Vitello Tonnato sous vide #1

Vitello Tonnato is an Italian dish: veal served with a tuna-based sauce. I usually find it uninspired but at Bar Eixample in Barcelona we had a fantastic rendition that we wanted to re-create. The uniform pink of the meat suggested sous vide cooking, with the slight brown around the edge indicating a quick sear. We knew we'd have to cook, chill, sear, chill hard, then slice thinly. It came out pretty well, and we have thoughts on improvement and variations at the end. 

Our rendition

Bar Eixample's archetype

We started with an "Estalvi!" (sale!) cut of Vedella. In our grocery in Barcelona, "Vedella" is younger cow (under 18 months?) than "Bou" which is older than 18 months; neither is as pale as the "veal" you can find in the US.  I trimmed out the cut, removing fat and gristle, but I don't know what cut it was -- it was on sale, and we're just experimenting. We don't have our usual vacuum sealer and Searzall torch, so we improvised. 

This served two for a very pleasant lunch.

250 g Vedella, trimmed of fat, sinew, etc

1 Egg Yolk, room temperature

Lemon Juice

Tarragon Mustard

Sunflower Oil

52g Tuna, canned in olive oil

1 Anchovy

Capers

2 Endives, sliced in rounds (you could use Arugula or anything else)

Tomato, peeled, sliced in cubes

Capers

Parsley, chopped

Lemon zest

Cornichon

Pickled White Onion

Olives, black and green

Black Pepper

Vitello:

Cook the Vedella sous vide at 57.2C / 135F for 1 hour: you want it pink inside.

Let cool on the counter to absorb the juices, then chill over night in the fridge.

Heat 2 cast iron pans until smoking.

Thoroughly dry the Vedealla, then put it on one pan and put the other on top to sear both surfaces at once.

Sear for about a minute: you don't want to overcook the inside, just brown and maybe give a crust.

Let cool a bit, bag, then put in the freezer for 30 minutes to firm up for slicing.

Slice as thinly as possible, I was able to get 1-2mm slices.

Seared both sides on cast iron, leaving center rare

Tonnato:

With a stick blender, whisk the Egg Yolk up until frothy, with some Lemon Juice.

Add a dollop of Mustard, continue frothing with the stick blender.

Drizzle in the Oil to form a mayonnaise.

Separately, whiz up the Tuna, Anchovy, Capers then fold into the Mayonnaise; if you want it smooth, whiz them again together.

Plating:

Lay out the Endive rounds on a plate.

Top with some Tonnato.

Slice the now firm Vedalla thinly and arrange gracefully on the Endive bed.

Top with more Tonnato.

Garnish with the Tomato, Capers, Parsley, lemon Zest, Cornichon, Pickled White Onion, Olives.

Add a good grind of Black papper.

Serve with white wine and some good bread or crackers.

This turned out well, a very elegant lunch, without a lot of fuss.

It could easily be scaled up, and almost all of it can be prepared ahead of time.

Next time...

Add some Salt to the Vedella to help the flavor; I understand this is usually contra-indicated for sous vide, but figure the moisture it draws out from the meat will have time to migrate back in, like it does with a dry brine.

Freeze a bit longer, maybe 45-60 minutes, to firm up and make thin slicing easier.

Add another Anchovy and maybe a bit more Tuna to boost flavor.

The presentation at Bar Eixample indicated a cylindrical muscle like a loin; we should seek out other cuts.  Ours, cooked, had a taste and texture like properly cooked American Roast Beef; the Bar's was more lightly colored and less pronounced flavor, as if from a younger animal.

We could try other meats: pork loin would be the right shape, we can find lamb here easily, even turkey could work; we'd have to experiment to see what temperatures give us a good color and texture.

Samfaina amb Bacalao: Easter dish of salt cod with stewed vegetable sauce

Samfaina is a classic Catalan dish of stewed eggplant with a sofrito of onion, garlic, and grated tomato; it's frequently a side dish to meats, or used as a sauce, as we do here. Ratatouille is a more famous French version, but Claudia Roden and makes the case that this preparation of vegetables originated in Spain, since the Arabs introduced the eggplant to the Iberian peninsula long ago; both she and Coleman Andrews point out that peppers and tomatoes came from Spain's conquest of the "new world" and were widely used here before they appeared in French cooking. 

I'm drawing from Coleman Andrews book "Catalan Cuisine" for both Samfaina and a chef's take on Bacalao amb Samfaina. Claudia Roden's recipe in "The Food of Spain" is similar, but she adds the vegetables in stages. Directo al Paladar has a recipe including bacalao that is detailed with pictures. Many recipes include zucchini, but Roden doesn't like that version, and I don't think it adds much.

The red bell peppers we get in Barcelona are huge, compared to the green/red bells we got in the US. The eggplant I got here looks like a smaller version of the "globe" version in the US, but I think any variety (including slender Japanese) would work fine. Proportions are approximate, below is the weight of the veggies I had on hand. 

