A Snowy Day Requires a Good Meat Fix: Braised Veal

I’m having such a great time trying out braised meats these days, the only thing stopping me from making more is the fact that I like to eat fish about 3 times a week! I like meat a lot but I usually like it when it’s almost raw, not cooked for hours. I’ve always believed that meat cooked for longer than 3 minutes ends up hard to chew and tasteless once put in the mouth. For some weird reason, it took me about 3 decades to discover that meat cooked for more than 3 minutes (more like 3 hours!) could actually be a melt in your mouth and super tasty experience.

I’m only at the beginning of my experiments but I’ve actually tried to braise spare ribs, veal roast, duck breasts and beef cubes. Not all of my experiments turn out great. Yes, there are some nights where we concentrate on eating the rice rather than the meat (that braised duck breast was a total disaster!). But hey, you’ve got to miss a few to figure out some amazing recipes!!

My veal was a case of, well, can I say it? Pure genius! It’s a melt in your mouth meal with tasty smoky veal and soft potatoes as a bonus. On a day like today, when it’s snowing outside and all you feel like is staying in with your loved ones, this is a perfect dinner treat.

BRAISED VEAL ROAST

Makes about 6 servings

 

INGREDIENTS

1 Veal roast, about 1kg

½ cup flour

Salt & pepper

1 tbsp olive oil

2 onions, chopped in diced

1 cup smoked lard cubes

1 ½ cups mushrooms, chopped

2 cups dry white wine

2 cups chicken broth

3 potatoes, peeled and diced

PREPARATION

Preheat your oven at 300˚F.

Put the flour on a plate and roll the roast in it. Cover the roast with salt & pepper. Keep the leftover flour on the side.

In a skillet, heat the oil over high heat. Sear the roast on each side so they become nice and brown. Take the roast out of the skillet and keep on the side.

Bring the heat to medium-high and add the onions and lard cubes. Cook for a few minutes, until the onions are translucent. Add the mushrooms and cook for about 2 more minutes. Poor the wine and let reduce of about ¼. Finally, slowly add the leftover flour to thicken the sauce.

In a large ovenproof pot, put the roast. Poor the onions and lard mixture on top and add the chicken broth.

Put in the middle of the oven, covered, and cook for 1-hour ½. Add the potatoes and cook for another 1 ½ hour.

When ready to serve, undo the roast in filaments and serve with nice colorful vegetables.

 

Note: You can make your roast up to 3 days in advance. Reduce your cooking time to 2 hours. When about to serve, heat in the oven for about 1 hour at 300˚F.