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To Stew a Knuckle of Veal (Break the bone in two or three)
434. Break the bone in two or three places; put to it five pints of water, eight shalots, a bunch of sweet-herbs, some whole black pepper, a little salt and mace; boil it together till half the water is consumed, then take out the meat, herbs, and spice, thicken with two spoonsful of flour, and boil it till the flour is sufficiently done; then put back the best of the meat, add two glasses of Madeira wine, lemon-juice, and cayenne. Two calf's feet improve it much. It should be stewed over a slow fire.
A gelatinous shin cut, an aromatic reduction and a Madeira finish — essentially a one-pot braise that makes its own sauce from the bone. The whole method hinges on the words at the end: over a slow fire, meaning a bare simmer, never a rolling boil.
- The cutA knuckle of veal is the lower part of the leg (fore or hind), sawn across the bone; ask a butcher for veal shin or osso buco pieces, bone-in. The recipe gives no weight. Having the bone broken in two or three places is what releases the marrow and gelatine, so keep it bone-in.
- Five pintsThis book uses imperial pints of 20 fl oz, so five pints is 100 fl oz — about 12 US cups, or 2.8 litres. The meat should be well covered; top up only if the level drops below it before the reduction is done.
- Reduction and timingSimmering until half the water is gone takes roughly 2.5 to 3 hours on a low burner in a covered pot with the lid ajar. Judge by the liquid level rather than the clock, and keep it at a lazy simmer — hard boiling clouds the broth and toughens the meat.
- Shalots and maceShalots are shallots; eight small ones peeled and left whole. Mace is the outer covering of nutmeg, sold as blades or ground; a blade or two, or a scant quarter teaspoon ground, is enough for this quantity.
- ThickeningTwo spoonsful of flour is most likely about 2 tablespoons. Do not tip it into the hot broth dry — slake it with a little cold water or a knob of butter first, then whisk it in and simmer 8 to 10 minutes so the raw flour taste cooks out.
- Two glasses of MadeiraA wine glass of the period runs around 2 fl oz, so figure about 1/2 cup total. Add it after the flour has cooked and give it a few minutes uncovered; a medium-dry Madeira such as Verdelho suits the dish better than a sweet Malmsey.
- Calf's feetThey are there for body, not flavour, and are rarely stocked now. A split pig's trotter or a couple of extra veal knuckle bones does the same work, adding the gelatine that makes the finished sauce glossy and slightly sticky on the lip.
- Seasoning at the endLemon juice and cayenne go in at the finish and should be judged by taste — start with the juice of half a lemon and a pinch of cayenne. Check the salt at this stage too, since reducing by half concentrates whatever went in at the start.
- YieldA 3 to 4 lb knuckle with its sauce serves four, with rice or plain boiled potatoes to take the gravy.