SUPREME DE VOLAILLE EN CROUTE DE NOIX
AU ROMARIN
Chicken Breasts in a Walnut and Rosemary Crust (Tsukasa Fukuyama, A & M Le Bistrot)
4 free-range chicken breasts, with skin
Salt
Freshly ground pepper
Scant ½ cup (50 g) all-purpose (plain) flour
⅓ cup (100 ml) peanut oil
½ cup (100 g) butter
⅓ cup (40 g) chopped walnuts
8 sprigs rosemary, chopped
Side vegetables
2 bunches of asparagus
1½ tablespoons butter
Salt
First prepare the side vegetables. If using asparagus (see Helpful hint for alternative side vegetables), discard the tough end of the stalk, cut into pieces and boil in salted water for 3 to 5 minutes, depending on size. Drain, plunge in iced water, and drain again. When you are ready to serve, toss them in hot butter over low heat.
Rub the chicken breasts with salt and pepper, then coat in flour, shaking off any excess. In a skillet, heat oil and half of the butter over medium heat until the mixture foams. Add chicken and cook 5 minutes, skin side down, until golden, then turn over and cook a further 3 minutes. Cover, remove from heat and set aside 5 minutes.
Prepare noisette butter (see page 74) using the remaining butter. Reheat the vegetables.
Place a drained breast on each plate, sprinkle with walnuts and a couple of pinches of rosemary, pour on a drizzle of noisette butter, and garnish with a side vegetable of your choice. Accompany with a white Burgundy.
Helpful hints: An alternative side vegetable to the asparagus is cabbage and juniper berries. Discard the tough outer leaves of 1 green cabbage, delicately remove the inner leaves from the tender heart and blanche them in a large quantity of water salted with rock salt for about 3 minutes. Drain thoroughly. Before serving, make a noisette butter (see page 78) from ¼ cup (50 g) butter, then reheat the cabbage in it and season with 1 tablespoon crashed juniper berries.
MAGRET DE CANARD, POINTES D'ASPERGES AU JUS
Duck Breast and Asparagus Tips (Benoît Chagny, A & M Le Bistrot)
2 bunches of medium-sized green asparagus, tough stalk ends discarded, trimmed to the same length
2 duck breasts, preferably from fattened ducks from southwest France
Quatre-épices (a classical spice mix, usually a blend of nutmeg, ginger, cloves, and white pepper)
1 teaspoon peanut oil
⅓ cup (100 ml) veal fond
1½ tablespoons butter
⅓ cup (30 g) parmesan
Rock salt and table salt
Pepper
Boil asparagus in water that has been generously salted with rock salt for about 5 minutes. Test for doneness by pricking the thickest part of a stalk with a toothpick. It should enter easily and the texture should be both firm and tender. Cool asparagus under running water, pat dry and cut in half. Set aside.
Using the tip of a small paring knife, remove the troublesome nerve that runs the length of the breast, then score the skin making diamond shapes. Rub the flesh with quatre-épices, salt, and pepper. Rub the surface of a heavy pan with oil, place over medium heat, and place the breasts skin side down. The breasts will render sufficient fat. Keep spooning the melted fat over the meat (the French say you are "feeding" the meat.) When the skin becomes crisp (about 10 minutes), add 3 tablespoons boiling water, turn the breasts over, and cook briefly. Remove from pan and drain on a wire rack and allow the meat to rest for as long as it cooked: a further 10 minutes. Doing so will ensure that the duck is incredibly tender.
Heat a broiler (grill). Discard all but 3 tablespoons fat from the pan. Add the veal fond, and gently detach the cooked-on juices at the bottom of the pan and reduce until slightly syrupy, season with salt and pepper and strain through a chinois or sieve into a small saucepan. Add half the butter, whisk and hold over the lowest heat possible.
In another pan, roll the asparagus in the rest of the butter and reheat, but do not allow to color. Add 1 tablespoon of sauce and roll again.
