Veal Casserole Jamie Oliver 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.

VEAL CASSEROLE

Steps:

• 1. Heat the oil and half the butter in a large heavy-based saucepan over high heat and cook the veal in three batches for 3 minutes, or until browned. Transfer to a plate with any juices and keep warm. 2. Heat the remaining butter in the same saucepan, add the onion and cook for 3 minutes, or until soft. Add the cumin and cook for 30 seconds, or until fragrant. Add the garlic and mushrooms and cook for 1-2 minutes, or until the mushrooms are soft. Reduce the heat to low, sprinkle on the flour, stir to combine and cook for 1 minute. Stir in the beef stock. 3. Return the meat and any juices to the saucepan with the zucchini, carrot, tomatoes and tomato paste and stir until the mixture boils and thickens, breaking up the tomatoes with the back of a wooden spoon. Reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes, or until the meat is cooked through and tender. Stir in the chopped parsley, then season with salt and pepper. Serve with wild rice and bread.

VEAL PARMIGIANA

Steps:

• Italian immigrants brought this dish to America, and since then veal parmigiana has become a classic New York dish, and rightly so. I love it when it's layered up like this, with the tomato sauce and cheese, then baked in the oven to gratinate. Feel free to swap veal for pork leg or even chicken that's been battered out. If you want to spike this with a bit of extra flavour you could also add a few capers or olives to the tomato sauce.
• Preheat your oven to 200ºC/400ºF/gas 6. Pick the leaves off the sprigs of basil and put them into a small bowl of water to keep them fresh. Finely chop the tender stalks. Put a pan on a medium heat and add a splash of olive oil, the chopped basil stalks, garlic and anchovies and cook for a few minutes. Prick the chilli a few times and add it to the pan. Allow everything to sizzle for a minute or so, then pour in the tinned tomatoes. Bring to the boil, then turn the heat down and simmer for 20 minutes. Season to taste with sea salt and black pepper.
• Meanwhile, prepare your escalopes. Mix the breadcrumbs in a bowl with the thyme leaves and Parmesan. Finely grate your lemon zest into the breadcrumbs, mix again, then lay out three plates in front of you. Put the flour on one and season it with salt and pepper, pour the eggs on to the next plate and put the herby breadcrumbs on the third. Dip the escalopes, one at a time, into the flour until well coated. Shake off any excess, then dip into the egg. Let the extra egg drip off, then lay the escalope in the breadcrumb mixture. Sprinkle a handful of crumbs over the top and press them down. Make a real point of getting breadcrumbs on to every part of the escalope.
• Heat a large non-stick frying pan over a medium heat and add a good splash of olive oil. Let it heat up a bit, then add your escalopes. If your pan isn't big enough, you may have to cook them in batches, adding a little extra oil if needed. Cook for a few minutes on each side until lightly golden, then transfer to a plate lined with kitchen paper to drain. Get yourself a snug-fitting, appropriately sized baking dish (approx. 30 x 20cm) and spread the tomato sauce in the dish. Lay your escalopes on top, side by side. Tear the buffalo mozzarella into pieces and dot these over the dish with a few basil leaves.
• Bake in the oven for 20 minutes until golden, bubbling and deliciously cooked. Sprinkle the rest of the basil leaves over. Perfect with a crunchy zingy salad, but in America they'd also serve it with things like spaghetti, rice or mashed potatoes, polenta or crusty bread.

OSSOBUCCO

Steps:

• Soak the porcini for at least 15 minutes in 200ml/7fl oz boiling water. Don't remove the membrane that holds the veal together, but trim off any obviously fatty or lumpy bits. Dust both sides of the meat with the seasoned flour.
• Heat the butter and oil in a very large flameproof sauté pan or casserole over a medium-high heat. When the sizzling stops, put in the veal and fry the slices for 2-3 minutes on each side until golden brown. Transfer the meat to a plate.
• Replace the pan over a low to medium heat and tip in the carrot and celery. Gently fry for 5 minutes until the vegetables have slightly softened, then raise the heat and pour in the wine. Bubble the wine furiously for 2 minutes, then remove the pan from the heat.
• Fish the softened porcini out of the soaking liquid, squeeze out the excess moisture and reserve it. Chop the porcini roughly and add to the sauté pan, together with the soaking liquid. Add the sugocasa or passata and stock, then stir.
• Put the veal back into the pan in a single layer, cover and bring to the boil. Immediately reduce the heat and simmer very gently for 2 hours, turning the veal slices halfway, until the meat is very soft. The liquid should reduce to a thickish sauce, but if it's still thin after 1¼ -1½ hours, half remove the lid to allow evaporation. Serve with the grain 'risotto' (see link, right).