Bacalao on Samfaina, with white beans and crunchy breadcrumbs

This serves 2 but you'll probably have extra samfaina; keep it to serve with other dishes.

 50 ml     Extra Virgin Olive Oil, as needed

150 g      Onion (1 medium), chopped

  4 cloves Garlic, minced

330 g      Eggplant (1 medium), skin on, 1-2 cm dice

240 g      Tomatoes (4 medium), grated or chopped

300 g      Red Bell Pepper (1 large), skin on, seeded, 1-22 cm dice

250 g      Bacalao, hydrated 2 days to desalinate, skinned

           Flour

           Olive Oil

Heat the Oil on medium with some Salt, add Onions, cook covered for a few minutes.

Add Garlic.

When onions are soft, add Peppers and Eggplant; add Oil if needed.

Cook covered on medium for 30-40 minutes.

Uncover, increase heat a bit, cook until liquid has evaporated, stirring occasionally.

Add Tomatoes, continue cooking uncovered, until liquid evaporates again and vegetables are very soft, probably another 20 minutes. 

Season with Salt and Pepper.

Dry Bacalao thoroughly, cut into 2 serving size pieces; dust each with flour then sauté in a small amount of Oil on all sides until golden-brown. 

Add on top of the Samfaina, cover, cook on low until fish is cooked through.

Serve by spooning out some Samfaina onto plates and top with Bacalao.

Potaje de Vigilia: Easter stew of chickpeas, spinach, bacalao

We've been immersing ourselves in the seasonal foods in Barcelona, and Easter Week (semana santa) is a big deal here with its own foods.  Despite being a food of abstinence (vigilia), this is rich and the flavor is well more than the sum of ingredients. It's not hard to make, and you could substitute ham for the bacalao to provide the salty umami, or omit the egg and bacalao if you wanted a vegan version.  Claudia Rodan's recipe doesn't use the bacalao in her recipe; I'm basing mine on Emma Garcia's which uses a "majado" of breadcrumbs, egg, and oil to provide body and flavor.

Garbanzos, Spinach, Bacalao, garnished with chopped Egg Whites

Measurements are approximate, I'm aiming for a something thicker than a soup, almost a stew. This makes four dinner portions.

240 g      Bacalao, hydrated over two nights, changing water

240 g      Garbanzo beans, dried; rehydrate overnight

  2 whole  Cloves

  2        Bay Leaves

           Olive Oil, for frying

  2 clove  Garlic, sliced or chopped

  2 slices Bread

  2        Eggs

           Extra Virgin Olive Oil, for majado

200 g      Onion (or Leek), chopped

130 g      Tomato, chopped

300 ml     Fish Stock

big pinch  Pimentón Dulce

300 g      Spinach, fresh

Soak the salted, dried Bacalao in water overnight; change the water, soak again overnight, drain. If it's still stiff and too salty, soak bit more, but you'll be cooking it and don't want to leach all the salt funk from the fish.

Soak the dried Garbanzo beans overnight in plenty of water. Drain and leave in the fridge until you're ready. You could use cooked canned or jarred garbanzos too.

Cook the Garbanzos covered in water with the Cloves and Bay Leaf, some Salt and Pepper, and with any aromatics you have around -- a carrot, celery stalk, onion, etc. This should take about 90-120 minutes, covered, on a lazy simmer.

Add some Olive Oil to a skillet and sauté the Garlic; reserve.
Add the bread and toast in the Olive Oil on both sides until a bit crunchy and toasted; you might want to weight it down to make good contact; reserve. Don't clean the skillet, you'll use it again in a minute.

Boil the eggs: add to cold water, bring to boil, turn off, cover, and let sit 10 minutes. Peel and separate yolks from whites, keep both. 

In a blender or food processor, blitz the toasted bread with two egg yolks and some nice Extra Virgin Olive Oil. This makes a "majado" -- kinda like a panade -- which will thicken the sauce and add depth of flavor. Reserve.

The blitzed majado

Add some more Olive Oil to the skillet and sauté the Onions until soft and a bit golden, add then the Tomato, and cook until soft. Blitz in blender or food processor with the Fish Stock and Pimentón, to get a smooth texture. 

When cooked, drain the Garbanzos and collect the cooking liquid; toss the aromatics.

Add the Garbanzos back to the pot with the smooth Onion Tomato Stock. 

Add the Majado for body and flavor.

Add the Spinach and stir to cook, and let it reduce down.

If it's too thick for your liking, add the bean cooking liquid until you get the texture you like; you could thin it with more Fish Stock too, if needed.

Cut up the rehydrated Bacalao and add to the potage, and let it cook through a few minutes.

Check seasoning for Salt and Pepper.

Serve in bowls, garnished with chopped Egg Whites.