Slice the duck breasts and fan out on 4 dinner plates, place under the broiler for 30 seconds to warm through, garnish with the asparagus, either crisscrossed or in a circle around the meat, top with a little sauce, add a few strips of parmesan, and serve. Accompany with a Madivan or Cahors.
CANARD ROTI, LEGUMES NOUVEAUX
Roast Duck with Baby Vegetables (Patrick Rayer, La Rôtisserie du Beaujolais)
2 quarts (2 liters) water with a generous pinch of rock salt
10 oz (300 g) snow peas (mange-tout), trimmed
10 oz (300 g) very slender French beans, trimmed
10 oz (300 g) small new turnips, peeled (leaving a little green stem)
10 oz (300 g) small new carrots, peeled (leaving a little green stem)
1 duck, about 5 lb (2½ kg), with its offal roughly chopped
2 large carrots, diced
2 large onions, peeled and diced
1 head of garlic, cut in half
1 chicken bouillon cube
2 cups (500 ml) boiling water
2 tablespoons butter
Rock salt and table salt
Mignonnette (coarsely cracked pepper) and freshly ground pepper
At least 2 hours before mealtime, prepare the vegetables. Bring salted water to a boil, and cook the vegetables separately in the following order: snow peas, for 3 minutes after the water returns to a boil; green beans, 5 minutes; turnips, 7 minutes; carrots, 10 minutes. Strain with a slotted spoon, refresh under cold running water and reserve separately.
Preheat oven to 425°F (220°C, gas mark 7). Rub the duck inside and out with rock salt and mignonnette, place in a roasting pan, and place in the middle of the oven for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 400°F (200°C, gas mark 6) and bake for 10 minutes. Add the roughly chopped offal and bake for a further 10 minutes, then add carrot, onion, and garlic, and continue baking for 15 minutes (the duck will have been in the oven for a total of 50 minutes).
Meanwhile, make a stock with 2 cups (500 ml) boiling water and the chicken bouillon cube.
Remove the duck, place on a dish and cover with aluminum foil. The blood that was forced into the center of the animal will now have time to spread back through the meat, giving it the desired degree of tenderness. Reduce oven temperature to 325°F (160°C, gas mark 3).
Skim off the fat from the roasting pan with a spoon. Add the stock, scrape the cooked on bits with a spatula, and reduce by slightly more than half, to a scant 1 cup (200 ml). This will take about 15 minutes.
In an ovenproof serving platter, arrange the cooled vegetables, and season lightly. With a large sharp knife, split the duck into two halves, along the breast bone, and place on the bed of vegetables. Moisten with the sauce poured through a chinois or sieve, pressing slightly with a spoon to extract all the flavor. Scatter the butter over the top, then place in the oven for 10 minutes to heat through. Accompany with a bottle of Vacqueyras.
PINTADE CONFITE ET HARICOTS VERTS
A LA TAPENADE
Guinea Fowl with Green Beans and Olive Paste (Philippe Tredgeu, Chez Casimir)
4 guinea fowl legs, skin on (substitute with 4 rabbit legs for Lapin Confit)
4 cups (1 liter) olive oil + 1 tablespoon extra
2 lb (1 kg) green beans
1 lump butter
Pepper from the mill
Marinade
2 lb (1 kg) rock salt
4 sprigs thyme
4 large cloves garlic
Tapenade
5 oz (150 g) black olives
1 clove garlic
1 oz (30 g) anchovies (salt packed)
3 tablespoons olive oil
The day before, arrange the pieces of poultry in a shallow dish in a single layer, place a sprig of thyme and a crushed, unpeeled clove of garlic on each piece. Cover with a layer of rock salt, chill and marinate overnight.
The next day, remove the meat from its marinade and wipe thoroughly with a clean cloth. You will note that the flesh has become slightly firm.
