Stufato di Vitello

Veal Stew

        This is a very soft but flavorful dish. I prefer not to put all the vegetables inside my stew. Having some on their own makes for a more interesting whole meal experience. So instead of adding potato chunks to be cooked to oblivion inside, I've chosen to create a Passato di Patate, or potato purée, to surround the stew and give that wonderful gravy something to clothe. You could surround the potato boat with whatever fresh vegetables you prefer. Unfortunately, it is not yet fresh vegetable season on the Niagara Frontier, so I've chosen chopped spinach from the freezer. To dress it up a little, I've mixed in some thinly sliced small mushrooms and added a few tablespoons of the finest balsamic vinegar. This makes a festive wreath on the plate. It also tastes good!

        Veal Stew screams for a non-cloying red to accompany it. Vietti's Barbera d'Asti fits this definition perfectly. The 2005 La Crena is a good example of this estate's fine workmanship. It is made from 100% Barbera. This is one of the 9,980 bottles produced. I tasted another bottle a few years ago, and it is even better now. Just two more left in my cellar L

        Shallots are milder tasting than onions, and work well here. The cinnamon stick allows you to control the amount of this flavor better than would ground Cinnamon. It enhances the veal and nicely rounds out the gravy. Just one-half hour in the stew produces the perfect balance. You could use regular thickly sliced bacon chunks instead of the Pancetta, but it will impart the flavor of whatever the bacon was smoked in. Pancetta produces a lovely soft flavor to this dish (as well as most tomato sauces). I used my homemade beef stock. (I freeze this in one-cup containers.) Chicken or vegetable stock could be used, but will produce slightly different (but not worse) flavors of the gravy. As with Ossobuco, a gremolata adds a little zing to the stew. Some swirl it in for a minute or two when the stew is finished, but I prefer it sprinkled on top of the stew when it is plated.

        I prepared everything at the same time, but the stew can easily be made a day or two ahead and just heated up prior to serving. This would be a tremendous time saver if one were pressed, leaving only the Potatoes to deal with ... the Spinach is a very quick preparation. In fact, even the Potatoes could be done ahead and refrigerated in a Pyrex^® casserole for a day, ready to be reheated in the oven. Just swirl in a little butter at service time, and you're ready to go. Both the Veal stew and Potatoes would reheat nicely in a 325F oven in 45 minutes to one hour.

most of the ingredients

Ingredients:

        stew

                1    lb          Veal, cut into 3/4" cubes

                2    oz.        Pancetta, cut into small dice

                1                 Carrot, small dice

                1                 Celery stalk, small dice

                2    oz.        Shallots, thinly sliced

                1    clove     Garlic

                2    Tbs       Olive oil

                2    Tbs       Butter

                1                 Cinnamon stick (small)

                1    Tbs       Tomato paste (dissolve in stock)

vegetables, prepped

                1    cup       Beef stock

                3    oz         Mushrooms, small*

                                   salt & pepper

        potatoes

                1    lb          Potatoes

                3    Tbs       Butter

                1    cup       Milk**

                                   salt

        spinach

                8    oz         Spinach, frozen

                ½   cup       Water

                3                 small Mushrooms, sliced*

                2    Tbs       Balsamic Vinegar

for gremolata

                                   salt & pepper

        gremolata

                2                 sprigs Parsley, minced

                1    clove      Garlic, minced

                                   Zest of one lemon

        *  Remove three of the mushrooms and slice for the spinach. Sauté the whole mushrooms in 2 Tbs    Butter and 2 Tbs Olive Oil and reserve for the stew. Then sauté the sliced mushrooms and reserve for the spinach.

        **The amount of Milk is a variable because Potatoes types behave differently. Just keep adding, as you whisk, until you get the consistency you prefer.

Method:

        1      Heat 2 Tbs Olive Oil and 2 Tbs Butter in a heavy bottomed pan until warm. Sauté Pancetta, Shallots, Carrot, Celery and the Garlic clove for about 5 minutes, until they are translucent.

         2      Meanwhile in a small pan, sauté the whole Mushrooms, and then do the sliced Mushrooms and reserve.

whole mushrooms for stew

      

sliced mushrooms for spinach

  

        3      When the stew vegetables are soft, add the Veal, and brown all sides. When meat is seared, you might favor the pot with a splash of Brandy (optional). 

brown veal

             Remove the Garlic clove, and add the whole Mushrooms and sprinkle some Salt and Pepper over everything. Slowly stir in the Beef stock with dissolved Tomato paste. 

ready to simmer

            Add the Cinnamon stick, cover and place on low heat for at least 2 hours, until the veal is very tender. After the first half-hour, remove the Cinnamon stick. 

removing cinnamon at 1/2 hr mark

            After the first hour, slide the lid so the pan is partially covered. Keep your eye on the stew during this last hour, to make sure it is not too dry, or not too wet. You can probably do this by adjusting the lid, but feel free to a little water if necessary.

        4      When the stew begins to simmer is probably a good time to prepare the Gremolata, since it can wait. Mince Parsley and one clove of Garlic. Zest one lemon and put the ingredients together and reserve for the final plating.

gremolata, not yet mixed

        5      While stew is cooking, wash Potatoes and add them to a pan of water. Bring this to a boil and then lower heat so that the pan is just at a slight boil. 

            Cook Potatoes until they just pierce nicely with a fork. Drain water and let them cool for a few minutes. Remove skin, cut them into chunks and press them through a Potato Ricer into a mixer bowl. Add 3 Tbs of Butter, some Salt and about ½ cup of the Milk. Using the Whisk attachment, slowly beat the Potatoes, adding more Milk until Potatoes are fluffy.

ricing potatoes

        6      When the stew is just about finished, place spinach and ½ cup water in a small pan and bring to a quick boil. Lower heat and let boil for about 4 minutes, fluffing with a fork a few times while cooking. When Spinach is done, drain into a strainer and force out most of the water. Place back into the warm pan, add the sliced mushrooms and the Balsamic Vinegar and stir together with a fork.

        7      Plating. I piled a good helping of Potatoes in the center of the plate and then made a pocket in the middle, creating a little Potato wreath. I carefully spooned the Spinach around the outside of this, making a larger, green wreath. Then I filled the Potato pocket with the stew and sprinkled a good helping of the Gremolata over this.

          Enjoy!