barrettWas your mouth watering like mine was for Friday’s delicious French dish? Did you guess it? It is called Blanquette de Veau or tender veal ragout.
As a prize or consolation prize, here is a recipe for you:
Blanquette de Veau
INGREDIENTS
Veal tenderloin or specifically a D’Artagnan veal tenderloin, about 2 ½ lbs., trimmed and cut into cubes and thoroughly rinsed before and after trimming **(or veal stew meat or veal cheeks)
1 pint pearl onions, peeled
2 T butter
6 c stock (veal or chicken)
Bouquet garni: 1 thyme sprig, 1 bay leaf, parsley stems, 6 peppercorns, 2 cloves garlic, sliced and 3 cloves tied in cheesecloth or loose
1 celery stalk cut into sticks
1 large carrots, peeled & cut into thick sticks
1 small leek, sliced in half in 4” pieces
1 teaspoon coarse salt
4 Tablespoons butter
5 Tablespoons flour
2 T vermouth
2 T Cognac
1 container veal demi-glace from D’Artagnan that you can get HERE (or 1 cup of your own)
3 egg yolks
½ c heavy cream
2 c sliced mushrooms (I used a combination of crimini and shitake without stems but pure white mushrooms are the classic for this)
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste
minced fresh parsley
chopped yellow celery tops (optional)
DIRECTIONS
(The day before you plan to cook and eat )
You are going to make the stock beforehand. Take the veal cuttings, vegetables, bouquet garni and stock and put in a large pot (a wide-mouthed enamel cast iron pan is perfect). Heat it and simmer on medium-low for 1½ hours, skimming and checking as you go.
While you are doing this, take ½ c of the stock from the pan and 2 T butter and simmer the onions covered for 10 minutes. When they are nearly done remove the cover and reduce the liquid till it is syrupy. Remove and reserve the onions and the glaze.
After 1 ½ hours, strain the stock, pressing on the solids and then discard the vegetables and meat bits. Add the demi-glace to the stock. You should have around 4 cups.
(The day of)
Rinse the veal cubes again and add to the stock*. Cook for about 15 minutes over very low heat… barely a simmer. Check it –– you want it medium rare (you will need to heat it again when you add the egg and cream, that’s when you will finish cooking the veal).
When it’s done, remove the meat and strain the broth over a fine mesh. Reserve 3¼ cup of the stock for the velouté. Clean out the pan and place the meat and onions with the glaze in it. Cover.
Melt 4 T butter slowly, then add the flour and stir it in –– let it cook for a few minutes but do not let it brown. Slowly add the stock, whisking. Add vermouth and cognac. Cook it over medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring regularly. Add the sliced mushrooms tossed in the lemon juice and cook for another 10 minutes or until the mushrooms are soft. This slow cooking is what helps give the sauce the beautiful texture.
Remove 1 cup of the sauce without the mushrooms. Whisk the egg yolks and cream together and add the reserved hot velouté.
Add this to the meat and onions and cook over a low heat, stirring gently. Do not let it boil. Keep the sauce below 180º Cor the egg will curdle (using a wide-mouthed casserole makes this easy). Check the temperature of the veal cubes –– they shold be around 145º C –– perfect medium.
When everything is heated though taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper if needed, serve with noodles, rice or potatoes. Sprinkle with parsley and celery tops.
* If the gray scum that veal can generate bothers you, put the veal in a skillet and cover with water. Bring to a low boil for 2 minutes and then strain and rinse the veal.