Eating Italy: A Chef's Culinary Adventure (20 page)

PAN-FRIED VEAL TONGUE
with
BAGNA CAUDA AND LEEKS

The first time I ever tried tongue, it was on a taco in Basalt, Colorado. This was years before I lived in Italy. Then in Piedmont, I had it over and over as part of the famous
bollito misto
(boiled mixed meats) served with
salsa verde
and
salsa rossa.
I love the idea of fish and meat together, so I thought the region’s creamy anchovy sauce
(bagna cauda)
would go great with soft, crispy veal tongue. I boil the tongue until tender and then slice it and bread and fry each slice only on side, for crunch. Sometimes I add a bitter edge by garnishing the dish with pieces of radicchio and a few grindings of black pepper.

MAKES 4 TO 6 SERVINGS

Veal Tongue:

1½ quarts (1.5 L) 3-2-1 Brine (
page 280
)

⅛ teaspoon (0.75 g) curing salt #1 (see
page 277
)

1 veal tongue (about 1½ pounds/680 g)

Bagna Cauda and Leeks:

1 cup (235 ml) whole milk

1 cup (235 ml) heavy cream

4 garlic cloves, smashed

1 cup (235 ml) blended oil (
page 276
)

2 ounces (57 g) salt-packed anchovies (about 5), rinsed and filleted (see note)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 leeks, cleaned and trimmed

4 ounces (1 stick/113 g) unsalted butter

Leaves from 1 sprig fresh rosemary

Breading and Garnish:

About ½ cup (62 g)
tipo
00 flour (see
page 277
) or all-purpose flour

1 large egg, beaten

About ½ cup (54 g) plain, dry breadcrumbs

4 tablespoons (57 g) unsalted butter

¼ cup (60 ml) olive oil, plus some for drizzling

1 tablespoon (4 g) chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley for garnish

Note

To prepare salt-packed anchovies, rinse them well, brushing off the salt with your fingers, or soak them for a few hours in several changes of cold water to help remove the salt. Remove the heads, tails, and fins. Place the blade of your knife perpendicular to the fish just below where the head was and cut along the body, holding the blade against the backbone as you go. This will remove the top fillet. Put the tip of your knife under the backbone and then pull out and remove the backbone to expose the bottom fillet.

For the veal tongue
Combine the brine and curing salt in a large resealable plastic bag. Add the veal tongue, press out the air, seal, and refrigerate for 3 days.

Transfer the tongue to a medium saucepan. Add one-quarter of the brine and enough water to cover the tongue by about 1 inch (2.5 cm). Cover and bring to a simmer over medium heat, then adjust the heat so that the liquid simmers gently. Simmer until the tongue is tender (about 190°F/88°C internal temperature), 1 to 1½ hours. Remove the pan from the heat and let the tongue cool down in the liquid.

When cool, remove and discard the skin. Cut the tongue crosswise into slabs about ¼ inch (6 mm) wide. Refrigerate for up to 2 days.

For the bagna cauda and leeks:
Combine the milk, cream, and garlic in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a simmer, then lower the heat to medium and cook until the liquid reduces in volume by about half, 6 to 8 minutes, taking care not to let the milk boil over. Meanwhile, heat the oil and anchovies in a sauté pan over medium heat until the anchovies break down, 3 to 4 minutes. Let cool slightly, then slowly scrape the oil mixture into the cream mixture; it may bubble up some. Simmer until the liquid reduces in volume by about one-third, thickens, and gets creamy, another 6 to 8 minutes. Let cool slightly, then puree in a blender. Season with salt and pepper.

Cut the leeks into pieces about 1½ inches (3.8 cm) long and 1 inch (2.5 cm) wide, and transfer them to the same sauté pan used for the anchovies. Add the butter and rosemary, and cook over medium heat, stirring a few times to break up the leek layers, until the leeks become super-soft and nearly melted but not browned, about 10 minutes. If necessary, stir in a little water so that the liquid remains creamy and not separated. Scrape into the pureed bagna cauda and keep warm over low heat.

Pour the flour, beaten egg, and breadcrumbs into three separate shallow bowls. Dredge one flat side of each piece of veal tongue in the flour, then the egg, then the breadcrumbs. Heat the butter and oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. When hot, add the tongue in batches, breaded-side down, and fry until golden brown on that side only, 3 to 4 minutes. Then flip, and cook the other side for 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer to paper towels to drain.

Spoon the bagna cauda mixture down the middle of small plates. Place a few pieces of tongue, breaded-side up, in the center of each plate. Drizzle with olive oil and garnish with chopped parsley.

RED BELL PEPPER TONNATO
with
CAPER BERRIES

I’m always looking for new variations of
vitello tonnato
, Piedmont’s classic dish of braised and sliced veal leg served cold with a creamy olive oil, egg yolk, and tuna sauce. At Osteria, we serve sliced porchetta with tonnato sauce. But at Alla Spina, I wanted to do a lighter snack and decided on this mousse of tuna wrapped in roasted pepper to form a sort of savory cannoli. Caper berries and lemon bring out the traditional tonnato flavors.

