Updated 9 Jan 2020
My Story
Unless you have gone to cooking school, or read cooking science or history books, you probably do not know what this term means; but cooks certainly use the technique (1).
“Panade” comes from the Old English “panada” meaning a paste made from bread (or a bread mash) that feels like a very moist dough, and can be savoury or sweet. Obviously this is not a “diet” food in the sense of losing weight; but it has a critical role in various Western European dishes.
But also, it is a use of bread to create a homey texture to food that is universal where bread is a staple. So I have added some other cuisines to the list of Western European uses.
French: Panade
The KOF French chefs told me that in French cuisine, panade is often a richer tasting paste since they may add butter, milk, cream, or egg yolks.
Portuguese: Açorda
Wikipedia: Açorda is a typical Portuguese dish composed of thinly sliced bread with garlic, finely chopped coriander, olive oil, vinegar, water, salt and poached eggs.
English: Panade
This is often a sweet concoction. Think bread pudding with bread sits soaking in sugar, sweet spices, egg custard and cream. Perhaps even some jam.
Italy: Acquacotta
Wikipedia: Historically, acquacotta’s primary ingredients were water, stale bread, onion, tomato and olive oil, along with various vegetables and leftover foods that may have been available.
Moroccan: Rfissa
This dish is a bowl of torn pieces of stale bread that is topped with hot meat and broth. It is served immediately and is totally seen as a comfort food. In Morocco, the dish may be topped by stewed chicken and lentils that are seasoned with fenugreek, saffron and Ras el Hanout.
Definition
Traditionally, a Panade was made by mixing 1C old bread or bread crumbs combined with 1C milk. The mixture was soaked for ~5 minutes and then, using a fork, was mashed into a paste. The paste was then added to various foods. These days the panade mixture is defined more generically, as 1C starch plus 1C liquid combined to form a paste. The starch can be any combination of starches from bread to crushed crackers; I have even used crushed oatcakes. The liquid can be any combination of liquids such as milk, buttermilk, stock, non-dairy milk, or water. (One website even indicated they used yogurt.) Additionally, depending upon the recipe, folks have added eggs, seasoning or herbs to the paste.
What does Panade do?
The historical (and current) reality is that while Panade is used often for special recipes, many people do not know that there are actual reasons for using this food-base paste.
- Reduces shrinkage: Without panade, ground meat can shrink by up to 25%.
- Increases volume: Using a panade mixed in with ground meat allowed the eater to enjoy meat that is sizable
- Reduces waste: Panade is a way to use stale or dried bread so that no food was wasted.
- Binds food together
- Feeds hungry: Stale bread, a bit of available liquid, combined with what ever veggie or meat you had on hand, would feed hungry people via a panade-thickened stew or soup. This produced food that tasted good and filled the belly.
- Bulks foods: Or panade, has been used as the base of a casserole, which made limited veggies and meat go further.
- Captures and holds flavor
Panade Recipes
What starch is used depends upon how you want to use Panade. If you want to make white meat Quenelles you may use potato as the starch. For fish perhaps a lighter herbed bread crumbs. Perhaps rice in the ground meats.
- Panade à la pomme de terre (potato panade)
- Panade au pain (bread panade, used for ground fish)
- Panade à la frangipane (for ground poultry and fish)
- Panade au riz (rice panade)
- Panade à la farine (flour panade, used for quenelles)
Panade and Meat
The goals of this combination, panade and meat, are to keep ground meat tender and moist (burgers, Salisbury steak), help the meat keep its shape (think meat balls), and adds or maintains bulk to what meat you have (meatloaf).
When meat, fish, or fowl are ground up, it changes the protein structure which can result in shrinkage and the loss of moisture during cooking; in turn this can make the meat tough and dry. Panade adds moisture to the meat, and adds starch that can help form a gel to keep the meat moist. This also helps to have the meat keep its shape. Using panade, via the milk in the mix, also adds sugars, that can increase the meat’s browning and flavor. It does not take a lot of panade, so follow the recipes carefully.
Panache can be added to these meat recipes:
- Meatloaf
- Salisbury steak
- Meatballs: ground meat-chicken-turkey
- Fish cakes
- German Kohlrouladen (stuffed cabbage rolls)
Panade + Burgers
This is what I do on those rare times I make a plate of turkey burgers. I use 1 slice of hearty bread (and not the crusty parts (they become bread crumbs), just the interior parts) and place in a bowl with 2T whole milk to sit for ~15min. Then, using a fork, I mash the bread until it looks like a paste. Break up the already seasoned (salt, pepper, garlic, parsley, onion) meat over the paste and toss gently so it is well distributed. Then take out four handfuls of the mixture to make burgers by forming a ball, lightly flatten into a circle, indent the center slightly with my thumb, and cook.
Panade + Veggies or Casseroles
When my mother made stuffed cabbage she used bread panade in the ground meat. I always figured that since many German recipes call for mixing in bread, it reflected that Germany grew wheat and had lots of wheat, rye, pumpernickel breads available so they became part of all the major recipes. Other people I knew, used rice panade for the same dish.
Other ideas for veggie + panade follow. All you do is figure out the combo of the veggies with panade, add seasoning and spices, top with strongly flavored cheese and bake. Many of these dishes are not considered “pretty” to look at, but they are yummy and comforting. These are often called peasant dishes in Europe.
- Panade dump dish (casserole dump dish): Take 4C leftover meats, beans, veggies + pantry scraps, 1C grated cheese, 4C chicken or veggie broth with ~16oz leftover bread. Cook in oven and serve.
- Chard Onion Casserole: Chard, pearl onions, garlic, with Gruyère and Fontina mixed in with panade
- Mushroom Casserole: Onions, garlic, squash, red wine, chanterelles, chicken broth mixed in with panade
- Leek + Greens Casserole: Leeks, onions, garlic greens, mixed leafy greens, and cheese mixed in with panade
- Cabbage Rye Casserole: Onions, green cabbage, Gruyère, and chicken stock (use rye bread)
Making Panade Soups
Italian bread soup: onion, garlic, carrot, celery, Parmesan, and herbs mixed in with panade and enough chicken stock to make a soup.
Pappa al Pomodoro Soup: An Italian version of of a tomato-based soup.
Tomato Panade soup: An American version of a homemade tomato soup made with fresh tomatoes, herbs, onion, garlic and red bell pepper.
German Semmelknoedelsuppe (bread dumpling soup)
— Patty
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Recipe: Panade dump dish, Tomato Panade soup, Semmelknoedelsuppe and Pappa al Pomodoro Soup.
Tip: Always deglaze (with wine, stock, water, brandy, etc.) your skillet after frying or sauteing meat. The brownish stuff left on the skillet is the base of all good and tasty gravies and can be saved in the fridge for later use. This is also a very good way to clean your stainless steel or cast iron skillets as the act of adding coldish (not ice cold) liquid to a hot pan will release stuff stuck to the pan and makes clean up easier.