A flight of three different veal preparation techniques from Executive Chef Dean A. Thomas. Photo courtesy Le Québécois Grain-Fed Veal.

MENU

Meat & Poultry Category Main Page Articles & Reviews       Main Nibbles Main Page Articles & Reviews Of Foods From A To Z     Product Reviews Main Page Foods, Beverages, Books, News & More

 

March 2009

Product Reviews / Main Nibbles / Meat & Poultry

Award-Winning Veal Recipes

Page 4: “Techniques in Veal”—Spring Braise En Croûte, Veal Crepenette And Sautéed Loin & Liver

This is Page 4 of a six-page article. Click the black links below to view other pages.

“Techniques in Veal”—Spring Braise En Croûte, Veal Crepenette And Sautéed Loin & Liver

This trio of veal dishes showcases three different cooking methods. Serve it as a tasting flight for a sophisticated entrée or parse into smaller portions for hors d’oeuvres. The recipe was created by Dean A. Thomas, Executive Chef at Barona Valley Ranch Resort & Casino in Lakeside, California. These recipes yield 8 servings each.

Spring Braise En Croûte

Ingredients

• 1-1/2 pounds veal breast, with sinew removed and cut into 3-ounce strips
• 3 ounces butter, clarified
• 2 quarts white veal stock (or substitute with beef if no veal stock available)
• 1 onion piqué of clove (a whole peeled onion studded with cloves)
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 leek, white part only, coarsely diced
• 4 stems parsley
• 2 sprigs English thyme
• 1/2 cup carrot, spring small, sliced 1/4-inch thick
• 1/2 cup turnip, finely dice
• 2 dozen white pearl onions, peeled with nub attached
• 1 ounce butter, clarified
• 3 ounces all-purpose flour
• 3 ounces whole butter
• 6 ounces white mushroom trimmings, coarsely chopped
• 4 ounces heavy cream
• Sea salt and white pepper to taste
• Eight 4-inch rounds of puff pastry dough, with egg wash

Preparation

1. Using a Dutch oven, begin by sautéing the veal in the clarified butter lightly, controlling the heat not to brown the veal. Add the white veal stock, onion piqué, leek, parsley and thyme. Cover and slowly braise for approximately 45 minutes until veal is tender. Remove the veal from the liquid, reserve and strain liquid.
2. Place the veal into individual 8-ounce copper saucepans or earthenware presentation dishes; reserve. Using the Dutch oven, lightly sauté the carrot, turnip and pearl onions in the butter, taking care not to brown in color.  Add the white veal stock once again and simmer until vegetables are slightly tender. Strain vegetables from liquid and place into the individual serving dishes with the veal. Continue to simmer the white veal stock, slowly reducing.
3. In a separate sauce pot, prepare and cook the white roux. Liaison the stock and the roux, adding white mushroom trimmings and the heavy cream. Simmer for 15-20 minutes. Finely strain the velouté sauce over braised veal and vegetables in the individual serving dishes; allow to cool for 15 minutes.
4. Brush the outer edge of the oven dish with egg wash and place the circle round of puff pastry dough over the dish. Trim edges, brush with egg wash and scrape lightly in a crosshatch pattern with a fork for a baked-on design. Bake at 350°F for 45 minutes for service.

Veal-Morel Crepenette

Ingredients

• 1 cup Swiss chard, greens only, stem removed, cut chiffonade
• 1 cup morel mushrooms, sliced
• 1 cup white onion, cut into strips
• 1 teaspoon garlic clove, germ removed, minced
• 2 ounces butter, clarified
• 1 pound veal breast, trimmed of sinew, diced in large cubes at 32° F
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• Pinch smoked paprika
• Pinch crushed red pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon maple sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon parsley
• 1/8 teaspoon thyme
• 1/8 teaspoon harissa paste
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1/2 pound caul fat to wrap forcemeat into timbale form
• 4 heads Belgian endive, quartered
• 2 winesap apples, peeled and cored, cut into eighths