Heat 4 cups oil to 175°F (80°C) in a large shallow saucepan (the oil should barely be simmering). Add the meat and cook for 1 hour over constant low heat. You may need to add an isolating pad between the flame and the pot. All confits require long cooking over low heat.
While the meat is cooking, trim the beans, and cook in a little salted boiling water. Boil for just a few minutes, keeping them a little crisp. Drain and cool under cool running water. Set aside.
Make the tapenade with the olives, garlic, anchovies, a little freshly ground pepper, and 3 tablespoons oil (see page 52). In a blender or food procesor, make a paste that is uniform and firm.
Just before serving, heat 2 tablespoons water, 1 tablespoon oil, and the butter in a saucepan. When it comes to a boil, whisk the mixture to form an emulsion. Add the beans, and cook just long enough to reheat, stirring gently with a wooden spoon. Remove from the heat, add 2 tablespoons of the tapenade and mix well.
Remove the meat from the oil with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Quickly make a bed of vegetables on each plate, top with a piece of meat and serve. This dish is also delicious with green peas, fava beans, or mashed potatoes. Whatever the accompaniment, do not forget the Tapenade. If you have some left over, spread it on toasted bread and enjoy. Accompany with a red Madiran, Cahors, or Béarn.
STEAK TARTARE & FILET DU BOEUF
Steak Tartare (Andre Signoret, Le Train Bleu) &
Beff Fittet with Potato Gratin (Joel Renty, Brasserie Mollard)
STEAK TARTARE
1½ lb (700 g) well-aged fillet of beef
4 egg yolks
4 teaspoons hot mustard
4 teaspoons oil
Dash of Tabasco Salt
Freshly ground pepper
4 tablespoons finely chopped shallots
4 tablespoons finely chopped pickles (gherkins)
4 tablespoons finely chopped flat leaf parsley
4 tablespoons of capers in vinegar, drained
On a cutting board, finely mince the meat with a sharp knife (an electric meat grinder will only give you mush). Pour into a mixing bowl.
In a bowl, mix the yolks and mustard and add the oil, drop by drop, as if you were making mayonnaise, then season with a dash of Tabasco, and a sprinkling of salt and pepper. Pour over the meat, add the chopped condiments and capers, and mix thoroughly. Serve with a green salad and a slightly chilled Beaujolais.
BEEF FILLET WITH POTATO GRATIN
1 clove garlic
4 thick slices fillet cut beef (see page 39), 6 oz (180 g) per person, from well-aged beef
2 lb (1 kg) waxy potatoes (such as bintje), peeled, washed and patted dry, thinly sliced
3 cups (750 ml) fresh whole milk
1 egg, beaten
1¼ cups (175 g) grated cheese
Salt
Freshly ground pepper
Nutmeg
1½ tablespoons butter
Preheat the oven to 360°F (180°C, gas mark 4). Peel the garlic, split the clove and rub it over a shallow earthernware baking dish. Boil the milk and pour over the potatoes in a mixing bowl. Add 4 oz (125 g) of the cheese, the beaten egg, salt, pepper, and grated nutmeg to season. Mix well. Pour the potatoes into the garlicky baking dish, cover with the rest of the grated cheese and scatter with small lumps of butter. Bake for at least 40 minutes until the potatoes are tender and the top golden.
Just before serving, place the steaks in a heavy skillet that has been heated over high heat. Cook for 3 minutes on each side—fillets should always be served a rosy medium rare. Season, then place on warmed plates, an garnish, if you want to respect tradition, with a small bunch of cress. Serve the potato gratin separately. Serve this classical dish with a Saint-Emilion or a red Graves.
DAUBE AU VIN ROUGE
Beef Simmered in Red Wine (Jean-Jacques Raffiani, Paris Main d'Or)
Make your daube a day in advance; it is much better reheated.
