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Home » Recipes » Veal Recipes

Authentic Wiener Schnitzel Recipe

Published: Jul 1, 2023 · Modified: Jul 22, 2023 by Chef Dennis Littley

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Wiener Schnitzel is a veal cutlet that is pounded thin, breaded, then pan-fried until golden brown and crispy. Wiener Schnitzel is the national dish of Austria and derives its name from Wien, which translates to Vienna in the German language.

Wiener Schnitzel (veal schnitzel) on a white plate with lemon circles.


 

My authentic Wiener Schnitzel is an easy dish to make and is quite tasty. The crispy, crunchy exterior of the schnitzel compliments the delicate flavor of the veal nestled inside the breading.

The term schnitzel refers to any meat cutlet made from veal, chicken, pork, or turkey that has been pounded thin, breaded, and pan-fried. The name schnitzel comes from its crispy and golden outer layer and has nothing to do with hot dogs.

Wiener Schnitzel (veal schnitzel) on a white plate with lemon circles and tomatoes.

My easy-to-make Wiener Schnitzel is a classic recipe that can be made in less than thirty minutes. It makes a delicious light dinner and can be served with a variety of side dishes.

If you’re not a fan of veal, you can use slices of pork tenderloin to make a jägerschnitzel or chicken breast to make my Chicken Schnitzel.

Table of Contents:
  • Ingredients to make Wiener Schnitzel
  • How to make Wiener Schnitzel
  • Recipe FAQ’s
  • More Recipes You’ll Love!
  • Recipe: Wiener Schnitzel {Veal Schnitzel}

Ingredients to make Wiener Schnitzel

ingredients to make recipe.

Let’s start by gathering the ingredients we need to make Wiener Schnitzel. In Chef Speak, this is called the “Mise en Place,” which translates to “Everything in its Place.”

Not only does setting up your ingredients ahead of time speed up the cooking process, it also helps ensure you have everything you need to make the dish.

How to make Wiener Schnitzel

collage showing how to prep recipe.
  • Using a meat mallet (meat tenderizer), pound out the veal slices. Depending upon the size of the veal slices, you may need to add two pieces together.
  • This is done by pounding out each piece, then seaming them together by overlapping the pieces and pounding them out a little more.

This cut of veal is sometimes referred to as veal scallopine

After pounding the veal into thin cutlets, the next step is setting up the breading station by placing the seasoned flour, eggwash, and bread crumbs into separate shallow bowls.

The next step is setting up the breading station.

breading station set in white bowls.
  • Add the all-purpose flour, salt, and black pepper to a shallow bowl and whisk to combine.
  • Add two eggs and ¼ cup of milk or water to another bowl and whisk until well combined. This is the egg wash.
  • Add the panko bread crumbs, garlic powder, onion powder, and black pepper to another bowl and mix until well combined.

Some recipes add lemon zest to the bread crumbs, but a good schnitzel won’t have any additional flavors added to the cooking process. Wiener Schnitzel can be served with Jager sauce, Zigeuner sauce, or Frankfurt green sauce. But it’s traditionally served with lemon wedges and lingonberry jam.

breaded veal cutlets.
  • Dredge the veal in the flour mixture, completely coating the pounded cutlet.
  • Dip the floured cutlet into the egg mixture to completely coat the veal.
  • Add the egg-dipped veal to the breadcrumb mixture to coat the entire piece of veal.

Repeat the process with each piece of veal. Place small sheets of parchment paper or wax paper in between each breaded schnitzel to keep them from sticking together.

Wiener schnitzel can be frozen, breaded, and uncooked if needed. Wrap in plastic wrap and store in a zip-lock bag for up to three months.

I used panko breadcrumbs, but you can use regular or gluten-free breadcrumbs to make this dish.

golden brown sautéed veal in pan.
  • Add ½ cup of vegetable oil to a large skillet (or large frying pan), then place it over medium high heat.
  • Carefully place breaded veal cutlet into the hot oil and saute until golden brown and crispy (about 2 minutes per side). 
fried cutlets draining on wire rack.