Preparation

1. Quickly sauté the Swiss chard in a small amount of butter; remove from pan and cool in a large stainless steel mixing bowl.
2. Sauté the morel mushrooms in butter to remove any liquid; add to the Swiss chard bowl to cool.
3. Sauté the onion strips in the remaining butter, stir often and allow the onions to caramelize until sweet and dark in color. At the end, add the minced garlic and sweat for 1-2 minutes. Add to the chard-morel mix and cool.
4. In a cold stainless steel mixing bowl, add the veal and toss with sea salt, paprika, red pepper flakes, maple sugar, parsley, thyme and harissa paste.
5. Using a grinder with a 1/4-inch dye blade, grind the veal mixture twice through the grinder. Add mixture to the sautéed chard, morels and onion; add the tablespoon of water and mix thoroughly to bind together.
6. Lay out the caul fat over a small four-ounce timbale; stuff with crepenette mixture and wrap up the caul fat to seal, trimming off excess. Remove from timbale and mold slightly into shape. Sauté until caramelized and golden brown. Just prior to serving, continue sautéing to medium doneness.
7. Serve with quartered Belgian endive spears and winesap apples braised in white veal stock left from the Spring Braise En Croûte. Season with salt & pepper.

Sautéed Veal Loin & Liver, With Apple Cider Liqueur-Mustard Pan Sauce

Ingredients

• Eight 1-ounce veal livers, trimmed, sliced thick in a diameter smaller than the loin medallion
• 1 ounce butter, clarified
• Eight 3-ounce veal loin medallions, trimmed, slightly pounded
• 1 ounce butter, clarified
• 1/2 cup seasoned flour for dredging
• 4 ounces apple cider liqueur
• 2 ounces Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 3 ounces reduced veal demi-glace
• 2 teaspoons flat leaf parley, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons whole butter

Preparation

1. Using a preheated, 14-inch sauté pan, quickly sear the veal liver medallions on each side in clarified butter, leaving medium rare in temperature. Remove from pan; reserve in warm dish.
2. Dredge the veal loin medallions in the seasoned flour. Using the clarified butter, sear golden brown on each side, turning only once. Remove; reserve in warm dish.
3. Deglaze the pan with apple cider liqueur. Add Dijon mustard, lemon juice and demi-glace, and reduce for 3-4 minutes. Reduce heat. Replace the veal medallions into the sauce; add parsley and finish with butter.

Plate Assembly

1. On a warm rectangle service plate, place the Spring Braise En Croûte on the left.
2. For the Sauté, center the veal loin topped with the liver medallion and sauce.
3. To the right, place the braised endive spears and winesap apple wedges; top with the crepenette.

Wine Pairing

Merlot, Tempranillo and Bordeaux—because a flight of veal calls for a flight of wine.

For the Spring Braise En Croûte: Merlot. Well-made Merlot will have the structure to hold up to the veal and the richness to match that of the preparation. We want the velvety, ripe red and black cherry, raspberry and cassis flavors to match richness, plus some bright acidity to cut through the richness.

For the Crepenette: Tempranillo. With this dish, the main consideration, in addition to the richness of the crepenette preparation, is the harissa. Tempranillo tends to show spicy, red berry-driven flavors and aromas, which works well with the harissa and will often show a smoky tobacco note.

For the Sautéed Loin & Liver: Red Bordeaux or New World Bordeaux blend. This preparation calls for a wine with depth. The buttery sauté and the demi-glace ramp the richness of the veal up a notch (or three!). This is a great application for Cabernet Sauvignon, though the Cabernet by itself may struggle to keep up. The beauty of well-made Bordeaux blends is that they combine the power and depth of Cabernet with varieties such as Cabernet Franc and Merlot, which can give Cabernet Sauvignon the necessary lift and brightness.

Continue to Page 5: Braised Veal Osso Bucco & Sashimi Tuna Roll

Return To Recipe Index Above

Recipes courtesy Le Québécois Grain-Fed Veal. Additional material Lifestyle Direct, Inc. All rights reserved. Photos are copyright of their respective owners.