MAKES 4 SERVINGS

4 roasted red bell peppers (
page 278
)

1¼ teaspoons (3 g) powdered gelatin

4 anchovy fillets

1 tablespoon (15 ml) white wine vinegar

½ ounce capers (about 2 tablespoons/14 g), plus a few for garnish, preferably salted instead of soaked

7 ounces (200 g) canned Italian tuna packed in olive oil

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

½ cup (120 ml) mayonnaise

Zest from 2 lemons

2 tablespoons (8 g) chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

½ cup (120 ml) olive oil

Cut the roasted peppers into eight rectangles, each about 4 to 5 inches (10 to 13 cm) long and 2 to 3 inches (5 to 8 cm) wide.

Mix the gelatin with 1 tablespoon (15 ml) of water in a medium heatproof bowl and let stand until bloomed (plump, soft, and hydrated), 5 minutes. Meanwhile, puree the anchovies, vinegar, and capers in a food processor. With the machine running, slowly add the tuna a little at a time, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl once or twice. Season with salt and pepper.

Put the bowl of bloomed gelatin over a pan of gently simmering water and heat until melted and smooth, 3 to 4 minutes, stirring a few times. Slowly stir the tuna mixture into the gelatin a little at a time, until fully incorporated. Remove the bowl from the heat and let cool for 5 minutes. Cover and refrigerate until very firm, at least 2 hours or up to 2 days. When the mixture has chilled, fold in the mayonnaise and keep cold.

Combine the lemon zest, parsley, and olive oil in a small bowl.

Lay the pepper rectangles out flat and spread about 2 teaspoons (10 ml) of cold filling over each one. Roll up the peppers like little jelly rolls to make a tube shape. The stuffed, rolled peppers can be refrigerated for up to 4 hours before serving. Top each with a caper berry (or more if you’re using small capers) and drizzle the flavored oil over the top.

RABBIT AGNOLOTTI
with
PISTACHIO SAUCE

I’m a big fan of combining meat and nuts—especially rabbit and pistachios. Rabbit is delicate meat, but when roasted over wood, it takes in a ton of flavor that stands up to pistachios. I like to spit-roast a whole rabbit over wood for this ravioli filling, and then grind it with mortadella and bind the filling with egg and Parmesan. You can also grill rabbit pieces as described in the recipe. Add some water-soaked wood chips to the fire for more smoke flavor. I call for rabbit legs instead of a whole rabbit, to make a reasonable number of servings for home cooks. But if you want to cook a whole rabbit, double the recipe. You’ll get about twenty servings, which can be frozen for a week or two, so you get a few meals out of it.

MAKES 8 TO 10 SERVINGS

Rabbit and Mortadella Filling:

1¾ pounds (794 g) rabbit legs

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons (30 ml) grapeseed oil

5 ounces (142 g) mortadella, cubed

1 large egg

1¾ ounces (50 g) Parmesan cheese, grated (½ cup)

1 pound (450 g) Egg Pasta Dough (
page 282
), rolled into 4 sheets, each about
inch (0.8 mm) thick

Pistachio Sauce:

2 cups (300 g) raw unsalted pistachios, preferably Sicilian

1 cup (235 ml) blended oil (
page 276
)

1 tablespoon (15 ml) sherry vinegar

5 large basil leaves

½ small garlic clove

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

To Serve:

2 tablespoons (30 ml) white truffle paste (see Sources,
page 289
)

1 cup (150 g) chopped raw unsalted pistachios, preferably Sicilian

3½ ounces (100 g) Parmesan cheese, grated (1 cup)

¼ cup (60 ml) extra-virgin olive oil

For the rabbit and mortadella filling:
Light a grill for indirect medium heat, about 350°F (175°C); on a charcoal grill, bank all the hot coals to one side of the grill; on a gas grill, light the burners on only one side of the grill and leave the other burners off.

Season the rabbit legs with salt and pepper and coat all over with oil. Coat the grill grate with oil. Grill directly over the heat until browned on both sides, about 5 minutes per side. Move the rabbit to the unheated part of the grill, and cook until the juices run clear, about 140°F (60°C) on an instant-read thermometer, 30 to 35 minutes. While cooking, turn the rabbit a few times and baste it with oil to keep it moist.

Transfer the rabbit to a platter, and when cool enough to handle, remove and discard all the bones, reserving the meat and skin. You should have about 1¼ pounds (570 g) of rabbit meat. Grind the rabbit meat and mortadella together on the small (¼-inch/6.2-cm) die of a meat grinder into a large bowl. Using the paddle attachment of an electric mixer or a wooden spoon, mix in the egg and Parmesan until incorporated and the mixture looks somewhat pasty. Spoon the mixture into a resealable plastic bag, seal, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 2 days.

Lay a pasta sheet on a lightly floured work surface. Form two rows of ½-inch (1.25-cm)-diameter balls of filling along the length of the sheet, leaving a 1½-inch (6 mm) margin around each ball. Spritz the dough with water to keep it from drying out as you work. Cut the pasta sheet in half lengthwise between the rows of filling to make two long sheets. Lightly moisten the long edges of the sheets with a spritz or a finger dipped in water. Starting from the outside edges in, fold the dough over just to cover the filling and roll the sheet of pasta over itself again. Next, pinch the dough in between the balls of filling to remove the air, starting at one end and working your way to the other. Place a finger gently on the stuffing to create a dimple, then cut between the balls of filling to create the ravioli. Repeat with the remaining pasta dough and filling. You should have 175 to 200 agnolotti. You may have some leftover filling; use it like you would use any other sausage. Place the agnolotti in single layers between sheets of waxed or parchment paper, cover, and freeze for up to 2 days. Take the pasta right from the freezer to the pasta water to cook.