Parmesan crisps in a non-stick pan
One ingredient, no oil, a snack that tastes like a restaurant starter.
Gear for this recipe: Microplane zester · Olive oil spray bottle · Lodge cast iron pan (Amazon UK, affiliate links)
Ingredients
- 80 g parmesan, grated finely with a zester
- Black pepper, optional
- A pinch of dried thyme or chilli flakes, optional
- A clean, dry non-stick pan (it needs no oil at all)
Method
- Grate the parmesan on the fine side of the zester. Fine cheese melts evenly into a lacy crisp. Chunky shreds stay patchy.
- Heat the non-stick pan on a medium-low heat for a minute. Do not add oil: the cheese releases its own fat.
- Spoon the cheese into small mounds, about a tablespoon each, and pat each into a thin round about 6 cm wide. Leave a finger of space between them.
- Cook 2-3 minutes, until the edges are golden and the middle has stopped bubbling.
- Slide a spatula under each crisp and lift it onto kitchen paper. They crisp up as they cool, in about a minute.
- Use at once, or keep in an airtight tin for a day.
Tips from the kitchen
- Medium-low heat is the trick. Too hot and the cheese burns before the fat renders.
- A non-stick pan is ideal here, because cheese sticks to bare metal.
- Use real parmesan or a hard aged cheese. Pre-grated tubs have anti-caking powder that stops them crisping.
- Bend warm crisps over a rolling pin for a curved shape.
- Crumble over soup, salad or the lemon chopped salad.
Tools that help
Microplane lemon zester
Grates hard cheese and takes zest off citrus in seconds. Fine enough that a little goes a long way.
View on Amazon UKOlive oil spray bottle
A fine mist uses a fraction of the oil you would pour, and coats evenly.
View on Amazon UKGear I use in this kitchen
Three simple tools behind most of the recipes here. Amazon Associate links.
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This is cooking advice, not medical advice. If you have a health condition or take medication, talk to your doctor or a dietitian before changing how you eat.