4 tablespoons olive oil
2 lb (1 kg) beef short ribs, cut into 3 ½-oz (100-g) piececs
3 large onions, peeled and chopped
4 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
5 oz (150 g) smoked slab bacon, with its rind, cubed
1 tablespoon all-purpose (plain) flour
4 large, ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and chopped (see page 33)
1 heaping tablespoon of tomato paste (concentrate)
1 bottle Corsican red wine, or failing that, another tannic red wine
1 bouquet garni comprising 4 sprigs parsley, 1 sprig thyme, and 1 bay leaf
Rock salt
Black peppercorns
Pour half the oil into a large cast-iron pot, and heat until it begins to smoke. Brown the meat on all sides. When there is no juice remaining in the pot, remove the meat with a slotted spoon, and lower the heat. Add onions, garlic, and bacon to the pot with the remaining oil, and saute, stirring from time to time.
When the onions are transparent, put the meat, and its juices, back into the pot, sprinkle with flour and stir thoroughly. Add the tomato and the concentrate, wine, bouquet garni, a little rock salt, 10 peppercorns, and enough water to cove. Stir and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to the minimum and simmer, covered, for 3 hours, or even better, bake in an oven heated to 300°F (150°C, gas mark 2) if the lid is ovenproof (this is not always the case). Cool to room temperature and reserve.
The next day, reheat the stew gently, 30 minutes over low heat, and serve with polenta or large pasta shapes like macaroni. A bottle of Mercurey would make a fine accompaniment.
POT-AU-FEU DANS SA TRADITION
Traditional Pot-Au-Feu (Thierry Colas, Marty)
2 lb (1 kg) stewing beef, using 2 different cuts from the following list: shank, short ribs, flank, or brisket
1 onion, peeled and studded with 1 clove
2 cloves garlic, peeled
1 bouquet garni comprising 4 or 5 sprigs of parsley, 1 sprig thyme, 1 bay leaf
Handful rock salt
10 peppercorns
4 small leeks, washed, most of the green trimmed off
4 turnips, peeled and washed
4 carrots, peeled and washed
4 firm potatoes (such as charlottes), peeled and washed
4 pieces of celery root (celeriac), approximately half a bulb, washed
4 marrow bone pieces, each cut to 2 in (5 cm) in length
Fresh thyme
Pepper
3½ oz (100 g) vermicelli pasta
Nutmeg
Garnish
Rock salt
Small cornichon pickles or gherkins Pickled onions
A selection of mustards and horseradish
Four hours before the meal, place the meat in a stock pot with the onion, garlic, bouquet garni, a handful of rock salt, and about 10 peppercorns. Add cold water to cover by 2 in (5 cm), and bring to a boil. Remove the scum that rises to the surface with a slotted spoon, then leave simmering for 3 hours. Add the vegetables and cook for a further 45 minutes.
Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C, gas mark 6). Place the marrow bones in a roasting pan, sprinkle with rock salt and loose leaf thyme, add pepper and set aside.
Just before serving, remove 4 ladlesful of broth to a saucepan (leaving the meat and vegetables to simmer, covered, in the remaining liquid). Bring to a boil, cook the pasta and serve in individual bowls, with a little grated nutmeg if you like (even though Thierry Colas would not approve, but like all questions of taste, this is a very personal matter!). Just before sitting down to enjoy the stock, do not forget to place the marrow bones into the oven for 15 minutes.
Once you have cleared away the bowls, serve the drained vegetables and meats, along with the roasted marrow, on a large platter. Pass around toasted bread for the marrow. Each diner helps him or herself to the garnishes and condiments. Served in this manner, a pauper's dish becomes a dish fit for a king. Accompany with a Morgon or a Juliénas.
