(See103)TERNERA
VEAL WITH ARTICHOKES FROM CORDOBA
The town of Montilla in Andalusia gave us the word amontillado for a certain style of strong, medium dry wine, though ironically we now associate it first with sherry. The wines from the Montilla-Moriles district are fortified in Spain, like sherry, and the popular Alvear fino, C.B., is used for both cooking and drinking. Exported Montillas are in the sherry styles but are unfortified and, as a consequence, cheaper than sherry. ‘Pale dry’ Montilla is excellent for cooking. It blends beautifully with veal escalopes in this dish from the neighbouring town of Cordoba, though leftover roast pork is nearly as good.
SERVES 4
8 – 12 small veal escalopes, about 550g (1.25 lb)
6 fresh globe artichokes or 400g (14 oz) canned
prepared bases
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons pork fat or butter
1 onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
125 ml (4 fl oz) pale dry or medium dry Montilla
wine or good sherry
150 – 250 ml (4 – 8 fl oz) meat or chicken stock
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Prepare the artichokes. Snap off the stalks (if they are stringy, that means the artichokes are tough and need an extra 5 minutes’ cooking). Trim the bottom flat, removing small leaves. Turn on the side and cut through the top leaves just above the choke, leaving a base about 4 cm (1.5 in) deep. Then trim away the side leaves with a small knife until the white base shows through. Cook the bases in boiling salted water for 10 minutes. Drain upside down and cool for 10 minutes.
Flip off any soft leaf stumps with your thumb, revealing the choke. Use a spoon and your thumb to remove the hairy choke, leaving a smooth cup base. Depending upon the toughness of the vegetable, this needs about 5 minutes’ more cooking, which in this recipe it gets once added to the veal. Otherwise braise it in a dish or in boiling water.
Heat the oil and fat or butter in a wide shallow casserole and fry the onion until softened (20 minutes on low heat) then add the garlic. Season the escalopes well then put in half of them, well spread out, and fry over high heat until coloured on both sides. Remove to a plate and fry the remaining veal. Then return all the veal to the pan and sprinkle with Montilla or sherry, boiling this away.
Add the stock – for canned artichoke bases use only half the stock. Bring to simmering point, add the quartered artichoke bases and cook for 5 minutes (or heat through if using canned bases). In Cordoba a dry Montilla would certainly be drunk with this dish, or Chiclana, the local sherry-like Cadiz white wine.
VEAL WITH ARTICHOKES FROM CORDOBA
The town of Montilla in Andalusia gave us the word amontillado for a certain style of strong, medium dry wine, though ironically we now associate it first with sherry. The wines from the Montilla-Moriles district are fortified in Spain, like sherry, and the popular Alvear fino, C.B., is used for both cooking and drinking. Exported Montillas are in the sherry styles but are unfortified and, as a consequence, cheaper than sherry. ‘Pale dry’ Montilla is excellent for cooking. It blends beautifully with veal escalopes in this dish from the neighbouring town of Cordoba, though leftover roast pork is nearly as good.
SERVES 4
8 – 12 small veal escalopes, about 550g (1.25 lb)
6 fresh globe artichokes or 400g (14 oz) canned
prepared bases
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons pork fat or butter
1 onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
125 ml (4 fl oz) pale dry or medium dry Montilla
wine or good sherry
150 – 250 ml (4 – 8 fl oz) meat or chicken stock
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Prepare the artichokes. Snap off the stalks (if they are stringy, that means the artichokes are tough and need an extra 5 minutes’ cooking). Trim the bottom flat, removing small leaves. Turn on the side and cut through the top leaves just above the choke, leaving a base about 4 cm (1.5 in) deep. Then trim away the side leaves with a small knife until the white base shows through. Cook the bases in boiling salted water for 10 minutes. Drain upside down and cool for 10 minutes.
Flip off any soft leaf stumps with your thumb, revealing the choke. Use a spoon and your thumb to remove the hairy choke, leaving a smooth cup base. Depending upon the toughness of the vegetable, this needs about 5 minutes’ more cooking, which in this recipe it gets once added to the veal. Otherwise braise it in a dish or in boiling water.
Heat the oil and fat or butter in a wide shallow casserole and fry the onion until softened (20 minutes on low heat) then add the garlic. Season the escalopes well then put in half of them, well spread out, and fry over high heat until coloured on both sides. Remove to a plate and fry the remaining veal. Then return all the veal to the pan and sprinkle with Montilla or sherry, boiling this away.
Add the stock – for canned artichoke bases use only half the stock. Bring to simmering point, add the quartered artichoke bases and cook for 5 minutes (or heat through if using canned bases). In Cordoba a dry Montilla would certainly be drunk with this dish, or Chiclana, the local sherry-like Cadiz white wine.
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