Milanesa Napolitana

The Method for Milanesa Napolitana

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1. Beat each steak between cling film to an even 5 mm. Season both sides with the salt and pepper.

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2. Leave the steaks in the garlic and parsley egg for 30 minutes, or overnight in the fridge — this is the Argentinian step that seasons the meat itself.

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3. Set out flour and breadcrumbs in separate dishes.

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4. Lift a steak from the egg, dredge it in flour, back into the egg, then press it firmly into the breadcrumbs on both sides.

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5. Rest the coated cutlets on a rack for 15 minutes so the crumb bonds.

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6. Heat the oil in a wide pan to about 175°C / 345°F — it should be 5 mm deep.

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7. Fry each cutlet for 2 to 3 minutes a side until deep golden. Drain on a rack and salt lightly.

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8. Sit them on a baking tray. Spoon tomato sauce over each, lay a slice of ham on, then the mozzarella, and scatter with oregano.

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9. Grill under a hot grill for 3 to 4 minutes until the cheese is melted and blistered.

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10. Serve immediately with chips and lemon.

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Related guide: Prep, cook and total time.

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Things to Watch For

1. Marinate in the garlic egg. It is what makes a milanesa taste Argentinian.
2. Fry first, top after, grill briefly. Never bake it all together.
3. Rest the coated cutlets 15 minutes before frying.

Ingredient Swaps

• An eighth of a teaspoon of garlic powder per clove is the stand-in usually given when you are out of fresh garlic; it will not brown the same way, and it burns easily, so add it with the liquid.
• Fresh herbs work in place of the dried oregano at roughly three times the quantity — a teaspoon of dried is about a tablespoon of fresh, chopped.

The Short Version

The cutlet is fried first and topped after, then finished under the grill only long enough to melt the cheese — build it raw and the crumb goes soft under the sauce. Beating the beef to an even 5 mm means it cooks in the three minutes the crust takes to colour.

On the Table Alongside

Chips and a fried egg on top · A green salad · A Malbec

Leftovers

Plain fried milanesas keep 3 days refrigerated and recrisp at 200°C / 390°F fan. Top to order.

Quick Answers

Nutrition per Serving

No nutrition figures are given for this recipe: they cannot be worked out reliably from its ingredient list (how much frying oil the food takes up cannot be known from the recipe). Why some recipes have none.

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