VITELLO TONNATO
Veal with Tuna Sauce
Serves 8-10
This traditional Piedmontese dish has always been considered a very noble antipasto or main course. The richness of the tuna sauce bound with the cooking liquor, hard-boiled eggs and olive oil pairs surprisingly well with the delicately poached veal slices. A little effort is required in the preparation but it can be made ahead of time (which makes it great for dinner parties) and keeps well for a couple of days – in fact, the flavour actually improves over this time. I prefer using the girello, the round cut from the back leg, as it retains its moisture, making it well suited for poaching. If unavailable, other hind-leg cuts, such as silverside or topside, can be used instead.
Ingredients
50 g baby capers
2 lemons, segmented
60 g rocket leaves
Thinly shaved Parmigiano, to serve (optional)
Poached Veal
600 g veal girello
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
½ onion, diced
½ carrot, thinly sliced
1 stick celery, thinly sliced
1 anchovy fillet
2 cloves
2 juniper berries
2 bay leaves
Sea salt and cracked black pepper
1 cup (250 ml) white wine
½ cup (125 ml) white wine vinegar
1–1.5 litres chicken stock (depending on the size of your pan)
Tuna Sauce
300 g tinned tuna in olive oil, drained
4 hard-boiled eggs, peeled
1 tablespoon baby capers
Juice of 1 lemon
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt
Method
Cut the tops off the peppers and remove the seeds. Set aside, keeping each pepper paired with its own top.
Place the tuna, capers, chilli, lemon juice and olive oil in a food processor and season with salt and pepper. Pulse until well combined, but don’t blend to a purée — you want it to have some texture.
Using a teaspoon, fill the peppers with the tuna mixture, then place the tops back on and secure with a toothpick.
Transfer the stuffed peppers to two 1 litre preserving jars and add three basil leaves to each jar. Drizzle 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar into each jar and pour in enough olive oil to cover the peppers, then secure tightly with the lids.
Line the bottom of a large saucepan with a tea towel — the pan should be large enough to hold both jars upright. Add the jars and cover with water. Bring to the boil over medium heat, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 40 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and allow the jars to cool completely in the water. When cool, check that the lids are concave — this means they have created a vacuum. Once opened, store in the fridge for 2–3 weeks. Return to room temperature to serve.
