Veal Milanese with Marinated Mushroom and Arugula Salad

Veal Milanese is a cutlet pounded thin, breaded, and fried in butter until the crust shatters when you cut it. Most versions stop there and hand you a lemon wedge. We put a marinated mushroom and arugula salad on top instead, and we dress it while the meat is still hot so the crust takes on the seasoning at the edges and stays crisp in the middle. The mushrooms are the reason to make this one. Raw cremini sliced thin and left in lemon, oil and salt for half an hour turn silky and savory without ever seeing a pan, and they bring a depth that a squeeze of lemon on its own cannot. One thing before you start: pound the cutlets to a quarter inch and no thicker. Veal leg is lean, and every extra millimeter is time in the pan that dries the meat out before the breadcrumbs are ready. Farm direct rose veal from pasture raised calves is worth the phone call.

Why this veal Milanese works

• The mushrooms marinate instead of cook. Salt and acid pull water out of raw cremini, which collapses them to a soft texture and concentrates the flavor. No pan, no browning, no extra fat to manage.
• A quarter inch cutlet is done in under five minutes. The crust and the interior finish at the same moment, which is the whole problem with thicker cutlets.
• Clarified butter holds 350F without burning. You get the browned butter flavor and a clean gold crust, because the milk solids that scorch have already been removed.
• Resting the breaded cutlets glues the crumbs on. Ten minutes on a rack lets the crumbs hydrate into the egg so they stop sliding off in the pan.
• The salad goes on hot. Steam from the cutlet wilts the arugula just enough, and the mushroom marinade doubles as the dressing.

Ingredients

For the marinated mushrooms

• 8 oz (225 g) cremini mushrooms, sliced 1/8 inch (3 mm) thick
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tbsp lemon juice, fresh
• 1 tbsp white wine vinegar
• 1 small garlic clove, grated
• 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1 tbsp flat leaf parsley, chopped

Substitutions: oyster or chestnut mushrooms work the same way. Shiitake caps are good too, stems removed. Skip portobello gills, they turn the marinade grey.

For the salad

• 3 oz (85 g) arugula, about 4 packed cups
• 1/2 small red onion, shaved paper thin
• 1 oz (30 g) Parmigiano Reggiano, shaved
• 1 lemon, cut into wedges

For the veal

• 4 veal leg cutlets, 4 to 5 oz (115 to 140 g) each
• 2/3 cup (85 g) all purpose flour
• 2 large eggs, beaten with 1 tbsp water
• 2 cups (110 g) fine dry breadcrumbs
• 1 tsp fine sea salt, divided
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 cup (115 g) clarified butter, or 1/4 cup butter plus 1/4 cup neutral oil

Substitutions: turkey breast cutlets or pork loin cutlets take the same treatment and the same timing. Panko gives a coarser crust than the classic fine crumb, so crush it in a bag with a rolling pin if you want something closer to the original.

Method

1. Marinate the mushrooms. Slice the cremini 1/8 inch thick and toss with the olive oil, lemon juice, vinegar, grated garlic, salt and pepper in a metal or glass bowl. Leave 30 minutes at room temperature and stir once halfway. They shrink by about a third and give up liquid, and that liquid becomes your salad dressing, so keep it. Stir in the parsley at the end.
2. Pound the cutlets. Lay each cutlet between two sheets of parchment and work from the center outward with a flat mallet or the base of a heavy pan until it is an even 1/4 inch (6 mm). We use parchment rather than plastic wrap. Even thickness matters more than a tidy shape.
3. Set up the breading. Three shallow dishes: flour, the beaten eggs with water, and the breadcrumbs. Season the veal on both sides with 3/4 tsp of the salt and all the pepper. Seasoning the meat and not just the flour is what separates a cutlet that tastes of veal from one that tastes of bread.
4. Bread and rest. Flour each cutlet and tap off the excess, dip in egg and let it drain a few seconds, then press into the breadcrumbs without packing them down. Rest the breaded cutlets on a wire rack for 10 minutes so the crumbs hydrate and bond to the egg.
5. Heat the fat. Melt the clarified butter in a 12 inch cast iron skillet to a depth of about 1/4 inch and bring it to 340 to 350F (170 to 175C). A dropped breadcrumb should sizzle steadily rather than violently.
6. Fry the cutlets. Fry two at a time, 2 to 3 minutes per side, turning once with a metal fish spatula. Tilt the pan and spoon butter over the top as they cook so the upper crust sets. Pull them at 145F (63C) in the thickest part.
7. Drain and salt. Move them to a wire rack, not paper. Salt with the remaining 1/4 tsp right away while the surface is hot enough to hold it. Rest 2 to 3 minutes and no longer, or steam softens the crust.
8. Dress the salad. Toss the arugula and shaved red onion with the marinated mushrooms and 3 to 4 tbsp of their marinade. Add the shaved Parmigiano Reggiano last so it does not clump in the dressing.
9. Serve. Pile the salad on top of each hot cutlet and put the lemon wedges alongside. Cut through both together.

