We thrive on breading

The old trifecta, flour, beaten egg and breadcrumbs, has taken on a few wrinkles, in favor of new combinations, crunchier and sometimes even sweet. Today, we're breading everywhere! From classic escalopes to fish, including cheese or fruit, breading, even without frying, is popular and comes in endless variations.
A true Proust madeleine for an entire generation raised on breaded fish, the breadcrumbs that our mothers and grandmothers prepared with rusks or stale bread have never been so trendy. Especially since it meets our desires for “homemade” and our anti-waste concerns.

Make your own breadcrumbs

On a baking tray, place pieces of dry bread (baguette, country bread, cereal bread or even brioche). Bake for 10 minutes at 100°/th. 3-4, then let cool before mixing. Another method is to roughly crush the breakfast rusks.
What to do with it? Mozzarella sticks or polpette (veal meatballs) like at La Cantinetta in Marseille-6e.

Recycle muesli, oatmeal and cornflakes

Crumbled or just coarsely crushed industrial cereals lend themselves well to breading because they resist heat and provide an ultra-crunchy side.
What to do with it? Beef fillet in a cereal crust, like at La Halle aux grains, lamb in a muesli crust or fried chicken with cornflakes and curry like at Neko Ramen in Paris-9e.

Play with small seeds and dried fruits

Rich in fatty acids and full of flavor, oilseeds (walnuts, hazelnuts, pistachios, pine nuts) and seeds (sesame, squash, flax) mixed together form an original breading that remains crisp whatever the type of cooking.
What to do with it? Salmon in a pistachio crust, breaded coulommier squares or scallops coated with crushed walnuts and hazelnuts mixed with fresh herbs, as recommended by Keda Black in “Changer d'assiette” (Éd. Marabout).

Getting started with panko

Quezaco? These are flaked breadcrumbs, widely used in Japanese cuisine. Panko is the contraction of the word “pan”, which means bread and “ko” which means powder. Coarser but airier than our breadcrumbs, panko absorbs less fat when cooking and therefore remains light in the mouth. Another advantage is that foods coated with panko remain crispy, even cold.
What to do with it? Fish or vegetable tempura, or chicken karaage like at La Dilettante bistro in Beaune. In a luxury version, fried chicken with caviar like that of chef Greg Marchand.
Where to find it? In Japanese grocery stores, or online at lemarchejaponais.fr

Dare the sweet version

Who said that breading is the prerogative of salty foods? For a sweet version, you can use coconut chips, crumbled cornflakes or even dried fruit powders. The only condition is to first soak the food in a liquid preparation.
What to do with it? A candy apple revisited with apple cubes dipped in milk jam then pieces of pecan nuts. On sunny days, try melon balls rolled in dried raspberry powder.