Vitello Tonnato Cold Veal in Tuna Sauce
Total time: 20 minutes plus at least 2 hours resting time
This is properly made with a veal roast that is braised for hours, then sliced thinly and served with the sauce. This is my shortcut version.... Summer cooking! I've included the traditional Tonnato Sauce as well as a version using commercial mayonnaise rather than the raw egg.
Ingredients:
- veal scallops, sliced thinly, 10oz (300gr)
- 3/4 cup chicken stock
- Tonnato Sauce, mayonnaise version
- 6oz (180gr) canned tuna, packed in oil - the best you can find, do not use fresh tuna
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 3 anchovy fillets (or the equivalent in anchovy paste), drained and rinsed, optional
- 1 1/2 tbs lemon juice
- 1/4 tsp dry mustard
- 2 tbs capers, drained
- 2 - 6 tbs of the poaching liquid
Instructions:
- Heat chicken stock in a medium skillet.
- Add veal slices, a few at a time and poach briefly, until cooked through. If they are very thin and the stock hot, it should only take a few minutes per slice.
- Remove and cool.
- Reserve stock and allow to cool.
- Tonnato Sauce, mayonnaise version
- Put all ingredients, except poaching liquid, into a blender and purée until smooth.
- Pour into a bowl. Add some of the cool poaching liquid, 1 tbs at a time until the sauce is the consistency of very thick cream.
- Assembling the Vitello Tonnato:
- Pour a thin layer of sauce to cover the bottom of a large platter or baking dish.
- Lay the cooled veal slices over the sauce, trying not to overlap. If you must overlap put a layer of sauce between the meat.
- Pour the rest of the sauce over the veal, smoothing it to cover the veal completely.
- Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 2 hours, all day is better. You can garnish the platter with a few cherry tomatoes for color when serving...
Tonnato Sauce Traditional Version
Ingredients:
- 3/4 cup good olive oil
- 1 egg yolk If you are uncomfortable with the raw egg, make the mayo version below. Don't try an egg substitute
- 6oz (190gr) canned tuna, packed in oil - the best you can find, do not use fresh tuna
- 3 anchovy fillets, drained and rinsed (or the equivalent in anchovy paste)
- 2 tbs fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 tsp dry mustard
- 2 tbs capers, drained
- 2 tbs cream or milk or poaching liquid
- 2 - 6 tbs of the poaching liquid
Instructions:
- Put 1/4 cup oil, egg, tuna, anchovies, 1 tbs capers, mustard and lemon juice in the blender.
- Cover and blend on high speed a few seconds, until pureed and smooth.
- Remove 'cap' from blender top and, with blender running slowly, drizzle in the rest of the oil.
- Sauce should be thick and smooth and total blending time not more than 10 - 11 seconds.
- Pour into a bowl. Slowly stir in the cream or milk.
- Add some of the cool poaching liquid, 1 tbs at a time until the sauce is the consistency of very thick cream.
- Stir in the rest of the capers. If you prefer you can purée all of the capers - which I did, (albeit, accidentally).