Pork Milanese with Kale and Apple Salad—crispy pork cutlets, fresh apples, hearty kale, and maple mustard vinaigrette. Make this high-protein, high-fiber fall dinner in the air fryer or oven!
Pork Milanese
I’m so excited for all things fall, and this Pork Milanese with Kale and Apple Salad is exactly the kind of easy, flavorful dinner I love to make. I tested it a few different ways and found the air fryer gives you the crispiest cutlets with the least amount of oil, but I also included skillet and oven directions so you can cook it however you like. The combination of juicy pork, crisp apples, hearty kale, and a tangy maple mustard vinaigrette makes this a balanced, high-protein, high-fiber meal that’s family-friendly and perfect for fall.
Why You’ll Love This Fall Dish
My family loves pork cutlets, and they’re very forgiving! Unlike chicken cutlets, they don’t dry out if you cook them a little longer.
- Perfect fall dinner: Crispy pork cutlets paired with apples and kale highlight the best seasonal flavors.
- Delicious: Maple mustard vinaigrette adds tangy-sweet contrast to the crispy pork.
- Fast and Easy: Ready in about 30 minutes, perfect for weeknights.
- High Protein and High Fiber: With over 32g protein and 5.5g fiber per serving.
For more Milanese recipes, you might also like my Chickpea Milanese, Air Fryer Chicken Milanese, and Flounder Milanese.
What You’ll Need
We use Dijon and whole-grain mustard in the pork marinade and kale salad dressing for a tangy flavor. The exact measurements are in the recipe card below.
- Pork Loin Cutlets: If you can’t find pork cutlets at the supermarket, buy a pork loin and thinly slice it. You could also use thin-cut boneless pork chops.
- Spices: Season the pork with kosher salt, onion powder, and garlic powder.
- Mustard: Use Dijon and whole-grain mustard for the pork marinade and salad dressing.
- Breadcrumbs: Using seasoned whole-wheat breadcrumbs means you don’t have to add extra seasoning to the crumbs or pork.
- Egg: Dredging the pork in the egg helps the breadcrumbs to stick to the meat.
- Vinaigrette Ingredients: You’ll need olive oil, apple cider vinegar, maple syrup, and both types of mustard to make a tangy-sweet dressing.
- Kale: Thinly chop Tuscan kale, also called Lacinato or dinosaur kale. It’s more tender and less bitter than curly kale.
- Apple: The Granny Smith apple adds a tart, crunchy contrast to the hearty kale.
How to Make Pork Milanese
Letting the pork marinate overnight enhances its flavor and streamlines dinner prep the next day. While you have the mustards out, you can also make the vinaigrette. Scroll to the bottom for printable instructions.
- Pork Marinade: Season the pork with salt, garlic powder, and both mustards. Refrigerate for at least an hour or overnight.
- Coat the Pork: Place the breadcrumbs in a shallow bowl and the egg in another. Dip the cutlets in the egg, then the breadcrumbs. Lay them on a cutting board and spray both sides with oil.
- How Long to Cook Pork Milanese: Place a perforated parchment paper in the air fryer basket and cook at 400°F for 5 to 6 minutes on each side.
- Make the Kale Salad: Whisk the vinaigrette ingredients in a small bowl. Drizzle some on the kale and massage it with your hands to tenderize it. Add the apples.
Variations
- No air fryer? No problem! Bake the pork cutlets on a sheet pan at 425°F for 14 to 15 minutes, turning halfway, or cook them in a skillet with a little olive oil over medium heat for 6 minutes on each side.
- Meat: Replace pork with chicken cutlets.
- Breadcrumbs: If you don’t have seasoned crumbs, add extra herbs and spices, like salt, onion powder, garlic powder, and dried oregano.
- Gluten-Free: Use gluten-free breadcrumbs.
- Egg allergy? Omit it.
- Greens: Use shredded Brussels sprouts or curly kale.
- Apples: Substitute Honeycrisp or Pink Lady apples.
- Nuts: Add toasted or candied pecans or walnuts to the salad. Almonds or pistachios would also be good.
- Cheese: Add a sharp cheese, like gorgonzola or goat cheese.
Serving Suggestions
This easy pork Milanese with kale salad is a complete meal, but if you’d like it to be a bit more filling, pair it with some warm sourdough bread. You could also add another side, like roasted potatoes, roasted sweet potatoes, roasted winter squash or baked sweet potatoes.
Proper Storage
- Refrigerate leftover pork for up to 4 days and the kale salad for 2 days. To reheat, air fry the meat at 360°F until heated through.
- Freeze Raw Cutlets: Place breaded cutlets on a parchment paper with parchment in between each cutlet then transfer them to an airtight container. Freeze for up to 3 months. To cook them, air fry at 400°F for 12 to 16 minutes, flipping halfway.
