Offal ain't awful

[Sunset]

Granted, this one is probably for the more open minded members. But those violently opposed to such dishes will at least be exposed to an excellent port sauce that can be used with a variety of other mains and sides.

Crispy Veal Sweetbreads in Port Sauce. The brainchild of one David Vartanian. Exec. Chef of the Vintage Press, Visalia CA.

Take fresh sweetbreads(veal pancreas in this case) and immerse in extremely cold water. Place in fridge for 2-3hrs. This serves to remove any...uhhh..."sanguinary fluids" from the protein.


Next, fill large soup pot with 8-10cups of water...4 heaping TBS kosher salt(water must be pretty darn salty)...and 8 TBS fresh squeezed lemon juice OR white vinegar(but not both) depending on one's tastes. I prefer lemon juice. Bring pot to gentle boil and poach sweetbreads for 5min. Remove sweetbreads, and immediately drench in ice water. Once cool, pat dry and remove any excessive membrane(don't go crazy on this or they'll break apart).



Coat sweetbreads in mustard(I generally prefer Maille for most of my dishes, but good ol Gray Poupon works best for this one), then sprinkle with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.


Then, dredge sweetbreads in bread crumbs. I find that 2-3 day old baguette popped in the processor for a couple seconds works best.


Heat saute pan to med, place 2TBS of grapeseed oil(or whatever high flashpoint oil you have laying around) in pan and saute FOR COLOR ONLY. About 5min per side depending upon how hot your pan is. During this stage some folks like to place a heavy weight on sweetbreads to squash em down a bit.


Transfer to baking dish(I use old pie pans) and pop in 350deg oven for about 20min depending upon the thickness of the sweetbreads.

Using original saute pan, as well as the oil and fond therein, add 2TBS minced shallot, 1 heaping TBS chopped fresh green peppercorn in brine, as many jalapeno slivers as you like, and 3/4 cup of your favorite port. Reduce to half over high heat.


Add 1/4 cup veal broth(beef works fine too) and reduce to half. Then add 1/4 cup heavy cream and reduce to half.


Finally, reduce heat and add 1TBS good quality bleu cheese, and 1TBS butter to finish sauce. Remove sweetbreads from oven(they should be a little springy but never hard)....arrange previously sauteed(in chasedavid's magnificent shallot/garlic butter I might add) thinly sliced russet potato on plate...plop a couple sweetbreads on there...drizzle sauce...and top with chopped fresh parsley and toasted pink peppercorn. Pair with a medium structured slightly acidic red wine.





I do believe some of the nay-sayers would have a change of heart after wrappin' their lips around these little beauties.

[burma.girl]

That looks purty durn good! I've never had sweetbreads before, but if this luscious concoction was set before me, I do believe I'd give it a whirl! I'm sure hubby Squid would loooove to dive into this as well, however his gouty toe would prolly scream out in protest.
All the more for me!

[Sunset]

(01-08-2013 12:44 PM)burma.girl Wrote:  I've never had sweetbreads before, but if this luscious concoction was set before me, I do believe I'd give it a whirl!

That's the spirit!

Just be sure you make a bunch of "Mmmmm...ahhhhh....ohhhhmygosh" sounds so Mr Burma doesn't feel left out.

[Lanix]

That, my friend, looks totally AWESOME!!!!!!

[Sunset]

(01-08-2013 05:29 PM)Lanix Wrote:  That, my friend, looks totally AWESOME!!!!!!

Thanks amigo.