Pro tips and common mistakes

• Cold cutlets fry unevenly. Take the veal out of the fridge 20 minutes before you bread it.
• If the crust puffs away from the meat, the egg layer was too thick. Let more of it drip off next time.
• Do not crowd the pan. Two cutlets in a 12 inch skillet. A third drops the fat temperature and the crust comes out pale and greasy.
• Salt the marinade properly at the start. Under salted mushrooms are still watery and raw tasting after 30 minutes.
• Fine dry breadcrumbs give the classic Milanese shell. If yours are stale and coarse, sift them or pulse them finer, because large crumbs burn before the meat is done.

Storage and leftovers

Cooked cutlets keep 3 days covered in the fridge. Reheat them on a wire rack in a 400F (205C) oven for 6 to 8 minutes and the crust comes back. A microwave will not do it. The marinated mushrooms keep 4 days and are better on day two, so make a double batch. Dress the arugula only at the moment you serve it. Cold sliced cutlet with the mushrooms and a little mayonnaise on ciabatta is a better lunch than most things you would plan on purpose.

What to serve with it

• Risotto alla Milanese. Saffron rice next to a fried cutlet is the traditional Milan plate, and the two belong together.
• Rosemary roast potatoes. Roast them while the mushrooms marinate and they come out of the oven as the last cutlet leaves the pan.
• A dry Italian white. Soave, Gavi or Verdicchio. The acid cuts the fried butter.
• Blistered green beans with garlic. Five minutes in a hot pan, done before the veal is.

Nutrition

About 680 calories, 41g protein, 40g fat, and 33g carbs per serving. These are estimates and vary with the exact cut, the trim, how much fat the breading takes on in the pan, and any substitutions.

Frequently asked questions

What cut of veal is used for Milanese?

Veal leg cutlets, cut across the grain and pounded thin, are the practical choice and the one we use. The strict Milanese original, costoletta alla Milanese, is a bone in rib chop from the loin pounded out with the bone left on. Both are correct. The leg is cheaper, quicker and easier to find.

Can I marinate the mushrooms longer than 30 minutes?

Yes, up to about 4 hours in the fridge. Past that they go limp and the lemon takes over the whole bowl. Thirty minutes at room temperature is where the texture is best.

Why is my breading falling off?

Almost always too much loose flour, or the cutlets went straight from the crumbs into the pan. Tap the flour off hard, let the egg drain, and give the breaded cutlets 10 minutes on a rack before frying.

Do I have to use clarified butter?

No. Half butter and half neutral oil works and is what we reach for on a weeknight. Whole butter on its own browns past the point you want before the second side is finished.

What internal temperature should veal cutlets reach?

145F (63C), then rest 2 to 3 minutes. Thin cutlets carry over fast, so start checking at the two minute mark on the second side.

Where to buy the veal

Veal quality and welfare vary a lot between producers, so this is a cut worth buying from someone you can ask questions of. Rose veal from pasture raised calves is the standard to look for, and a good butcher will slice and pound leg cutlets for you if you ask. Find a producer near you through our Find a Farmer directory and ask for veal leg cutlets cut across the grain.

More on the cut in our veal leg guide and on the animal in the veal wiki. The pan work carries straight over from our guide to pan searing. For veal with a longer cook, try our veal and porcini white ragu or the veal chop with chanterelles and sage butter.