More Air Fryer Recipes You’ll Love
- Chicken Piccata
- Air Fryer Pork Chops
- Air Fryer Chicken Cutlets
- Air Fryer Bacon-Wrapped Pork Tenderloin
- Air Fryer Chicken Parmesan
Pork Milanese with Kale and Apple Salad
Ingredients
- 1 pound pork loin cutlets, thinly sliced or pounded 1/4 inch thick
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard, divided
- 2 tablespoons whole grain mustard, divided
- 1/2 cup seasoned whole wheat breadcrumbs, homemade or store bought*
- 1 large egg, beaten
- Olive oil spray
- 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
- 1½ tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 6 cups Tuscan kale, thinly chopped from 1 large bunch
- 1 granny smith apple, thinly chopped or julienne
Instructions
- In a shallow bowl, season pork with salt, garlic powder, onion powder, 1 tablespoon dijon mustard and 1 tablespoons whole grain mustard for at least 1 hour (or overnight, the longer the better).
- Place breadcrumbs in a shallow bowl. Place egg in another shallow bowl. Dip the pork into the egg, then the breadcrumb mixture. Place on a work surface and spray both sides with oil.
- In a single layer, in batches if needed, transfer the cutlets to the air fryer basket (I recommend using air fryer parchment here to prevent sticking) and air fryer 400F 5 to 6 minutes on each side, until golden, crispy and cooked through.
- While the cutlets cook, make the salad: In a small bowl combine remaining dijon mustard, remaining whole grain mustard, maple syrup, olive oil and apple cider vinegar. Combine with kale and massage greens for 1-2 minutes to tenderize if desired; reserve. Add apples.
No Air Fryer No Problem:
- Bake on a rack on a sheet pan 425°F 14 to 15 minutes, turning halfway, or until golden. OR Cook them in a skillet with a little olive oil over medium heat for 6 minutes on each side.
- Serve crispy cutlets with kale salad alongside.
Last Step:
Please leave a rating and comment letting us know how you liked this recipe! This helps our business to thrive and continue providing free, high-quality recipes for you.Notes
Variations
- Toasted or candied nuts, like pecan or walnuts, make a great addition to the salad.
- Sharp cheeses, like gorgonzola or goats cheese, make a great addition to the salad.
I didn’t have time to marinate the pork in advance, so I just let it sit 10 minutes while I prepped the salad stuff. It had a great flavor and I am sure would have been more tender if I let sit for a couple hours. My main issue with the pork was that the breading came off the chops very easily during and after cooking.
The salad had a nice flavor, I used 5 cups kale and maybe 1.5 cups green leaf lettuce. However, the flavor of the salad was a bit overpowering and it seemed like there was double the dressing needed. Most of what I could taste was the ACV. Next time I would reduce the amounts of dressing as our salad was saturated.
So flavorful!
Thank you for introducing my family to kale. We were all skeptical but it was SO GOOD! We like this meal so much we make it twice in one week and we didn’t miss adding a starch. We don’t have an air fryer so tried this in the oven on convection, top rack. Didn’t get the crunch we hoped for but it was still pretty darn good. Store only had the curly kale but it was great. Adding it to the rotation!
So glad you enjoyed it! We love kale in my house!
Loved this for something different! We did the pork over mixed field greens with the Granny Smith apple, herbed goat cheese and cucumber. I bet the toasted pecans would awesome.
We don’t eat pork often but knew we could trust that this would be good. It did not disappoint! Quick, easy and delicious.
Had this last night for dinner and it was delicious! My husband even reluctantly tried the kale salad and liked it!!
Love it!
Made this last night and my whole family loved it! It is a fun change up for my normal baked pork chops than can get a bit boring. The breading fell off my pork just a little bit in the air fryer but I’m sure that was user error. Will definitely make this again
Awesome, glad you enjoyed them!
This was excellent. I don’t use an air fryer so I cooked it stovetop In a skillet. The salad competed with the pork for best taste on the plate. This will be on a regular rotation.
Hi. What else can I use instead of mustard to marinate the chicken?
You could use Italian dressing.
Made pork exactly as recipe says. Used Brussels sprouts, baby spinach, and pears (that was what I had on hand) to make salad with dressing made exactly to recipe. OUTSTANDING!!!! Loved every bite.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Hi! Love your recipes always! What does “ *(1/4 cup is tossed after, subtracted from n.i.)” in the notes mean?
Hi! I’m so glad you enjoy the recipes! That note— 1/4 cup is tossed after, subtracted from n.i.—means I had 1/4 cup extra crumbs left, which got tossed (so it doesn’t get eaten). That’s why it’s subtracted from the nutrition information in the recipe card.
Thank you for also giving directions to recipes -cooking other ways👍🏻. I don’t have air- fryer but I use oven and top of the range all the time. I’m 78 and don’t want to buy anymore appliances 😊
You’re welcome Judy! 🙂