HACHIS PARMENTIER
French Shepherds Pie (Tsukasa Fukuyama, A & M Le Bistrot)
1½ lb (750 g) stewing beef (cheeks, shanks or brisket) or 2 lb (1 kg) oxtail
2 large onions, peeled and chopped
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
1 stalk celery, peeled and chopped
3 cloves garlic, peeled
1 sprig thyme
1 bay leaf
1 clove
1½ lb (750 g) waxy potatoes (such as bintjes), peeled and washed
¾ cup (150 g) butter, at room temperature
⅔ cup (150 ml) milk
2 tablespoon peanut (groundnut) oil
1 small bunch flat leaf parsley
Rock salt and table salt
Black peppercorns and pepper from the mill
Place the meat in a stockpot, cover with boiling water, and bring to a boil. Skim the scum that rises to the top as the water boils, then add half the onion, the chopped vegetables, garlic, thyme, bay leaf, clove, and a dozen or so peppercorns. Leave to cook at a low simmer for 3 hours, covered.
About 1 hour before the meat is done, place potatoes in a pot with some rock salt, cover with cold water and bring to aboil. Boil 20 to 30 minutes, until the potatoes can be pierced with the tip of a knife without offering any resistance. Drain, put through a food mill, and transfer to a bowl containing the butter, stir with a wooden spoon but do not overmix (doing so will make it pasty), then add just enough milk to make the mash thick, but not compact.
Drain the cooked meat over a saucepan, and reserve the broth. Discard the vegetables and shred the meat. Saute remaining onion in oil over low heat, then add the meat and a ladleful of broth to keep the meat tender. Season with salt, pepper, and parsley and cook until all the broth has been absorbed. Meanwhile, over high heat, reduce the rest of the broth by half.
In a shallow baking dish, place a layer of mashed potato, then the meat, then cover with the remaining potato. Brown under the broiler or grill for a few minutes.
When you remove it from the oven, pour on the hot reduced broth. Traditionally, this masterpiece of popular cooking is served with a plain green salad. Accompany with a red Loire Valley wine.
TIAN D'AGNEAU AUX OLIVES
Provencal Lamb and Olive Tian (Jean-Jacques Raffiani, Paris Main d'Or)
A tian is a shallow, round earthenware dish traditionally used in Provence. Like terrine for example, the same word describes both the dish itself and the vessel in which it is cooked.
4 tablespoons olive oil
3 lb (1½ kg) boneless shoulder of lamb, cut into cubes about 2 oz (50 g) each
3 large onions, peeled and sliced
6 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
4 large ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded and roughly chopped (see page 33)
1 tablespoon tomato paste (concentrate)
1 green bell pepper (capsicum), cut into strips
1 bouquet garni comprising 3 sprigs parsley, 1 small stalk thyme, and 1 bay leaf
Salt
Ground pepper
6½ oz (200 g) green and black olives, pitted
1 chicken stock cube mixed with 250 ml (1 cup) water
In a large skillet, heat half the oil until it starts to smoke then saute the meat. When it has browned evenly on all sides, remove with a slotted spoon to a shallow dish.
Lower the heat, add remaining oil to pan and soften the onions. Add the garlic, tomatoes, concentrate, bell pepper, bouquet garni, salt, and pepper. Mix well and simmer for 30 minutes until the sauce thickens, stirring from time to time.
Preheat oven to 360°F (180°C, gas mark 4). Remove sauce from heat. Stir in the olives, the meat, and all the juices from the dish. Pour into a tian or other baking dish, cover with stock and bake for 1½ hours.
Serve with potatoes boiled in salted water, and encourage each diner to mash the potato in the sauce with the back of his or her fork. For a dish as hardy and tasty as this, you can—just this once—forgo what would generally be considered "good" table manners. Accompany with a Mercurey.
TRAVERS DE PORCELET AU MIEL,
PUREE A LA CIVE
Honey-glazed Suckling Pig Ribs with Herbed Mashed Potato
(Thierry Colas, Marty)
1½ lb (800 g) firm potatoes (such as charlottes or BF 15s), peeled and washed
⅓ cup (100 ml) dark soy sauce
⅓ cup (100 ml) acacia honey
1½ lb (800 g) rack of ribs from a suckling pig
½ cup (100 g) butter, at room temperature
⅓ cup (100 ml) milk, warm
1 small bunch sprouted shallots or scallions (spring onions)
1 chicken stock cube mixed with 250 ml (1 cup) water
Rock salt
Place potatoes in a saucepan, cover with cold water, salt, and bring to a boil. Cook 20 to 30 minutes, until the tip of a knife meets no resistance.
