Frozen cutlets: how to fry semi-finished products?
The counters of almost all stores, from hypermarkets to small meat stalls, offer a very large assortment of frozen meat products to choose from at a very reasonable price. Among it there are also semi-finished products, on the packaging of which it is written in detail how to fry frozen cutlets. The main thing is to make sure when purchasing that the product is not expired, and you also need to study the composition of the ingredients.
You need to purchase a product with a high percentage of meat. If ready-made frozen semi-finished meat products are just included in the diet, then there is no experience in preparing them yet. Cutlets are one of the most frequently purchased semi-finished products. How to cook frozen cutlets? There are several options.
Problems of choice
Before you start frying, you should choose the right product in the store. Experts advise abandoning weight options whose composition is impossible to read, as well as tracking the expiration date.
You shouldn’t trust a multi-component semi-finished product either - this is an attempt to disguise the high content of preservatives. When choosing, look carefully at:
- packaging - it should be intact, informative, with a fairly wide transparent window to clearly see the product;
- condition of the product - the cutlets must be smooth, without chips or cracks, neat and appetizing in appearance, sticking is not allowed;
- color - good cutlets should have a pinkish tint; if gray color predominates, then this means you have a product with a high water content.
And so the ideal cutlets are selected, and we go to fry them. How to do it?
How to cook cutlets in a slow cooker?
In addition to the usual method of frying frozen cutlets, they can also be cooked in a slow cooker. Steaming is the healthiest method for human health. They retain all useful components. Such semi-finished products can be consumed by both children and those who cannot eat fried foods for health reasons. How to fry frozen cutlets in a slow cooker?
Quite simple. First, heat up the multicooker, set the “Frying” mode, pour in olive oil, wait a little and place the frozen product in it. Fry for about six to seven minutes until golden brown on both sides. Next you need to make the tomato sauce.
Pour boiling water over two or three medium-sized tomatoes and remove the skin, remove the core and mash with a blender. Add half a teaspoon of salt, two cloves of garlic, one medium onion to the tomatoes, pepper and blend with a blender until smooth. Pour the prepared tomato sauce over the cutlets. The sauce should almost completely cover the cutlets. Close the lid and simmer for another thirty minutes. Cutlets prepared in this way are soft, juicy and very tasty. When serving, garnish with chopped fresh parsley or any other to your taste.
Frying process
Meat dishes are always laid out on a hot frying pan. As the cutlets gradually warm up, they will either begin to lose their breading or stick to the bottom.
- Place the cutlets in the heated oil at a considerable distance from each other so that it is convenient to turn over. It is better to make several passes than to lose the appearance of the product
- Roasting continues for the specified time, depending on the type of meat. To better control the degree of frying, turn the semi-finished products every 2 minutes.
- If these are fish, turkey or chicken cutlets, then regular frying is enough for them. You can check readiness by poking a toothpick into the middle: clear juice means complete readiness, pinkish liquid means you need to keep the cutlets on the fire a little longer.
- It is better to simmer pork, beef or lamb a little. To do this, after frying, pour a little water into the pan or make gravy. If you want to maintain crispness, you can fry the cutlets, bringing them to readiness in the oven, or after frying over medium heat, let them fry further under the lid over very low heat for 7-10 minutes.
That's all the wisdom of frying semi-finished products. Of course, you shouldn’t get carried away with them, but sometimes you can allow yourself a little rest and whip up dinner. Moreover, manufacturers of semi-finished products offer a huge selection, including many worthy specimens.
How to cook cutlets in a frying pan?
The second option for cooking frozen cutlets is to fry them. To do this, you must have a good frying pan, the quality of which you have no doubt about. Let’s take a closer look at how to fry frozen cutlets in a frying pan. They absolutely cannot be defrosted, because when defrosted they become deformed, become soft, and as a result they are difficult to fry, and they tend to burn. Most housewives know how to fry frozen cutlets in a frying pan so that they do not burn.
For frying semi-finished meat products, it is best to use rendered fat. It is important that the cutlets are well breaded, otherwise they will stick to the pan. Place a spoon or two of melted fat in a well-heated frying pan; only after the fat has spread all over the bottom can you place the cutlets in the frying pan. Usually the packaging indicates how long to fry frozen cutlets, but if there is no such information, then be sure to fry them for at least ten minutes on each side. There is no need to add salt and pepper, since all this is already present in the cutlets.
The last notes
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Any working housewife wants to save her time in the kitchen, but at the same time feed her loved ones tasty and satisfying food. Ready-made store-bought semi-finished products are expensive, and it is not clear what they are made of. The solution in this situation is to prepare semi-finished products yourself. In particular, you can cook and freeze cutlets for future use.
Cooking cutlets in the oven
You can either fry or bake frozen cutlets in the oven. People who love delicious food believe that the best way to cook cutlets is to fry them in a frying pan until golden brown. But probably few people ask the question: how unhealthy are frozen meat products prepared in this way? The ideal solution to the problem is to bake the cutlets in the oven. Cutlets cooked in the oven turn out tasty, juicy, soft and, most importantly, healthy. In addition to the fact that oven-baked products cook much faster, cleaning the kitchen also does not take much time.
