Home › Veal Rissoles › Veal Rissoles
Veal Rissoles
558. Slice a pound of crumb of bread and soak it in milk a quarter of an hour, lay it in a sieve and press it dry; mince finely a pound of veal cutlets, with six ounces of veal suet, mix in gradually the bread, season and add grated lemon, moisten with two beaten eggs, then roll into oval balls rather smaller than an egg. Strew over them dry bread-crumbs, fry them in lard or butter; drain well and send to table hot. Serve veal gravy thickened with butter and flour, yolk of egg and lemon juice in a boat to eat with the rissoles. Minced chickens or turkey may be dressed as above.
A panade-bound forcemeat ball, close to what a German cook would call a Frikadelle. The proportions are generous with bread, so the mix will be soft; chilling before shaping is the difference between neat ovals and a pan of collapsed meat.
- Mince the veal yourselfCutlets minced finely means a hand-chopped or coarse-ground texture, not a paste. Cube chilled veal and pulse it in a food processor, or ask a butcher to grind it once on a coarse plate.
- Veal suetRarely sold now. Beef suet works, or substitute 6 oz of finely diced pork fatback or fatty pork shoulder; the fat is what keeps a lean meat like veal from drying in the pan.
- The breadA pound of crumb is by weight of soft interior bread with crusts removed, which will take rather more than a small loaf. Squeeze it genuinely dry after soaking or the mixture will not hold a shape.
- SeasonThe original leaves this to the cook. Reckon on about 2 teaspoons salt, a good grind of pepper, a grating of nutmeg and the zest of one lemon for this quantity.
- Chill before shapingHalf an hour in the refrigerator firms the fat and makes the ovals far easier to roll and crumb. At the size given -- rather smaller than an egg, so nearer 1½ oz each -- the batch will run to something over twenty.
- FryingShallow-fry in about half an inch of fat over medium heat, turning to colour all sides, 8 to 10 minutes total. Veal forcemeat should reach 160F at the centre; the balls are dense enough that a hot, fast fry will brown the crumb before the middle is done.
- The sauceA veloute finished with egg yolk and lemon. Temper the yolk with a ladle of the hot gravy before it goes back into the pan and keep the sauce below a simmer afterwards, or it will curdle.
- Poultry versionThe original does not say whether the poultry is raw or cooked. If cooked meat from a roast is used, it is drier and binds less well, so keep the egg and add the bread more sparingly until the mixture just holds.