Remove the wiener schnitzel from the pan and place them on a wire rack or paper towels for one minute to drain the excess oil.

You can freeze the cooked veal schnitzel by separating them with parchment and wrapping them in plastic or storing them in a ziplock bag. They can stay frozen for up to three months.

Wiener Schnitzel (veal schnitzel) on a white plate with lemon circles.

Serve Wiener Schnitzel with lemon slices, German potato salad, tossed salad, cucumber salad, spatezel or french fries.

When served with a fried egg, anchovies, and a lemon caper sauce, this dish is known as Veal Holstein.

Recipe FAQ’s

What is Wiener Schnitzel?

Wiener Schnitzel is a traditional Austrian dish made with veal. A veal cutlet is pounded thin using a meat hammer, then dipped in flour, egg wash, and finally, breadcrumbs. The cutlet is then pan-fried until golden brown and crispy.

What is schnitzel?

The term schnitzel refers to meat that has been pounded thin to tenderize the meat and help it cook evenly. The cutlet is then breaded and pan-fried. The name schnitzel comes from its crispy and golden outer layer. Schnitzel can be made with pork, chicken, veal, or turkey.

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Wiener Schnitzel (veal schnitzel) on a white plate with lemon circles.

Wiener Schnitzel {Veal Schnitzel}

Chef Dennis Littley
Wiener Schnitzel is a veal cutlet that is pounded thin, breaded, then pan-fried until golden brown and crispy. Wiener Schnitzel is the national dish of Austria and derives its name from Wien, which translates to Vienna in the German language.
5 from 41 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 15 minutes mins
Cook Time 5 minutes mins
Total Time 20 minutes mins
Course Entree
Cuisine Austrian
Servings 4
Calories 334 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 20 oz veal cutlets 4- five-ounce cutlets
  • ½ cup all-purpose flour
  • ½ teaspoon table salt
  • ¼ teaspoon black pepper
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
  • ½ teaspoon onion powder
  • 2 large eggs well beaten
  • 1 cup panko bread crumbs
  • ½ cup vegetable oil for frying
  • 4 slices lemon garnish

Instructions
 

  • Using a meat mallet (meat tenderizer), pound out the veal slices.
    Depending upon the size of the veal slices, you may need to add two pieces together. This is done by pounding out each piece, then seaming them together by overlapping the pieces and pounding them out a little more.
  • Add the all-purpose flour, salt, and black pepper to a shallow bowl and whisk to combine.
  • Add two eggs and ¼ cup of milk or water to another bowl and whisk until well combined. This is the egg wash.
  • Add the panko bread crumbs, garlic powder, onion powder, and black pepper to another bowl and mix until well combined.
  • Dredge the veal in the flour mixture, completely coating the pounded cutlet.
  • Dip the floured cutlet into the egg mixture to completely coat the veal.
  • Add the egg-dipped veal to the breadcrumb mixture to coat the entire piece of veal.
  • Repeat the process with each piece of veal. Place small sheets of parchment paper or wax paper in between each breaded schnitzel to keep them from sticking together.
  • Add ½ cup of vegetable oil to a large skillet (or large frying pan), then place it over medium-high heat.
  • Carefully place breaded veal cutlet into the hot oil and saute until golden brown and crispy (about 2 minutes per side). 
  • Remove the wiener schnitzel from the pan and place them on a wire rack or paper towels for one minute to drain the excess oil.
  • Serve Wiener Schnitzel with lemon slices, German potato salad, tossed salad, cucumber salad, spatezel or french fries.

Notes

*Some recipes add lemon zest to the bread crumbs, but a good schnitzel won’t have any additional flavors added to the cooking process. it can be served with Jager sauce, Zigeuner sauce, or Frankfurt green sauce, But it’s traditionally served with lemon wedges and lingonberry jam.
*Wiener schnitzel can be frozen, breaded, and uncooked if needed. Wrap in plastic wrap and store in a zip-lock bag for up to three months.
*I used panko breadcrumbs, but you can use regular or gluten-free breadcrumbs to make this dish.
*You can freeze the cooked veal schnitzel by separating them with parchment and wrapping them in plastic or storing them in a ziplock bag. They can stay frozen for up to three months.
 