Meanwhile, preheat oven to 360°F (180°C, gas mark 4). Mix the soy sauce and honey in a bowl then brush the mixture onto the ribs in a roasting pan. Place the meat in the oven for 10 to 15 minutes, basting every 2 minutes with the remaining sauce. They should be glistening, shiny, and caramelized.
The potatoes should be done by this point. Drain, return to the saucepan with the butter, mash with the back of a fork, add enough milk to reach the desired consistency, neither too thick nor too runny. Keep warm in a double boiler.
Now it should be the ribs' turn to be ready. Place on a platter, switch off the oven and keep warm, using the residual heat to warm the dinner plates as well. Use warm stock to lift off the baked-on pan juices, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes to reduce, scraping gently with a spatula.
Chop the greens of the onions or shallots and mix into the potatoes. Slice between each rib, place the ribs on one side of the plate, the mash on the other, pour on the sauce and immediately serve this marvel of a dish, balanced between the Oriental and the Occidental, between invention and tradition.
Accompany with a bottle of red Graves.
CÔTE DE VEAU FOYOT, POMMES SAUTÉES
"Foyots" Veal Chops with Sautéed Potatoes (Anaré Signoret, Le Train Bleu)
3 tablespoons butter
4 oz (125 g) white bread crumbs
4 oz (125 g) gruyère or other Swiss-type cheese, grated 4 prime veal chops, bone in, about 8 oz (250 g) each
2 lb (1 kg) firm potatoes (such as BF 15s), peeled, washed and cut in very thin slices, wiped with a cloth to remove starch
Salt
Freshly ground pepper
1 small bunch flat leaf parsley, washed, patted dry and stems removed
6 tablespoons peanut (groundnut) oil
3½ oz (100 g) all-purpose (plain) flour
Sauce
1 cup (250 ml) veal fond
1 small glass port
Scant 1 cup (190 g) butter
Several hours in advance or the night before, make the "Foyot" garnish by mixing together half the butter, the breadcrumbs, and grated cheese. Place the mixture on a plate, and form a round shape, about 4 in (10 cm) across and 1¾ in (4 cm) high, and reserve in the refrigerator.
In a large non-stick pan, melt 3 tablespoons of the butter and 4 tablespoons of the oil (or substitute 3½ oz/100 g goose fat, delicious!) and saute the potatoes over medium heat about 30 minutes, turning very carefully from time to time, as they brown. When the potatoes are done, add salt, pepper, and the chopped parsley.
While the potaotes are cooking, start on the sauce, so that it will be ready at the same time. Boil the veal fond in a saucepan over medium heat until reduced by half. Reduce the port in a separate pan until it becomes syrupy, then add the fond and reduce to scant 1 cup (220 ml). Finally, whisk in the butter, bit by bit, to thicken.
When the potatoes are half done, light the broiler or grill. Season the veal chops, dust lightly with flour, shaking off any excess, and cook in a heavy ovenproof skillet, in the remaining butter and oil, about 7 minutes per side, over medium heat.
When you turn the meat over, place a ½-in (1-cm) slice of the Foyot mixture on each chop. Finish cooking in the pan, then grill in the oven for 5 minutes until brown.
Place a chop on each plate, with sauce to one side, and the potatoes to the other, and savor this sparkling jewel of bourgeoise cuisine. A good Saint-Estèphe or other red Bordeaux would be a good choice of wine for accompanying this dish.
