No. 1543

Round Bottom Fricandeau of Veal Glazed with Gravy

Sous-noix Fricandeau Glacee au Jus

A fricandeau is to be prepared either with the kernel, or round bottom; under all circumstances the meat must not be cut too thick, then beat it with a damp cleaver in order to flatten it even more while breaking the fibers. Lard the meat with larding pork (No. 2, Fig. 52) on its smoothest side; cover the bottom of a deep sautoir with fragments of the pork, sliced vegetables and onions, and aromatic herbs; lay the meat on top of this stock, baste it over with melted butter or good dripping, salt, and let cook on a moderate fire while watching carefully; moisten it by degrees with stock (No. 194a), allowing it to fall slowly to a glaze but without letting it brown; then moisten to the height of the larded side, and at the first boil cover the sautoir, and push it into a slow oven to finish cooking the meat, while basting it frequently, which will take an hour and a half to two hours, drain off the gravy and lay the meat on a hot dish; strain the gravy, free from all its fat, reduce properly and pour it over the meat.

← No. 1542 Rack of Veal a l'Albani Veal No. 1544 Round Bottom of Veal, Minced, Sicilian →

For the Modern Kitchen

Ranhofer assumes a cook who already knows how to lard a joint and read a fire. The technique is a braise in two stages: a slow dry glaze, then a moist finish under cover. Everything depends on the meat never browning.

The cutSous-noix is the under-cushion of the veal leg, sold now as bottom round or silverside; the noix or kernel is the top round. Ranhofer only says the slice must not be cut too thick, and it is flattened further with the cleaver; a piece of 2 to 3 lb, with the grain running across, will serve six or so.
Larding porkNo. 2, Fig. 52 refers to Ranhofer's plate of larding lardons — strips of fresh unsmoked back fat drawn through the surface with a larding needle. Fresh fatback from a butcher works; salt pork must be blanched first, and smoked bacon will make the dish taste of bacon rather than veal.
SautoirA wide straight-sided pan, not a saucepan. A heavy braiser or oval Dutch oven just large enough to hold the meat flat is the right vessel — too wide and the stock will not reach the height of the larded side.
Slow oven300 to 325F. Higher and the surface colors, which this preparation specifically avoids: a fricandeau is meant to finish pale ivory under a clear amber glaze.
The stockNo. 194a is one of Ranhofer's stocks, cross-referenced elsewhere in the book. Since nothing here may brown, use a light, unsalted veal or chicken stock; brown stock or commercial beef broth will darken the glaze.
Falling to a glazeThe hinge of the recipe. The first additions of stock are meant to evaporate almost entirely, leaving a sticky film on the meat and pan; this is repeated before the final flooding. Rush it and you get boiled veal with no glaze, so keep the heat moderate and add liquid a ladle at a time.
Basting and donenessBaste every 15 to 20 minutes so the exposed larded top keeps its sheen. Ninety minutes to two hours is realistic for a 2 to 3 lb piece; the test is a skewer sliding out with no resistance, not a thermometer reading.
The finishing sauceStrain, skim the fat thoroughly, then reduce hard until it coats a spoon. Ranhofer salts the meat at the start, so taste before adding more: the gravy concentrates as it reduces.
To serveA fricandeau was classically sent out on a bed of sorrel pur", with the reduced gravy poured over it as the recipe directs. Carve in slices across the grain.

A Little History

Fricandeau has meant a larded, braised slice of veal leg in French cookery since at least the eighteenth century, and the glazing method here — repeated reductions of stock painted onto the meat by evaporation rather than by browning — was one of the show pieces of the classical kitchen, since the result is judged almost entirely by its color and shine. Charles Ranhofer, chef at Delmonico's in New York for more than thirty years, published The Epicurean in 1894 as a complete record of that restaurant's repertoire, and its veal chapter runs to dozens of numbered variations on the same few cuts, each cross-referenced to a stock, a garnish or an engraved plate elsewhere in the book. The cross-references are the point: the book was written for professionals working through a brigade, not for anyone cooking a single dish from start to finish. Larding itself has largely vanished from home kitchens along with the needle, a casualty of leaner butchery and of veal's decline from the most prestigious meat on an American menu to an occasional one.