CRUMBS CRUMBS CRUMBS YAY!
When most families talk about “ingredients”, they’re talking about individual parts of a recipe. When my maternal grandmother talked about “ingredients”, she usually meant her seasoned breadcrumb mixture. It’s not like it went in everything, although it is fairly versatile, so I’m not sure why it gained that particular name, but it stuck, and that’s what I call them now too.
I look at “Italian seasoned breadcrumbs” and shake my head sadly. They’re nothing like my family’s recipe, and are therefore far inferior. This mixture can be used to bread fried foods (like chicken cutlets, which are going to be a later post); add flavor and filling to meatballs (also a later post) or spiedini (them too); they can even be toasted in a pan and sprinkled over aglio e olio (probably a later post if I run out of ideas).
The flavor profile comes from two distinct sources: the umami of Locatelli or a similar Parmesan-style cheese, and the pungency of garlic. It stores for a while — my grandmother used to keep it in a glass gallon jar in the fridge, the likes of which I’ve not seen since. My memory tells me it would be used at least once a week in one or more of the above recipes.
My mother showed me how to make this recipe, and it’s served as my… well, really my only breadcrumb mixture ever. It’s super simple to remember, and I hope it serves you well if you choose to try it.
RECIPE
- Equal parts (by volume) grated cheese (Locatelli is best, or some similarly glutamate-rich Parmesan) and unseasoned breadcrumbs (I want to say 2 cups each?)
- Garlic, minced fine (or pressed (but not grated)), 7-8 cloves or so
- Flat-leaf (Italian) parsley, a few springs
- Salt
- Black pepper
This is a recipe that to me is more about taste than proportion. You want to get the sharp bite of the garlic, the pungency of the cheese, the grassiness of the parsley, enough salt to round out the flavors, enough pepper to give it a little spice, and yet still to be able to notice the breadcrumbs. I’ll taste this several times while mixing it together.
I had some in my fridge from the last time I made chicken cutlets, so here is a picture too.
–c
NOTES
If I’m going to be using this for breading, I’ll usually switch out the regular breadcrumbs for panko. Panko isn’t really necessary if you’re using it as a binder, since it’s all about the texture.