stress purchase. And it's just sat in the drawer, in the package, since that time.  The spider strainer was a much more recent purchase,  but still brand new.  Nice to finally get to use kitchen gadgets. :)

I used my sourdough discard to make this recipe--most recipes I found online called for a full cup (300g) of discard, which I didn't have.  And there was a whole range of recipes out there--some called for 1 egg, some for 4, etc.  So, I opted to just modify the recipe that came on the package of my spaetzle maker.

Because making THREE things from scratch for the same dinner is a hefty lift on busy summer weekends, I made the spaetzle the day before and put it in the fridge. Then day of, I sautéed it in some butter, seasoned with some salt, pepper, and parsley.  Worked perfect.

INGREDIENTS: 

Spaetzle (Makes....a lot.  Like probably 8-10 side servings. We froze half.)

• 100g sourdough discard
• 325g all-purpose flour
• 2 eggs
• 2 tsp chicken bouillon powder
• ~200mL water (more or less as needed for consistency)
• 1/2 stick butter

Schnitzel

• 1 lb pork chops hammered to ~1/4-1/2 inch thick, or a butterflied pork loin, divided into 6 sections and pounded flat
• Dry dredge: 1/3 cup flour, 1 Tbsp garlic salt, 1/2 tsp parsley, 1/2 tsp black pepper
• Wet Dredge: 2 eggs, beaten
• Final dredge: 2 cups panko
• vegetable oil for frying
• Lemon wedges for serving

Jager Gravy

• 2 Tbsp butter
• 8 oz button mushrooms, cleaned & sliced
• 1/2 onion, thinly sliced
• 4 Tbsp Tony Chacheres Roux Mix (FYI since the recipe isn't on the can--gravy is 2 Tbsp mix + 1 cup water)
• 2 Cups cool water

DIRECTIONS:

Spaetzle-

1. Start a pot of salted water to boil.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the discard, eggs, and bouillon.  Mix in the flour--you'll end up with a dry shaggy dough.  Start adding the water and mixing in until dough is smooth, like thick pancake batter.  The idea being that the dough won't just drip through the holes in the spaetzle maker as you add it to the hopper, so you can control the size of the noodles. 
3. Let rest about 15 minutes.
4. Set the spaetzle maker across the top of the pot of boiling water.  Add dough to the hopper in small batches.  Slide the hopper back & forth to press the dough through the holes.
5. Once the noodles start to float up to the surface, it's OK to stir. Let cook for 2-3 minutes, then remove with the spider strainer.
6. Place in a container with some butter & toss. The butter will help keep the noodles from sticking to each other.  If you're making this all the same day, you can serve at this point, or let cool and place in the fridge.  
7. Reheating: Heat 1 pat of butter in a large skillet over medium heat--once melted, add the cold spaetzle (you will likely have to break it apart a bit with your hands) & season to taste.  

Schnitzel-

1. Heat about 1 inch of vegetable oil in a deep pan, like a dutch oven, to avoid splattering.  Target temp is about 330F.
2. Heat oven to 200F (for keeping cutlets warm if needed)
3. Once oil is up to temp, dredge pork one at a time through the flour, then egg, then panko and gently drop into the oil. My pot was able to hold about 2 at a time, so have some paper towels nearby for after they come out of the oil.  Cook for about 2-3 minutes per side, until golden brown.  Remove, drain, then place on a cookie sheet in the oven (if you're trying to keep them all warm for serving).
4. Serve with a light drizzle of lemon juice, and then either add gravy to the top, or on the side.

Jager Gravy-

1. In a large skillet, melt 2 Tbsp butter over medium heat.
2. Add onions & mushrooms and saute until tender & golden.
3. Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, combine the water and roux mix, whisk, and then heat to boiling.  Let boil for 1 minute then drop temp to simmer.
4. Add mushrooms & onions to the gravy and let simmer until ready to serve. (I then used that skillet to heat up the spaetzle I'd made the day before.)

Served this up with some sauerkraut for the full German experience...and some green beans, because vegetables are important. :)

Also, as a point of process...even though the Aldi website may not mention it...they DO have pre-breaded veal cutlets in the freezer section, if you want to make this & are short on time.  Found this out later. *sigh* Ah well--since we have frozen spaetzle now, that means next time we want this dish, all I have to make is the gravy!