Schnitzel Chowder Recipe

Prepare the pork chowder base. Fill two saucepans with water. Add the chopped celery and carrots to one saucepan and the potatoes to the second saucepan. Bring both saucepans to a boil. Boil the carrots and celery for 25 minutes and 30 minutes for the potatoes, or until tender. Once the vegetables are tender, drain and set aside. 

In a large, deep saucepan, add the strips of bacon and cook until crisp. Set it aside to cool. Leave two tablespoons of the bacon grease in the deep saucepan and transfer the remaining bacon grease to another pot. Set the deep saucepan aside. 

Once the bacon is cool, chop the bacon and set them aside.

Add the onions to the pot and cook until translucent. Add the garlic to the pot and sauté for 1 minute. Add the butter and stir until it is completely melted. Add the all-purpose flour and whisk until it becomes a thick roux.

Slowly whisk in the chicken (or vegetable) stock, heavy cream and milk until a smooth base forms. 

Stir in the reserved carrots and celery along with the bay leaf, parsley, kosher salt, chives, thyme, white pepper and tarragon.

Stir in the reserved chopped bacon, sour cream and diced potatoes.

Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally until the chowder base thickens, about 10 minutes.  

Prepare the schnitzel. Divide the pork into two to three pieces. Use a tenderizer or a meat mallet to flatten each piece of pork. Set aside. 

Prepare four large shallow bowls. In one bowl, add the milk. In the second bowl, add the all-purpose flour. In the third bowl, whisk together the egg and the water. In the fourth bowl, add the breadcrumbs, kosher salt, pepper, dried thyme and garlic powder. 

Dredge the tenderized pork by first dipping the pork in the milk. 

Then coat the pork in the all-purpose flour.

Transfer the pork to the egg and dip until coated.

Finally, coat the pork with the seasoned breadcrumbs. 

In the large deep saucepan with the two tablespoons of bacon grease, add enough frying oil until the saucepan is ¾ full. Heat the oil on medium-high heat until it reaches 350°F. Prepare a sheet pan lined with a wire rack.

Once the oil is hot, fry the pork in batches. Flip the pork every 1½-2 minutes until golden brown. Place the fried pork on the wire rack to drain any excess grease. (See notes 2.)

Assemble the schnitzel chowder. Slice the schnitzel into even pieces. 

Either place the pork chowder base in a bowl and top with the schnitzel or top the schnitzel with the pork chowder base. Garnish the dish with sour cream and finely chopped parsley. Enjoy!