Even in the oven, frozen cutlets can be cooked in different ways. The easiest way is to place the cutlets on a greased baking sheet, place in the oven, heated to one hundred and eighty degrees and bake for thirty-five to forty minutes. Then put it on a plate and serve.
Another way is to freeze bake in foil. If you are a fan of healthy eating, then this option is for you. When the cutlets are fried in foil, they retain their juices, so there is no need to add oil. Cover a baking tray with baking foil and place frozen cutlets on it. Place a second layer of foil on top and carefully connect its two sheets together: the bottom and the top. The oven should be heated to one hundred and ninety degrees. Bake the cutlets in foil for thirty-five minutes. Such cutlets will be much juicier and softer. Serve, garnished with fresh herbs.
If you spend a little more time cooking, you can bake the cutlets in the oven with gravy.
Does it need to be defrosted?
This is not to say that this is definitely prohibited, but manufacturers remind that such tactics can ruin the appearance of the product, damage the breading or deprive the cutlets of juiciness and the lion's share of taste. Therefore, it is recommended to fry them immediately, but first remove the frost from the surface
If the cutlets are thickly breaded, then this must be done very carefully, because... the top layer may be damaged
Please note that after contact of a frozen semi-finished product with oil, the latter may begin to “shoot”. Covering it with a lid can help, but in this case you will have to make it crispy.
And a little more about breading! Making your own breading on a frozen cutlet is absolutely useless - you won’t be able to get a fragrant, crispy top.
Preparation
Fry a kilogram of ready-made frozen cutlets in a frying pan in melted fat and place on a baking sheet covered with foil. Pour water into a small saucepan, boil and, stirring, pour flour into it. Stir so that there are no lumps. In a bowl, combine tomato, mustard, mayonnaise, garlic, add water and flour, then stir well.
Cut the washed and peeled tomatoes, carrots and onions into thin half rings. Spread the chopped vegetables evenly on the cutlets and pour the gravy over them. Place the baking sheet in an oven preheated to one hundred and ninety degrees and simmer for forty to forty-five minutes. The cutlets will be fragrant and juicy. You can serve it with potatoes, pasta, porridge, or as a separate dish.
Truths and myths about frozen foods
Myth: Everything frozen is “dead” food.
Freezing is a method of preserving life that nature itself invented. Judge for yourself: in winter all plants freeze, but this does not prevent them from coming to life with the arrival of spring. Cold allows you to preserve all useful minerals and most vitamins. Unfortunately, not a single human-invented method of preserving food (cooking, salting, canning, smoking, etc.) can boast of this.
Fruits and vegetables that have been collected and frozen during the season usually contain more vitamins than fresh ones, but grown in greenhouses under artificial lighting and the use of biostimulants for rapid ripening.
Truth: Even frozen food can spoil if stored for a long time.
Even frost cannot preserve food in its original form, since it does not stop, but only slows down the processes that usually cause food to spoil. However, in the freezer you can extend the “life” of food up to 12 months
But it is important to maintain the optimal temperature in the freezer: from –18°C and below
Myth: You can freeze any food and ready-made meals.
Of course, no one will forbid you to experiment with freezing completely different foods. However, some of them do not tolerate this procedure well. For example, watery vegetables (cucumbers, radishes) lose their elasticity and crunch after freezing. You are also unlikely to be pleased with the results of freezing tender lettuce leaves.
Freezing prepared foods also has its own nuances. This procedure should not be applied to dairy desserts and creams, cream sauces, as well as cream and sour cream. All these products separate after freezing.
You should not put cold soups (gazpacho, okroshka) in the freezer either: their taste will not change for the better, the liquid part will become inhomogeneous, and the ingredients will no longer have a crunch.
Truth: You can freeze not only semi-finished products, but also fully cooked food
If you follow all the rules and recommendations, then fully cooked food can be frozen perfectly. At the same time, the taste of the dishes after defrosting will not only not disappoint, but will also pleasantly surprise you.
Both truth and myth: Food in the freezer absorbs odors
Indeed, cold cannot completely eliminate odors. Therefore, you should not store fish, berries and mushrooms in the same compartment. Otherwise, you will get strawberries with a boletus or fishy flavor. However, it is not difficult to avoid this. It is enough to pack the products well and sort them into groups. If you have three freezers, we recommend storing meat and semi-finished meat products in one of them, and vegetables, berries, fruits, and baked goods in the second. And the third compartment is better left for fish, seafood and mushrooms.
Frozen food at home means you can cook much less often. And if you take care of a serious amount of supplies, then you may not go near the stove for a whole week or even more. Mastering the art of freezing ready-made and semi-finished foods is not difficult at all. The main thing is the desire to make your life a little easier and more comfortable.
