A recent trip to the beach had me thinking of this restaurant we went to that served massive pork schnitzels that weighed almost half the size of a pig and looked as big as one too! I have come to learn that in Austria, a schnitzel can only be named a schnitzel if it is made of veal. Under law, any schnitzel in Austria that is made of pork has to be called Wiener Schnitzel to protect the original version of the dish.
I am certainly on a recall of that  pretty crazy weekend with some pretty crazy friends.  Only crazy party people would hit the club on a Friday night and head off straight out of town to the beach at 4am in party clothes and go diving, swimming and party again Saturday night on the beach without any sleep! Yeah, that pretty much includes myself and boy, do I tell you how hard it is for a 42 year old to go off the chain amongst 20 somethings! What on earth am I doing? Haha …
That night started off rather whacked out but , there was certainly no stopping us. Eight gorgeous young men with lovely six packs … 3 of them dutch, 2 swedes, a frenchie, a saffie and a canuck! That’s just eye candy all the way no one can have the strength to resist. And then, there was 3 of us girls … Ms. Panama, Ms. Korea and myself! We could easily have outdone any UN delegation on that road trip and most certainly provided entertainment on that 1.5 hour boat ride for all these people heading out to the island for some weekend R and R. Sun, sea and sand ..and of course food!
Well , being in the company of mostly Europeans on this recent road trip  … I guess dinner definitely called for some Weiner Schniztel. The restaurant had a cozy homey feel to its ambiance and although I didn’t notice Weiner Schnitzel written on the menu when I put in my order , I don’t think such details matter anymore when a hungry stomach is in need of major sustenance!
Truth be told, this is the first time I’ve ever watched a bunch of people devour food in less than 15 minutes ! We ordered schnitzels  and these came in thick slabs! No wonder it took that long to prep and cook them as we all invaded the kitchen to watch them kill those thick slices of meat. They were served with your choice of Bavarian potato salad, fried potatoes, or French fries. I ordered the smallest portion with a side of Bavarian potato salad and it took me forever to finish the thing. In fact I was the last to finish! And they all had the biggie serving which came in a couple or was it  three thick slabs. Ughh, the relentless appetite of growing men!
It was certainly a lovely meal worth the wait! And yes, a fun weekend to remember and laugh about for many years to come!
SPICY SCHNITZEL WITH MANGO CHUTNEY
Ingredients:
1 shallots , finely diced
2 green mango , peeled and roughly chopped
1 tsp mustard seeds
150-200 g couscous
1 lemon
1 bunches fresh coriander , stalks only, chopped
hot chicken stock
4 tbsp sugar
2 slices pork neck fillets
2-3 handfuls flour
pinches oregano
pinches cinnamon
2 eggs , beaten
2-3 handfuls breadcrumbs
1 tbsp turmeric
1 tbsp coriander seeds , crushed
1-2 tbsp mixed seeds such as sunflower, poppy and sesame , toasted
INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Heat a generous splash of olive oil in a small pan and soften the shallot in it on a low heat. Add the mango (mango is not mentioned in the method – I assume it is meant for here) and mustard seeds and continue to sweat gently. Meanwhile, put the couscous in a large bowl and add the zest of the lemon and one tablespoon of the fresh coriander. Season with salt and pepper and pour over hot chicken stock until couscous is just covered. Cover bowl with cling film and set aside.
2. Add sugar to the mango mix and continue to cook on a low heat to make a chutney. Put each piece of pork between a double layer of cling film, then bash the meat with a rolling pin until it is thin. Set aside.
3. Arrange three plates in a line. On plate one, spread out the flour and mix in oregano, cinnamon and a pinch of salt. Place the egg on plate two and breadcrumbs mixed with turmeric and coriander seeds on plate three.
4. Dip each piece of pork in the flour, followed by the egg and then the breadcrumbs. In a wide pan, shallow-fry the meat with some olive oil until golden brown on both sides. While pork is cooking, uncover couscous and test to see if it is cooked. Stir in the juice of the lemon, then serve topped with the schnitzel, with mango chutney on the side. Scatter with toasted mixed seeds.
Photo Credit: NiceBastard
Photo Credit: TonZ
Photo Credit: Otomoto Recepten