Kotlet Schabowy

Name: Kotlet Schabowy
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 2 servings
Cuisine: Polish
Ingredients: Pork loin; Plain flour; About 2/3 of a medium egg; Dried breadcrumbs; Olive oil; Salt; Black pepper

333 kcal a serving, against 675 for the traditional version. That is 342 kcal off, or 51%, with 35.8g of protein. Serves 2. 35 minutes plus resting.

What the traditional version is

Pork loin is sliced, pounded until thin, then dipped in flour, egg and breadcrumbs. It's fried in hot lard until golden and crisp on both sides. Normally served with mashed potatoes and a heap of sauerkraut.

What changed, and what each change costs

Deep-frying in lard for oven-baking on a rack

When you fry in lard, you get that beautiful crunch and the kitchen smells glorious. The pork soaks up enough fat to double the calorie load, and you need a lie down after. Baking on a rack drops that added fat by more than half and keeps the meat much leaner.

What it costs you. You lose the edge here: the crumb isn't quite as shattery and the flavour is gentler without all the lard. The kitchen's quieter, and so is the crust.

Dry-toasting the breadcrumbs

Toasting the crumbs in a dry pan before crumbing the pork gives you a hit of colour and a breadier, nutty flavour, even though they're not swimming in oil.

What it costs you. You have to watch the pan like a hawk: burnt crumbs taste like misery and you can't hide it. Done well, you claw back some of the fried illusion, but it's still a compromise.

Less flour and a thinner egg wash

With less fat and no deep oil bath, you don't need a thick batter. You can use just enough flour and egg to hold the crumb in place, saving calories without losing function.

What it costs you. The coating is lighter and the pork peeks through in spots. If you want that brick-thick crust, you're better off with the original.

What goes in it

The ingredients, without the quantities. The weights are what the figures below are computed from, and they are in the book.

Pork loin
Plain flour
About 2/3 of a medium egg
Dried breadcrumbs
Olive oil
Salt
Black pepper

How it starts

Start by making the breadcrumbs work for you.
Lay the pork loin between two sheets of baking paper.
Season the pork well with salt and pepper on both sides.

The rest of the method, and every weight, is in Authentic-ish Polish.

The numbers

Per serving	Traditional	Lightened
Calories	675	333
Protein	38.5g	35.8g
Fat	43.8g	11.5g
Saturated fat	16.3g	2.7g
Carbohydrate	29g	19.5g
Protein per 100 kcal	5.7g	10.7g

Every figure is computed from the recipe's own weighed ingredient list against public food composition databases. The appendix in Authentic-ish Polish prints the exact database row used for each ingredient, so any number here can be checked. How every number is computed sets out the method.

Allergens. gluten, eggs.

The method is in the book

You can't call this proper schabowy unless you're prepared for Poles to fight you. The crunch is there, but it's more polite and less rowdy without the bath in lard. If what you love is the sensation of fried crumbs shattering as you bite in, you'll miss that the most. But if what you want is a big plate of pork that feels like a full meal, leaves you able to walk afterwards and doesn't scent the house for three days, this gets you there. It's a fair deal. Make it with a sharp sauerkraut and you might not even miss the frying pan.

The quantities and the method for this dish are in Authentic-ish Polish, along with 53 more. Buy the paperback