When To Use Panko Bread Crumbs

I use them with chicken and fish when I want a good crunch. Tastes excellent.

They make excellent chicken-fried steaks when you use a nicer cut of meat. Keep it thin though, a quarter inch depth is pretty much my sweet spot.

I love panko because of the crunch. I use them as a topping where bread crumbs are usually used. For a topping, I toss them in a little melted butter or olive oil first. I've used them for crab cakes for years as well as stuffed tomatoes.

Could be that your oil wasn't hot enough, but it should stick. Did you press the panko into the chicken a bit?

Chicken breast meat is so smooth that getting things to stick is sometimes a challenge.

Take a look at this short Martha Stewart video. Looks like the panko stuck really well.

LINK

I use it mostly in my Asian dishes. Good stuff!

another interesting option, crush up you favorite Zapps for coating

Panko goes really well with chicken parm

Very good on top of mac & cheese or potato au gratin casserole.

I like them on fried shrimp

I use panko when I want texture.

I wouldn't use them in the place of bread crumbs in every dish because I just wouldn't like how they feel in some applications. They'd hold up too well. For instance, I can't imagine using them for something like filler or binder in a meatball or a crab cake because the texture just doesn't seem right to me for that use. However, I'd take that meatball or crab cake for a spin in bowl full of panko in a heartbeat to coat the outside liberally before pan frying it to get the outside nice and crusty and crunchy. If it can be fried, chances are panko will be great as the crust or breading.

Don't limit your brain to fried applications, either. Want to bake some stuffed vegetables or mushrooms? These foods tend to get softer as they're cooked and panko is EXCELLENT to top with to add some crunch to what might otherwise be fairly mushy. Want to kick the texture of some nice baked fish up? Panko. Do you have something like stuffed chicken breasts that you're going to bake and want to make a crust that isn't boring? PANKO. If you ever think to yourself "man, I'd bread that, but it's just going to get soggy", panko just might be the breading option you need to remember. It holds up better than regular bread crumbs under wetter conditions and will work well anywhere you want to add a light crunchy coating.

Also, panko is GREAT as a coating or topping for baked casseroles and such. Cheesy baked mashed potatoes with panko crust? Good. Baked mac and cheese with panko and cheese for a crust? Even better. Mix some ground bacon in with the panko and cheese? Well, let's just say that's good, too. I've even thrown it on top of the final layer of cheese on something like a baked ziti or rigatoni to toast up and add some crunch and texture.

Panko is awesome stuff.

EDIT: This paid message brought to you by the Panko Coaliton of America.