Pork Cutlets: An Old Southern Favorite

Frying (and sauteeing, a form of frying) is almost universally derided these days. That's because we've been told that all fat is bad for us. But this is a lie. Some fat is not only necessary but good for you - olive oil is case in point. Furthermore, if you fry properly using a high enough heat the food absorbs relatively little fat. In this recipe only about 1 tablespoon of oil ends up in the cutlets which is only 1 1/2 teaspoons or 60 calories per serving - not bad at all. By my calculations one serving of these cutlets is only about 400 calories. (Larger Image.) Serves 2.

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

• 2 4-oz. boneless pork loin chops; trimmed of fat
• Rubbed sage, paprika, salt, black pepper
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1 egg; beaten in pie plate
• 1/4 cup bread crumbs
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1/2 lemon; cut in half

Preparation:

1. Pound chop to about 1/4" thick and season generously with sage, paprika, salt, and pepper.*

2. Add oil to a non-stick skillet and heat over medium high heat until oil shimmers.

3. Dredge the chops in the flour, coat with egg, and thoroughly coat with bread crumbs.** Set chop aside.

4. Fry chop on each side until golden and crisp (about 2 minutes per side). Serve immediately with a lemon wedge.

The cutlets are great with these Glazed Carrots with Mint and Lemon.

*Note: seasoning the pork directly is much more effective than seasoning the flour and or seasoning the bread crumbs alone.

**Note: Flour will adhere to the meat. The egg will adhere to the flour. And the bread crumbs will adhere to the egg.

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