France Blanquette de Veau (Veal in White Sauce)
Blanquette de veau, meaning “veal in white sauce,” is one of the most well-known traditional dishes in French cuisine. With rich flavors derived from simple ingredients, this recipe was originally invented as a way to repurpose leftovers. It has since evolved into an elegant meal that is served in many top French restaurants. The key to cooking this dish is slow-simmering both the veal and vegetables so that neither brown but they soak in the juices of the other to create a delicate and cohesive meal. Recipe Servings: Serves 8
Prep Time
30 minutes
Cook Time
1 hour 50 minutes
Total Time
2 hours 20 minutes
Vegetarian
Vegan
Gluten Free
Dairy Free
Kosher
Halal
Ingredients
- 10 oz (285 g) pearl onions
- 4 1/2 lb (2 kg) deboned veal shoulder, cut into 1-inch (2.5-cm) pieces
- 9 cups (2 l) chicken stock
- 3 sprigs fresh thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 5 Tbsp (75 g) butter
- 1 1/2 lb (680 g) celery root, peeled and cut into 1 1/2-inch (4-cm) pieces
- 4 large carrots, peeled, cut into 1 1/2-inch (4-cm) lengths
- 3 medium turnips, peeled and each cut into 6 pieces
- 8 oz (230 g) button mushrooms
- 6 oz (170 g) haricots verts, trimmed
- 3 Tbsp (25 g) flour
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) whipping cream
- 1/2 Tbsp (7.5 ml) fresh lemon juice
- salt to taste
- black pepper to taste
- 1/2 bunch fresh chives, cut into 2-inch (5-cm) pieces
Directions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
- Add whole onions to the pot and cook them briefly, only 1–2 minutes.
- Remove the onions from pot with a slotted spoon. Peel the onion skin off and cut off the ends.
- Add the veal to the pot and boil for 4–5 minutes. Drain the hot water from the pot and blanch the veal with cold running water.
- Add the veal to the pot again. Pour most of the chicken stock over the veal, reserving about 1/2 cup (120 ml), and bring to a boil. Simmer the veal in the stock for 30 minutes on low heat.
- Add bay leaves and thyme to the pot, simmering the mixture for another 30 minutes until the veal is tender.
- In a separate pot, melt 1/2 of the butter and add the reserved chicken stock, celery root, turnips, carrots, mushrooms, and onions.
- Place the lid on the pot and cook until most of the liquid is gone and the vegetables are just cooked. Add the haricots verts and cook briefly, for 1–2 minutes.
- Drain the veal, reserving 2 cups (480 ml) of liquid, and add the veal to the vegetables.
- In a saucepan on medium heat, melt the rest of the butter and add the flour, stirring constantly until the mixture is golden brown.
- Whisk in the 2 cups of the veal broth. Stir for 5 minutes until the sauce thickens. Add the whipping cream and stir briefly. Add the lemon juice and season as desired with salt and pepper.
- Serve blanquette de veau hot, pouring the creamy sauce over the veal and vegetable mixture and garnishing the plate with chives.
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