ROGNONS DE VEAU BEAUGE ET LEUR PUREE
Beaujolais-style Calves Kidneys with Mashed Potato
(Patrick Rayer, La Rôtisserie du Beaujolais)
2 lb (1 kg) firm potatoes (such as BF 15s)
⅔-1 cup (150-250 ml) milk
2 large calves' kidneys, fat removed, cut into cubes about ¾-in (1½-cm) square
1 tablespoon goose fat or peanut oil
½ cup (100 g) butter
Rock salt and table salt
Freshly ground pepper
Sauce
4 shallots, peeled and finely chopped
1 teaspoon butter
¾ cup (200 ml) dry white wine (a Macon, if available)
¾ cup (200 ml) veal fond
⅔ cup (150 ml) heavy (double) cream
1 heaped tablespoon Dijon mustard
Forty-five minutes before the meal, prepare old-fashioned mashed potatoes that will be the perfect foil for your kidneys. Peel and wash the potatoes, place in pan, cover with cold water and a little rock salt. Bring to a boil, cook 30 minutes, then drain, pass through a food mill into a mixing bowl containing ½ cup (100 g) butter. Mix with a whisk, add just enough milk to reach the desired consistency, neither too stiff nor too liquidy. Keep warm over a double boiler.
Less than 30 minutes before sitting down to dinner, start the sauce. Saute the shallots in butter over low heat then add the wine and reduce over high heat until there is only the equivalent of 2 teaspoons of juice left in the pan. Add the fond, and when it boils, add the cream. Cook over low heat stirring often, until the sauce coats the back of a spoon. Add the mustard and mix well.
Now take care of the kidneys. Season them, then heat the oil or fat in a non-stick pan and fry the kidneys over high heat no more than 5 minutes. Their centers should still be pink.
Drain, wipe the pan gently with paper towel, then add the sauce to deglaze the pan, gently removing the cooked on juice in the pan. Add the kidneys, stir quickly and serve at once with the mashed potatoes. Accompany with a Brouilly or a Régnié.
BLANQUETTE DE VEAU A LA VANILLE
ET AUX AGRUMES
Veal Stew Scented with Vanilla and Citrus Fruit (Stéphane Baron, Le Zéphyr)
Prepare side vegetables of fresh spinach, steamed leek or basmati rice during the cold season, beans or peas in the spring or summer.
2 lb (1 kg) slighty fatty cuts of veal (breast, flank, rump) cubed, briefly blanched then rinsed under cold running water
1 carrot, peeled and finely chopped
1 leek, washed and finely chopped
1 onion, peeled and finely chopped
1 bouquet garni comprising 1 bay leaf, 1 sprig thyme, and 3 sprigs parsley
3 limes
1 plump vanilla bean
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose (plain) flour
2 pink grapefruits, carefully peeled, membrane removed, to garnish
20 g crème fraîche, or failing that heavy (double) cream
Rock salt, table salt, white peppercorns, freshly ground pepper
Side vegetables of your choice
Place onions, carrot, and leek in a pot with the bouquet garni, meat, 2 of the limes cut in half, the split vanilla bean, a sprinkling of rock salt, and a few peppercorns. Cover with cold water, bring to a boil, then simmer covered for 1½ hours.
Meanwhile, wash the remaining lime, and add its zest and juice to the crème fraîche; you will use it to finish the sauce.
When the stew is ready, remove the meat with a slotted spoon and place in a large saucepan. Strain the cooking bouillon through a chinois or sieve, scrape the vanilla seeds from the bean and discard the solids. Reserve 2 cups (500 ml) bouillon, pour the rest over the meat and hold over medium heat.
In another pan, melt the butter over low heat until it begins to sizzle, add the flour, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes, keeping the heat low so that it does not brown (this is called a white roux). Add the reserved 2 cups bouillon and continue to cook, stirring until the liquid thickens, like custard sauce. Correct the seasoning, remove from heat and add the lime-flavored cream. Stir well.
To assemble, plate the vegetables first, topped with drained meat, cover with the sauce and decorate with an odd number of grapefruit slices (which is much more attractive). Enjoy this dish with a glass of Pouilly Fumé.
