Ingredients

For the braised red cabbage:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• 2 tablespoons butter

• 1 large onion, chopped

• 1 red cabbage, quartered, cored and chopped or shredded

• Salt and pepper

• 2 large bay leaves

• 1 teaspoon caraway seed, ⅓ palmful

• 1 teaspooon cumin seed, ⅓ palmful

• ¼ teaspoon ground allspice

• ¼ cup apple cider vinegar

• 1 cup chicken bone broth or stock

For the skhug (zhug) — aka green pepper hot sauce:

• 1 lime, juiced

• 2 bunches cilantro tops

• 1 bunch parsley tops

• ½ bunch mint tops

• 1 teaspoon salt

• ½ teaspoon black pepper

• ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO)

• 4 cloves garlic, crushed and skins removed

• 2 jalapeño peppers, stems removed but not seeded, coarsely chopped

• 4 bird's eye or small red chili peppers, stemmed not seeded, coarsely chopped

• 1 teaspoon ground cumin, ⅓ palmful

• 1 teaspoon ground cardamom, ⅓ palmful

For the chicken schnitzel:

• 4 pieces boneless, skinless chicken

• Salt and pepper

• 1 ½ cups flour

• 4 eggs, beaten

• 2 cups breadcrumbs

• 1 teaspoon white pepper

• 1 teaspoon ground cumin, ⅓ palmful

• 1 teaspoon caraway, ground or seed

• ¼ teaspoon nutmeg, freshly grated

• Frying oil, such as safflower or canola oil, about ¼-inch-deep for 12- to 14-inch skillet

• Whipped honey (available at many larger supermarkets or online at Amazon) OR organic honey, to drizzle

For the fried capers, to serve:

• 4 tablespoons large capers in brine, Capote

• ¼ cup olive oil or vegetable oil

Directions

Serves: 4

For the braised red cabbage, heat a large deep skillet or Dutch oven over medium to medium-high heat. Add oil, melt butter into oil, and when it foams, add onion and cabbage, toss to coat, season with salt, pepper, bay, caraway, cumin, allspice and turn to combine. Add vinegar and let it absorb a minute, add stock and partially cover, lower heat a bit and cook 1 hour, turning occasionally.  

For the skhug, add juice of 1 lime to high power blender or food processor. Add cilantro, parsley and mint, salt and pepper, and EVOO, and process to grind the herbs. Add garlic and chilies and the cumin and cardamom, pulse the blender or processor to add the red flecks to sauce and finely chop the chilies.

For the chicken schnitzel, horizontally halve the chicken breasts to butterfly them, opening the meat like a book. Pound gently to thin 1/8-inch-thick cutlets, season both sides with salt and pepper.

Set up a breading station in shallow pans or dishes near the stove: flour, eggs, seasoned breadcrumbs with salt, white pepper, cumin, caraway, and nutmeg.

Warm the frying oil, about ¼ inch deep, in your largest skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Place a wire rack-lined rimmed baking sheet near the frying oil.  

Coat in flour, eggs and breadcrumbs, and fry the schnitzels one or two at a time based on the size of your pan. Cook the schnitzels to deep golden on each side and transfer to wire rack to drain. While hot, lightly spread with whipped honey.    

For the fried capers, drain capers on paper towels and pat dry. Heat oil over medium to medium-high heat, add 2 tablespoons capers at a time to limit splatter, swirl with each addition, cook 1 minute to 90 seconds until the capers open and turns golden at edges, then transfer to fresh towels to drain. Other than this, try crispy capers on soft cheese, tomato soup or in salads.

Place schnitzels with honey on platters and dot with green hot sauce, sprinkle with crispy capers and spill the cabbage alongside, overlapping on an edge of the schnitzel. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the cabbage so it does not soften the crispy crust of the chicken.