 

Nutrition

Calories: 334kcalCarbohydrates: 12gProtein: 35gFat: 15gSaturated Fat: 4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 6gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0.1gCholesterol: 204mgSodium: 471mgPotassium: 589mgFiber: 1gSugar: 1gVitamin A: 137IUVitamin C: 4mgCalcium: 39mgIron: 2mg
Tried this recipe? Pin it for Later!Mention @askchefdennis or tag #askchefdennis!

Comments

    5 from 41 votes (38 ratings without comment)

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    Recipe Rating




  1. Veronica Veloz says

    February 26, 2025 at 10:33 pm

    Hi! I made this recipe today, it was delicious but for one or two of my schnitzels the breading came off (after being pan fried).
    Is there something i can do to avoid that?

    Reply
    • Chef Dennis Littley says

      February 27, 2025 at 7:36 am

      The reasons this could happen are that the chicken breast weren’t dry before you dipped them in the flour, or didn’t get a good coating of flour before you put them in the egg wash. Or that you didn’t press the bread crumbs into the chicken when doing the final breading.

      Reply
    • ozmartian says

      May 30, 2025 at 6:35 am

      Try placing the breaded meat in the fridge for about 30 mins, this also works for fried chicken or any breading. Cooling in the fridge will cause it to stick better and less mess left in the oil as it cooks, a bonus if deep frying and you want to reuse the oil.

      Reply
  2. Susan Bogdanowich-Knipp says

    December 22, 2024 at 7:21 pm

    5 stars
    Wonderful-first time I made schnitzel and everyone loved it. So crispy and tasty. Thank you!

    Reply
  3. Jerilyn Allen says

    October 11, 2024 at 7:52 pm

    Hi! I was wondering the best way to reheat the Wiener Schnitzel?
    I would like to fry it ahead of time & reheat for dinner the next night. Please advise

    Reply
    • Chef Dennis Littley says

      October 12, 2024 at 9:29 am

      Fry the schnitzel long enough to get good color on both sides. To reheat place them on a baking sheet in a 350 degree oven and heat for about 15 minutes. Veal is tricky reheating, so they won’t be quite as good as when you first cook them.

      Reply
  4. Carol Rice says

    August 02, 2024 at 1:38 am

    5 stars
    Always wanted to try to make Weiner Schnitzel. Haven’t tried a German recipe before. i really liked the idea it is a quick fry-time is of the essence many days!

    Easy to follow instructions; be alert that the recipe calls for black pepper in both the flour dredge and the Panko dredge. Used all the pepper in the first dredge, so i added a bit more in the second. It probably wasn’t noticeable since it was baked together.

    The chicken cutlets fried up beautifully; looked like the photos Chef Dennis used in this recipe. Delicious too! Crunchy coating, tender & moist inside. This will go in my meal rotation here on out. Added boiled potatoes, green salad & sourdough French bread. Perked up a weekday meal! Thank you, Chef Dennis!

    Reply
    • Chef Dennis Littley says

      August 02, 2024 at 8:50 am

      Thanks for a such a wonderfully detailed comment! I’m very happy to hear you enjoyed the wiener schnitzel.

      Reply
  5. Shery Sullivan says

    July 03, 2023 at 2:08 pm

    5 stars
    I used to eat these when I lived in Munich, Germany, called Munchen over there. Always loved it, even with mashed potatoes and applesauce.

    Reply


My name is Chef Dennis Littley, creator and owner of Ask Chef Dennis Productions. As a classically trained chef with 40+ years of experience in the kitchen, I share my time-tested recipes, knowledge, and chef tips to help you create easy-to-make restaurant-quality meals in your home kitchen.

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