My Austrian meal turned out a little different to what I originally planned due to lack of time on the weekend. I had been drawn to a recipe for a Linzer Torte which claims to be the oldest known cake in the world dating back to the 1700's, although I didn't getting around to making this after becoming sidetracked with another cooking project which was unrelated to my theme.
I wanted to try my hand at some Vienna bread as my bread making endeavours of late haven't involved anything as simple as a loaf of bread. The recipe I used stated that it made 5 loaves so I halved this and made 2 loaves out of the half batch. The loaves were on the small side so I would just make one large loaf from this half batch in future. The bread was baked in the oven with a tray filled with water to create steam which gives the bread a crispy crust. These loaves were a lot crustier than others I've made in the past although they still weren't quite up to bakery standards.
After a busy day on Sunday, I needed a quick dinner on the table and knew that I could rely on a convenience product to stand in as an Austrian schnitzel - Fry's chicken-style schnitzels. I looked up a quick Austrian styled potato salad and made this to have on the side. The amount of dressing that was listed for the salad sounded way too much(and it would have been) so I cut it back to a quarter and played around with the method a little as well. The potato salad was tangy from the vinegar yet still had an element of sweetness from the sugar so the balance of flavours in this was really nice. We had our schnitzels in fresh Vienna bread with salad and vegan mayonnaise, paired with the potato salad this was a tasty quick dinner.
Austrian-style warm potato salad (Adapted from foodnetwork.com)
500g washed potatoes
1 tablespoon salt
4 small springs fresh thyme
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small onion, diced
¼ cup white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
salt and pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
Place the whole, unpeeled potatoes in a large saucepan filled with water and add the salt and thyme. Bring to the boil then reduce the heat and simmer, covered for 15-20 minutes or until the potatoes are just tender. Drain in a colander, when the potatoes are cool enough to handle peel off the skins and chop the potatoes into slices.
Mix the white wine vinegar and sugar together in a small bowl.
Heat the olive oil in a deep sided frying pan over medium heat. Fry the onions for 5 minutes or until soft then stir through the potatoes until well coated with the onions. Pour in the vinegar and sugar mixture and stir well. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir through the parsley just before serving.
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Did you know?
The Austrian flag is one of the oldest in the world and has been in use since 1191.
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Your vienna sounds delicious - my mum often bought vienna loaves but I have them less so now. How funny that you had time for the bread but not the schnitzel - I think I have time for a sandwich filling far more often than making the bread :-) And you can't go past a good potato salad
ReplyDeleteI didn't explain that part very well did I? I had already baked the bread in the afternoon and then we were out until early evening. I used to eat Vienna bread often but haven't for ages which is why I was keen to make it.
DeleteSchnitzel and potatoes is one of my favourite ever meals, I always make sure to eat it at least once whenever I'm in Vienna.
ReplyDeleteI would love to try the vegan schnitzels over in Vienna, I've always been a sucker for this type of thing.
DeleteI made a warm potato salad for the first time a couple of weekends ago (normally it's the cold, veganise version for me!) and it was amazing!
ReplyDeleteCold potato salads have never really done it for me, I'm way more interested in a warm one. Good to have you on board with the warm spuds!
DeleteA schnitzel sandwich sounds absolutely wonderful! And such beautiful loaves!
ReplyDeleteI used to eat schnitzel sandwiches like this more often than I should have so this was a great reminder of those days and it was extra special with fresh home-made bread.
DeleteI'm so jealous of the Fry's schnitzel! It seems like I've been reading more and more about Fry's products this month for Vegan MoFo and really wish they carried them in the US. The chicken schnitzel was definitely one of my favorite food items that we tried on our recent trip, just wish I could have tried their chicken-style burgers too!
ReplyDeleteFry's are great! I don't eat convenience foods often but when I do Fry's is the only brand I bother with. The chicken-style burgers are also good but more greasy than the schnitzels so I think you made a wise choice on your trip.
DeleteWhat a great looking sandwich!! I rarely have potato salad, but I should include it in my life more often. I like that your vinegar-version isn't laden with Vegenaise or oil. (Although those ingredients are fun sometimes too.)
ReplyDeleteI rarely eat potato salad too but that's mainly as I'm not that fond of the cold ones. Some can be over the top with dressings so this one was a nice light side.
DeleteI'm glad you managed to have a slightly more straight forward recipe for this country! I have been watching in awe as you create such exotic dishes. I like the sound of the bread and the look of this overall meal - we have always had the Fry's schnitzels with baked potato and I'm not sure why I've never thought of anything else.
ReplyDeleteIt was great to be able to whip out the Fry's schnitzels for this - phew! We usually have them with roasted vegetables, I've been stuck in my ways with them until now too.
DeleteYum! The bread looks lovely and I bet those schnitzel sandwiches were yummo, too! Also, potato salad is a fave of mine and I'm always happy to find new versions to try :)
ReplyDeleteIt was pretty yummo! Hope you like the potato salad if you give it a try.
DeleteI didn't get in to Austria last year, but was in that end of Switzerland, and this meal looks like many I saw there! Though, judging by the way the Swiss eat, way too much dressing was probably accurate :)
ReplyDeleteWhat a shame you didn't make it to Austria but you did have a pretty great trip anyway! I found it strange that the dressing was much a huge quantity and this one wasn't even particularly unhealthy but if I stuck to the recipe the potatoes would have been swimming in juices!
DeleteThat's funny : I'm actually from Vienna and never ever heard of "Vienna bread" :)
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting to hear that someone from Vienna has never heard of this bread. Vienna bread is quite popular in Australian bakeries but I never gave a thought to it's origins before researching for this post. There is a post on Wikipedia about it if you are interested - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vienna_bread
DeleteAh, now I know what you are talking about. Here, we call it "Kaisersemmel" or just "Semmel" which is more bun than bread :)
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