These fried pork cutlets were inspired by Makó, a town in Csongrád-Csanád county, which is famous for its unique onions that have been grown in the region for more than one hundred years. Unfortunately, the size of the red onion growing areas around Makó has dropped to a fraction in recent years due to climate change.

There are two features, which makes this recipe interesting. One is that the pork cutlets are coated in a thick and salted pancake batter, which contains a considerable amount of sautéed onions, scallions and garlic. The other is the goulash paste (gulyáskrém) used to spread the cutlets before dipping into the batter.

Goulash paste is made from raw peppers, tomatoes, onions and aromatic spices, and it enhances various dishes, including stews, soups, meats, and vegetables, in Hungarian cuisine. If you can’t obtain goulash paste, feel free to use any pepper and tomato based paste or sauce instead.

Ingredients:

• 6 boneless pork cutlets (each weighing 100 g / 3 1/2 oz)
• 80-100 g (3 – 3 1/2 oz) mild goulash paste (or any tomato and red pepper / paprika based paste or sauce)
• 300 g (~2 1/3 cups) + 4-5 tbsp flour
• 300 ml (~1 1/4 cups) milk
• 3 eggs
• 2 medium onions
• 2 scallions
• 2 cloves of garlic
• a small bunch of parsley leaves, finely chopped
• salt and pepper to taste
• oil or lard for deep-frying

Pound the cutlets with a meat tenderizer until thin. Spread goulash paste on both sides of the cutlets, and put them into the fridge while preparing the batter and frying the onions. (Goulash paste is salted, so there’s no need to salt the meat.)

Chop the onions, scallions and garlic cloves. In a pan heat a tablespoon of lard and sauté the onions, scallions and garlic while sprinkling some salt over them. Once it’s done, stir in the finely chopped parsley. Set aside.

In a mixing bowl whisk together 300 grams / 2 1/3 cups of flour, eggs and milk. Add sautéed onions to the batter, and season with salt and pepper.

Heat lard or oil for deep-frying. Dredge each cutlet in flour (4-5 tbsp), shake off any excess flour, then dip them into the batter to cover them evenly, and place in the hot lard / oil immediately. Fry until golden brown (1,5-2 minutes per side). Serve them hot with your favorite side dish or salad.