Braised Veal Food

BRAISED VEAL

Steps:

• Place a casserole pan on a medium heat and melt half the butter with a splash of oil. Season and brown the veal on all sides, then remove from pan and set aside.
• Peel and finely slice the onions and garlic, then trim and cut the leeks into large chunks. Sauté in the same pan until soft but not coloured, then add the carrots and cook for a few minutes.
• Make a space in the middle, and place in your veal, surrounded by the veg. Tuck the bay into the veal and pour in the wine and 100ml water.
• Bring to the boil, then cover with a circle of greaseproof paper and simmer for 2 to 2 hours 30 minutes, till the veal is tender. Check the liquid level every 20 minutes or so, adding water as necessary.
• When the veal is ready, place a frying pan on a medium-high heat with the remaining butter. Tear in the mushrooms and fry until they start to turn golden.
• Season, and stir into the veal with the double cream. Bring back to the boil then simmer uncovered for 10 minutes, till reduced.
• Transfer the veal to a board and slice. Serve with braised veg, buttered spätzli or noodles and cabbage gratin.

STUFFED BRAISED VEAL BREAST

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Coat a large straight-sided saute pan with olive oil. Smash 2 of the whole garlic cloves with the heel of your hand and toss them into the pan with a pinch of crushed red pepper. Bring the pan to a medium-high heat. When the garlic is golden brown and very aromatic, remove it from the pan and discard it, it has fulfilled its garlic destiny.
• Add the spinach to the pan, stir to coat the oil and season with salt. Cover the pan and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Remove the lid from the pan and stir the spinach, it should be wilted. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed. Transfer the spinach to a mesh strainer to let any excess water drain out.
• Return the pan to the burner and coat the pan with olive oil and add in 2 more garlic cloves that have been smashed with the heel of your hand. Repeat the process of cooking the garlic to golden brown and discarding. Toss in a pinch of crushed red pepper and the sliced mushrooms. Season the mushrooms with salt and cook until they are soft and wilted, add a little more oil if they are a little dry. Taste the mushrooms and adjust the seasoning if needed. Remove from the heat and let cool.
• Squeeze out any excess liquid from the wilted spinach and coarsely chop. Add to the mushrooms, toss in the Parmigiano and stir to combine. Taste to make sure it is delicious. Reserve.
• Lay the meat out and gently pound to flatten. Sprinkle generously with salt. Lay the prosciutto slices down the middle of the veal. Lay a log of the spinach and mushroom mixture down the middle of the prosciutto. Roll the veal around the prosciutto and tie the veal with butcher's twine.
• Coat a Dutch oven with olive oil and bring to a medium-high heat. Add the veal roll and brown on all sides. Remove the veal from the pan and reserve.
• Ditch any excess fat and add a few drops of new oil. Add the onions to the pan, stir to coat with the oil and season with salt. Lower the heat to medium and cook the onions, covered, for 7 to 8 minutes.
• Uncover the onions, they should be very soft and wilted. Add the chopped garlic and rosemary and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the wine and reduce by half.
• Return the veal to the pan and add chicken stock until it comes about halfway up the sides of the veal. Toss in the bay leaves and thyme bundle. Cover and place in the oven and cook for 1 hour.
• Remove the veal from the oven, turn over and add more stock if the liquid has reduced. Taste the braising liquid if the liquid level has reduced significantly. Cook for 1 hour.
• Remove the lid from the Dutch oven and braise for another 45 minutes to allow the liquid to reduce.
• Remove the veal from the oven, remove from the pan, cover with foil and let rest for 15 minutes. Place the Dutch oven on a burner over medium heat to reduce the braising liquid if it is too soupy. Taste the liquid to make sure the seasoning is correct.
• Slice the veal into medallions and serve with the braising liquid and onions.
• Wine Pairing Suggestion: Gavi

BRAISED VEAL SHANKS

Steps:

• Make shanks:
• Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F.
• Pat shanks dry. Stir together flour, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper on a sheet of wax paper. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking. While oil heats, dredge 4 shanks in flour mixture, shaking off excess. Brown shanks in oil on all sides, turning with tongs, about 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer to a large (17- by 12- by 2-inch) roasting pan. Add 2 tablespoons oil to skillet and repeat with remaining 4 shanks. Discard remaining flour mixture.
• Add remaining 2 tablespoons oil to skillet and cook onion, garlic, anchovies, bay leaves, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon pepper over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until onion is softened, 6 to 8 minutes. Add wine and boil, scraping up any brown bits, until reduced by half, about 2 minutes. Stir in tomatoes, water, zest strips, and remaining teaspoon salt and bring to a boil, then pour mixture over shanks. Tightly cover pan with foil and braise in oven 1 hour. Turn shanks over, cover, and continue to braise until meat is very tender, about 1 1/2 hours more.
• Remove from oven and skim fat from surface of sauce, then transfer shanks and sauce to a large platter. Discard bay leaves.
• Make gremolata:
• Stir together parsley, grated zests, and garlic and sprinkle over shanks.

LEMON BRAISED VEAL SHOULDER

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F; season veal with pepper and half the salt.
• Place in a baking dish and surround with carrots and onions; dot veal with butter and roast until veal is lightly brown, about 25 to 30 minutes.
• Add lemon, bay leaves, garlic, and cloves to dish and mix with vegetables; add stock, wine and remaining salt.
• Reduce heat to 350 degrees F and braise, uncovered, basting every 10 minutes, until tender, about 90 minutes.
• Transfer veal and vegetables to a serving platter and keep warm.
• Strain pan juices into a heat proof bowl, skimming off and discarding fat.
• Heat a saucepan over medium heat and boil vinegar until reduced and syrupy and about 1 teaspoon.
• Stir in pan juices, increase heat to high and boil until reduced by half; taste and adjust seasonings.
• Spoon sauce over veal or serve on the side.

