Vitello Tonnato (Veal with Tuna Sauce)
Vitello Tonnato is a classic Piemontese dish made with thinly sliced veal served with a tuna and caper mayonnaise sauce. It might sound like an odd combination but it's one of my favourite things ever and it's unbelievably delicious. It's traditionally served both during the summer months and at Christmas time!
Servings: 4 servings as a main
Equipment
- Kitchen string
Ingredients
- 1.9 lbs (850g) veal topside or eye of round tied
- 1 gallon (4 litres) cold water
- 1 onion
- 1 stick celery
- 1 large carrot
- 1 bunch fresh parsley with stalks
- 1 sprig of fresh rosemary sprig
- 1 bay leaf fresh or dried
- 4 cloves
- 6 peppercorns
- 1 fresh garlic clove
For the sauce
- 5.6 oz (110g) canned tuna in olive oil we used Rio Mare
- ½ cup (90g) good quality mayonnaise
- 2 anchovy fillets
- 1.5 tablespoons (20g) capers in brine drained
Garnish
- Capers or caper berries optional
- Freshly chopped parsley optional
Instructions
Prep
- Trim any silverskin from the veal then tie it with kitchen string to keep it intact. Sprinkle salt over the veal, set aside.
- Cut the carrot and celery in two and peel the onion. Insert the cloves into the onion then cut in half. Fill a large stock pot with water and add all the veg with the peppercorns, garlic bay, rosemary and parsley.
Cook
- Bring the water to a boil then dd the whole piece of veal. Turn it down to a simmer and cover the pot leaving the lid a jar and let the veal poach for 40 minutes.
- Remove the veal to a cutting board or plate, wrap it in foil and let it cool completely.
To make the sauce
- Add all the sauce ingredients to a food processor and blitz until smooth and creamy. We like to use a container and an immersion blender to get it extra smooth.
To serve
- When the veal is cold (room temp), cut it into slices as thinly as you can. Arrange the slices of veal on plates or a platter and top with the tuna sauce.
- Add some capers or caperberries and freshly chopped parsley on top as garnish and serve.
Notes
- Storage - The veal tastes even better the next day. Once cooled completely, wrap it in foil and keep it refrigerated overnight. Bring it to room temperature before serving. Once cooked the veal will keep well in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- The sauce can also be made in advance (up to 2 days prior) just make sure to bring the sauce to room temperature before serving.
- Veal alternative - if you can’t find veal you can use pork loin or even pork tenderloin which will be extra tender but will require a lot less cooking time. Turkey breast is also another good alternative.
- Alternative sauce - instead of using mayo you can blitz all the sauce ingredients with 2 hard-boiled eggs. Use the veal broth to emulsify it into a sauce.
- Roasting - instead of poaching you can roast the veal/pork or turkey instead.
Nutrition
Calories: 444kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 48g | Fat: 25g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 11g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 0.04g | Cholesterol: 182mg | Sodium: 553mg | Potassium: 839mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 2623IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 70mg | Iron: 2mg
