Vegetarian cutlets: A satisfying summer dish with eggs, mushrooms, cheese

When the heat is pouring from the sky, we choose vegetarian dishes more often, and the appetite for meat significantly diminishes. Recently, I convinced you to try a vegetable pâté, and now I'm sharing a recipe for meatless cutlets. They are filling and perfect for hot days.

Traditional cutlets have some strong competition. Vegetable cutlets are also an option for their meatless version, but that's not the only option. This time, I used three other well-known ingredients.

The first ingredient is eggs. Egg cutlets are well-known but are more associated with breakfast. So, I added mushrooms and cheese to them. This way, they became lunch cutlets that taste great with cucumber salad, green salad, and virtually any coleslaw.

Preparing these cutlets is incredibly simple. The first ingredient, eggs, just need to be boiled. You can do this in advance but always monitor the time. The eggs shouldn't be soft in the middle, as they will be grated later. Hard-boiled eggs should be cooked for about 7-8 minutes from when the water starts to boil. This ensures that the yolk maintains its beautiful, sunny colour. After boiling, cool the eggs in cold water to stop the cooking process.

The second ingredient, mushrooms, need to be sautéed. The secret to perfectly sautéed mushrooms? Prepare them properly before they hit the pan. Instead of salting them right after chopping, sprinkle them with a few drops of lemon juice. Citric acid prevents the mushrooms from darkening and helps them retain a firm texture. Adding salt to mushrooms right before sautéing causes them to release water. This water dilutes the fat in the pan, resulting in the mushrooms stewing in their own juice rather than sautéing. As a result, they become soft and dark and lose their flavour.

The third ingredient is cheese, which needs to be grated. That's why it's best to buy it in a block. Which cheese should you choose? Go for cheeses that melt well. We recommend gouda, edam, or emmental.

Ingredients:

                              
• 6 eggs
• 340 grams mushrooms
• 56 grams yellow cheese
• 1 onion
• 1 clove of garlic, optional
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Oil for frying
• Breadcrumbs for coating

Instructions:

1. Boil five eggs until hard, cool them, and grate them on a fine grater.
2. Wash and finely chop or grate the mushrooms. Grate the cheese as well.
3. Finely chop the onion. Sauté it in hot oil until translucent.
4. Add the mushrooms and sauté. Add the minced garlic clove and season with salt and pepper when they soften.
5. Mix the mushrooms with the eggs and cheese. Add one raw egg and breadcrumbs for the correct consistency for forming cutlets.
6. Coat the cutlets in breadcrumbs, then fry them in hot oil on both sides.