TUNA SCHNITZEL & FRIENDS.

I don't schnitzel often, but when I do, I wonder why I don't.

An armour of crisp golden crumbs will turn something wonderful (hello, lamb cutlets) into something even more wonderful, and turn something dull (hello, chicken breast) into something interesting.

So here’s a tuna schnitzel, because I like tuna, but am always mildly disappointed when I cook it. Pan-fry it, and it’s fine, but nothing exciting. It doesn’t sing. But crumb it, and it’s crazily good, because you get the textural contrast (kerr-runch) and can still keep that beautiful tuna meat softly pink inside.

There’s a wee bit of a trend towards Austro-Hungarian food at the moment (The Empire Strikes Back!), as seen at the new/old incarnation of Corner 75 in Sydney. The team bills it as a ‘preservation project’, and it’s a revolution of sorts, retaining the concept of the original, much-loved Hungarian restaurant while at the same time not relying on nostalgia alone, and restoring depth and clarity to Hungarian cooking.

But while the Austrian style of schnitzel is admirable in its plate-covering magnitude, this isn’t it. They pound the meat thin, with a very fine golden coating that puffs up and away from the filling like a deep-fried sheet thrown over a bed.

This is real, thick tuna, protected by a thick crust of crumbs; a knight in shining armour, come to save dinner. So do not pound the tuna to flatten it, as you would chicken, veal or pork. You want it nice and thick, so it will be gently pink inside.

# Use Japanese panko crumb flakes for the win.

# Don’t try too hard to brown the bottom side of the tuna, just cook it enough to colour the crumbs. It’s all about the top side. But don’t forget the crumbs on the edges - use tongs to turn the steaks on their edges for 30 secs or so, to colour them. Nobody wants a white crumb.

# If you get a chance, crumb the tuna ahead of time - even half an hour - and put it back in the fridge. It seems to help it form a strong crust. Plus you can get the prep dishes out of the way before dinner. Plus you can walk back into the kitchen and put the meal together in ten minutes flat.

# I’m big on silverbeet at the moment; it’s the new leader of the greens. Check out my new no-water way to cook the leaves that keeps all the nutrients right where you want them, see below. Save the stalks for another meal (or cook the stalks first as ‘pasta’, and save the leaves for this.

TUNA SCHNITZEL.

• 2 x 200 g thick tuna steaks

• Half cup of plain flour

• Sea salt and pepper

• 1 egg, beaten

• 1 cup Panko or dried breadcrumbs

• 4 tbsp olive or vegetable oil

• 1 lemon, cut into wedges

Set out three shallow bowls as your Dredging Station.

Place the flour, sea salt and pepper in one, beaten egg in the second and the breadcrumbs in the third.

Coat the tuna steaks in the flour, including the sides, then the egg – let any excess drain off – then the crumbs, including the sides.

Heat the oil until a piece of bread turns golden in 10 seconds (180C) and cook the tuna on one side until golden brown, about 3 minutues if thick.

Turn the schnitzels to briefly cook the other side, then, using tongs, turn them on their edges and cook until lightly golden.

Drain on paper towel, cut into slices, and serve with lemon wedges. Serves 2.

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THE NO-WATER WAY TO COOK SILVERBEET.

Just wash each leaf carefully, then stack them on top of each other on the chopping board and chop cross-wise until you get down to the stalks (save them for the next night).

Using the water still on the leaves, cook the chopped leaves in a completely dry saucepan over medium heat, tossing as they wilt down. Bit of sea salt. Wilt, toss. Any water they give out gets evaporated by the heat of the pan, so they’re not swimming in juices. Then it’s just a swirl of extra virgin olive oil on top, and they’re done.

ANOTHER THOUGHT: TUNAKATSU.

This ends up looking so like Japanese pork tonkatsu or Korean donkkaseu that you may as well run down that road all the way, and serve with finely shredded cabbage tossed in a blend of rice vinegar and mayonnaise, and a whole bunch of kimchi. Not having any kimchi in the fridge, there is none in this pic.

ANOTHER THOUGHT: THE TUNA SCHNITWICH.

The tonkatsu idea made me do it - slam it into a white bread sandwich, slathered with left-over jalapeno tartare sauce and the shredded cabbage. As an office lunch, it brought the house down.

Thanks for dropping by! And thanks for your comments and suggestions. Special thanks to Terry for the idea of the schnitwich, it was mighty.

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I would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the lands and waters upon which I work, live, cook and play; the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. Thank you for sharing your culture, traditions, knowledge, spirit, art, music, humour and food traditions.