Vitello Tonnato ( Roasted Veal in Tuna Sauce)
A much-loved classic of Piedmont’s cuisine – and long a favourite in our household – vitello tonnato is often made by roasting a boned leg of veal and serving cold slices with a delicious blended sauce of tuna and home-made mayonnaise.
This is often served as part of antipasto in Piedmont (when it will easily serve eight), but it also makes a perfect light summer lunch for four with a fresh, crisp salad.
Ingredients 11
500 g veal leg, boned
1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 tbsp butter
1 onion, small, sliced
1 tsp capers, rinsed
2 ‒ 3 anchovies, preserved in oil, drained
100 g tuna, tinned, drained
125 ml white wine
1⁄2 lemon juice
1 hard-boiled egg
fresh flat-leaf parsley (italian flat-leaf parsley), finely chopped, to serve
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Method 6
Remove the from the refrigerator 1 hour before cooking.
Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F).
Season the veal with salt and pepper. Heat the in a heavy-based ovenproof pan (cast iron is my preference) over a medium–high heat and sear the evenly on all sides to a light golden brown. Transfer to a plate.
Add the , , , and to the same pan and turn the heat down to medium. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is soft, the anchovies have melted and the tuna has taken on a bit of colour, about 7 minutes.
Place the back in the pan and pour over the . Cover with a heatproof lid or aluminium foil and place in the oven. Cook for 15 minutes for rare or 25 minutes for medium. Let the veal rest for at least 10–15 minutes before slicing into it. If you are planning on serving this later, leave to cool, wrap well with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Scrape the , , , , and any pan juices from the pan into a food processor, along with the juice of and the , and blend until you have a smooth sauce. Serve this over the top of the and scatter over some fresh parsley.
Emiko Davies' tips
If you are planning on serving this later, leave to cool, wrap well with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve.
This is often served as part of antipasto in Piedmont (when it will easily serve eight), but it also makes a perfect light summer lunch for four with a fresh, crisp salad.