BRAISED VEAL SHOULDER

Steps:

• Dry rub veal shoulder with spices and let sit in the refrigerator for 24 hours.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
• Heat butter in roasting pan over medium heat. Add veal shoulder and brown on all sides. Remove from pan. Add vegetables and cook until tender. Add flour to make roux. Whisk in your liquid and add veal shoulder. Bring to simmer on top of stove and cover with foil. Cook in the oven for 3 hours.
• Remove veal and puree sauce until smooth. Slice veal and coat with sauce to serve.

BRAISED VEAL BREAST

Steps:

• Prepare the boneless veal breast by removing and discarding all visible fat. Let the meat come to room temperature.
• Roll the meat into a roll, tightly turning one edge inside and on top of itself, like a jellyroll. Cut 4 or 5 12-inch lengths of kitchen twine and tie the roll so that it keeps its uniform shape.
• Season the entire roll with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
• Place a large French oven or braising pan (one that has a cover) over high heat. Add the canola oil and heat for 30 seconds until shimmering.
• Add the meat and brown on all sides. This will take about 10 minutes. Don't rush this step because the browning adds important flavor to the dish.
• Remove the meat to a plate and add the carrots, onion, celery and garlic to the pan. Lower the meat to medium and cook until the vegetables soften, about 6 minutes.
• Pour in the wine. Let it boil, scraping the sides and bottom of the pan to remove all the brown bits.
• Add 3 cups of chicken stock and bring to a boil, then immediately lower to a simmer. Do not add any more salt or pepper at any point because through the cooking, the flavors will concentrate and the seasoning on the meat before you browned it will probably be enough. You can also adjust for seasonings at the very end of the cooking.
• Return the meat to the pan. If the meat isn't submerged at least half-way in the stock/wine mixture, add more stock until it is, up to one more cup.
• Cover the pan and adjust the heat so that the liquid is at a low simmer. Cook for 2 to 2 1/2 hours, turning the meat over at least once half-way through the cooking.
• When the meat is tender and soft to your touch (press it with the tips of your fingers and make sure that it gives a bit), remove the veal roll from the cooking liquid and place on a plate. Cover with foil to keep it warm.
• Turn the heat up under the remaining cooking liquid and bring to a boil and cook for 5 to 10 minutes until the liquid has reduced by half. Check to see if it has reached a sauce-like thickness by dipping a teaspoon in the liquid, turn the spoon over and run your finger through the liquid coating the spoon. If it leaves a clear mark, it has probably thickened enough.
• Strain the liquid through a fine-holed sieve to remove the vegetables. Return the sauce to the pan and add the minced herbs. Taste for seasoning.
• Slice the meat into 1/2-inch pieces and drizzle the sauce over the slices or else pass the sauce in a separate serving dish.

WHOLE BRAISED VEAL SHANKS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400°F.
• On a cutting board, use the side of your chef's knife to smash together the chopped garlic and the rosemary to make a coarse paste. Cut several deep holes in the veal shanks with a paring knife-really stab them! Using your index finger, stuff the holes with the rosemary-garlic mixture; this will perfume the shanks with a beautiful aroma while they braise.
• Season the shanks generously with salt. Coat a large sauté pan with olive oil and bring to high heat. Add the shanks to the pan and brown well on all sides; this may take up to 20 minutes. Don't skimp on this step-this is where the big, rich, brown flavors start to develop, so take your time!
• While the shanks are browning, put the onions, carrots, celery, apples, and the remaining 3 cloves of smashed garlic in a food processor and purée to a coarse paste; reserve.
• When the shanks are very brown, transfer them to a roasting pan. Ditch the fat, add a bit of fresh olive oil, and add the puréed veggies and apples to the sauté pan. Season generously with salt and cook until the mixture is very brown and aromatic, 8 to 10 minutes. Again, don't skimp here-you want the veggies to form a crust on the bottom of the pan. This is where more of that lovely brown flavor develops, so take your time.
• Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring frequently, until it starts to brown, 1 to 2 minutes.
• Add the wine, bring it to a boil (BTB), and stir frequently until reduced by half, 3 to 4 minutes. Then transfer everything to the roasting pan with the shanks. Add about 1/2 cup water to the sauté pan to help release any of that good crud stuck to the bottom, then add it to the roasting pan.
• Add 4 to 5 more cups water to the roasting pan and stir to combine; the mix should be pretty soupy. Taste and add more salt if needed, then toss in the bay leaves and the thyme bundle.
• Put the pan in the oven and cook for 2 1/2 to 3 hours, turning the shanks every 30 minutes, stirring and adding more water if the liquid reduces too much. If the shanks brown too much during the cooking time, tent the pan with aluminum foil. When the shanks are done they should be incredibly tender and flavorful.

BRAISED VEAL FLANK

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• Trim the veal strips to square off the edges. Roll each piece, and tie with twine. Dredge the veal rolls lightly in flour seasoned with salt and pepper.
• In an ovenproof skillet large enough to hold all the veal rounds in one layer, heat the oil over medium-high flame and brown the veal on all sides, about 15 minutes. Add the onions, leeks, carrots, celery and garlic. Cook for another five minutes. When the meat is browned, drain off the fat.
• Add the white wine; bring to a boil. Then, add the tomatoes, thyme, bay leaf, cloves and four cups of water. Bring to a boil; then, remove from the heat and place in the oven, covered. Cook for 1 1/2 hours. Remove the cover, reduce oven to 350 degrees, and cook for another 30 minutes. Remove bay leaf and thyme and serve with roasted vegetable mirepoix and savoy cabbage (see recipes).