Chef Juliette
Anchovies (Fillets of)
Filets d’anchois prove that pantry work is technique: remove every trace of scale-powder, dry the flesh completely, then keep the neat fillets under oil for hors d’œuvres and sauces.
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Anglaise (for Egg-and-bread-crumbing)
Created by Chef Juliette
Anglaise is the quiet hinge of paner à l’anglaise: flour grips the food, seasoned egg grips the crumbs, and very hot fat sets the whole into a firm crust before anything can escape.
Sauces & Condiments
French
Meal Prep
Make Ahead
15 min
Active Time
0 min cook•15 min total
YieldAbout 1/2 cup (120 ml), enough to bread 4 portions
Anglaise teaches adhesion before it teaches frying. The crust is built in three thin, complete layers: flour clings to the dry food, anglaise clings to the flour, and fine crumbs cling to the anglaise. Miss the flour or leave a bare patch, and the coat slips when it meets the fat.
The old kitchen assumed a garde-manger keeping bowls of anglaise, flour, and rasped bread ready through service while a brigade sent croquettes and cutlets past them. For one cook, that standing basin of raw egg is service scaffolding and can go. Two eggs with one dessertspoonful of oil preserve the book’s ratio and make enough for four portions tonight. The indispensable sequence stays exactly as written: flour, anglaise, fine crumbs, then very hot fat.
Done properly, the crumbs turn evenly gold and the shell holds firm around a creamy croquette or a juicy piece of meat or fish. Before you touch the pan, dry every surface and make each layer thin and complete. That is the step that decides whether the crust holds.
Paner à l’anglaise belongs to the vocabulary of the grand Parisian kitchen, where à l’anglaise identifies the orderly coating of flour, seasoned egg, and bread crumbs. The method passed naturally to the bourgeois table because its crust performs useful work, keeping reduced sauce inside croquettes and protecting the juices of meat or fish in hot fat. Anglaise here means the beaten egg preparation, not crème anglaise, the pouring custard with which it is sometimes confused.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
prepared croquettes, cutlets, fish fillets, or other solids
Quantity
4 portions
surfaces thoroughly dried
all-purpose flour
Quantity
1/2 cup (120 ml / 60 g)
large eggs
Quantity
2
neutral oil
Quantity
1 dessertspoon (2 teaspoons / 10 ml / 9 g)
fine salt
Quantity
1/4 teaspoon (1.25 ml / 1.5 g)
finely ground pepper
Quantity
1/8 teaspoon (0.6 ml / 0.3 g)
fine dry bread crumbs or fine bread raspings
Quantity
1 1/2 cups (360 ml / 150 g)
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| prepared croquettes, cutlets, fish fillets, or other solidssurfaces thoroughly dried | 4 portions |
| all-purpose flour | 1/2 cup (120 ml / 60 g) |
| large eggs | 2 |
| neutral oil | 1 dessertspoon (2 teaspoons / 10 ml / 9 g) |
| fine salt | 1/4 teaspoon (1.25 ml / 1.5 g) |
| finely ground pepper | 1/8 teaspoon (0.6 ml / 0.3 g) |
| fine dry bread crumbs or fine bread raspings | 1 1/2 cups (360 ml / 150 g) |
Equipment Needed
- •3 wide shallow dishes or pie plates
- •Fork or small balloon whisk
- •Sheet pan or tray for coated pieces
- •Frying thermometer if the finished dish will be deep-fried
Instructions
- 1
Arrange the station
Set three wide, shallow dishes in order: flour, an empty dish for the anglaise, and fine bread crumbs or raspings. Pat every piece of food thoroughly dry; if you are coating croquettes or another soft preparation, chill them until firm enough to handle. Dampness turns flour into paste, while a dry surface takes a thin, even veil.
Keep a small reserve of clean crumbs away from the working dish. You can use them to repair a bare patch without reaching into crumbs that have touched raw food. - 2
Whisk the anglaise
Break the eggs into the middle dish and beat them until the whites and yolks are completely joined, with no ropes of white remaining. Add the salt, pepper, and oil, then whisk until the oil is finely dispersed. You want a fluid, cohesive mixture, not a bowl of foam. The proportion is the original one dessertspoonful of oil for each couple of eggs, simply reduced to a useful home batch. If the oil separates while the dish waits, whisk it together again. Ça se rattrape.
- 3
Flour with restraint
Roll each piece lightly in the flour, covering every face and edge, then tap away all excess. Flour is the bridge between the food and the anglaise, but a thick flour coat becomes gummy and slides away. What remains should look like a fine white dusting, without clumps or damp patches.
- 4
Coat and crumb
Lower the floured piece into the anglaise, turn it until completely coated, and lift it long enough for the excess to run back into the dish. Transfer it to the crumbs and roll or press gently until no wet egg remains visible. Keep one hand for the flour and crumbs and the other for the anglaise, or you will bread your fingers more heavily than the supper. If a bald patch appears, dab that spot with fresh anglaise and press on clean crumbs. Ça se rattrape.
The finished coating should look even and dry, never bulky. Loose crumbs burn in the fat, so shake each piece gently before cooking. - 5
Set the crust
Cook the coated food as its preparation requires, placing it into very hot fat without delay. For deep frying, hold the fat around 350 to 355°F (175 to 180°C); for shallow frying, it should shimmer readily without smoking. This immediate heat sets the egg and crumbs into the resistant crust that keeps a croquette’s filling or a cutlet’s juices where they belong. If the first piece sheds crumbs, finish cooking it but add nothing else yet. Skim out the loose crumbs, let the fat regain its heat, and patch any weak places on the remaining pieces before continuing. The exact cooking time belongs to the food inside, not to the anglaise.
Chef Tips
- •Well whisked does not mean frothy. Break the whites completely and disperse the oil, but stop before the surface fills with bubbles; foam leaves small gaps in the coating.
- •The dessertspoonful of oil is not decorative. It makes the beaten egg more fluid, helping it run into corners and set evenly against the crumbs. Keep the ratio, and add neither milk nor water.
- •For fine bread raspings, dry plain white bread thoroughly, grate it, and pass the crumbs through a sieve. Coarse crumbs make a rougher, more open shell and do not reproduce the close classical crust.
- •Very hot fat is part of the technique, not service theater. Cool fat soaks the crumbs before the egg can set, giving you a greasy coat that may split around a soft croquette.
- •Discard any anglaise, flour, or crumbs that have touched raw meat or fish. Never pour a used bowl back into a fresh batch.
Advance Preparation
- •Whisk the anglaise up to 4 hours ahead, cover it closely, and refrigerate at 40°F (4°C) or colder. Whisk briefly before using because the oil will settle.
- •The flour and crumbs can be portioned into separate covered dishes a day ahead. Keep them dry and do not combine them until the breading station is assembled.
- •Firm croquettes may be coated several hours before frying and held uncovered in the refrigerator so the crust stays dry. Delicate fish is better coated shortly before cooking.
- •Once the anglaise has been used for dipping, discard the remainder at the end of the session.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 80g)
Calories
260 calories
Total Fat
7 g
Saturated Fat
1 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
5 g
Cholesterol
95 mg
Sodium
455 mg
Total Carbohydrates
39 g
Dietary Fiber
2 g
Sugars
2 g
Protein
10 g
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