Crisp Coatings

The surfaces of vegetables, meat, and fish are often made crisp by coating them with a layer of a starchy product, such as flour or bread crumbs. This layer can be made crisp by deep-frying in oil or panfrying in fats. Milk or beaten eggs are often used to get the coating to stick.

In principle there are two types of coating, one that attaches itself directly onto the piece of food to be cooked; the other, best known from tempura, forms a coagulated shell around it.

The type of coating that clings directly to the food makes use of a substance that will help it stick—for example, by dredging the food in flour before rolling it in bread crumbs. It is best if this substance does not affect the mouthfeel. When fried, the bread crumbs cover the surface of foods, such as cutlets or fish fillets, with a crisp, golden crust.