Veal Scaloppine with Marsala
It’s my turn to move on to veal. This recipe is another very simple recipe, with few ingredients-vegetable oil, butter, veal, flour, salt, pepper, and Marsala wine. In the Fundamentals chapter of her book, Marcella discusses Veal Scaloppine. She says the problem is finding a butcher who knows how to cut it properly. So she prefers to buy a solid piece of meat, a top round, and cut and pound it yourself. I bought the veal top round, and followed her directions for slicing the meat across the grain, then pounding it thin so it will cook quickly and evenly. I don’t know if I did it perfectly, but it seemed to work nicely.
So back to the recipe. You heat butter and oil in a skillet. When hot, you dredge both sides of the scaloppine in flour, shake off the excess, and place in the skillet. Brown about 30 seconds on each side. Remove from pan, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and continue cooking pieces until all of the meat is cooked.
You then turn the heat to high, add Marsala wine, and deglaze the pan. Add a little butter, and place the scaloppine back in the skillet. Turn them a couple of times to coat them with the sauce, and that’s it-they’re ready to enjoy.
I served mine with a green salad, and a celery risotto. Very quick, and very delicious.
Looks very tasty.
You didn’t have any problems getting the Marsala wine? Here in Oz I can only get one type which is produced locally and it seems to be sweet and unpleasant when used in this way.
Does anyone know if there is another name for Marsala or brand that I should be looking out for? I always get directed to the local brand when I make inquiries in a bottle shop. I have not been able to find it online for delivery.
The cuts of veal I buy are thinner than this. I think I will have to buy the top round myself also.
While this looks good, my take is that the scaloppini could have been a bit thinner and not so much flour. When I have eaten this dish as well as Veal Piccata, there is only a slight amount of flour to help with the browning…but the secret is in the sauce!
Let’s hear what Marcella has to say.
Richard- My veal pictures do make the veal look quite thik, but they weren’t. I actually had trouble with some because I cut them so thin. I think I most likely photographed the thickest ones to get a prettier picture.
Pounding, while it is the appropriate culinary term, does not accurately describe the action. Stretching would be closer to it. As the pounder comes down and makes contact with the meat, you must immediately slide it forward while maintaining pressure on the slice of meat. You are stretching the fibers, not beating them down. If you are just literally pounding, your scaloppine will be thick, as in the photo. They need very little flour, dredge them airily, and shake off vigorously.
Marsala is not a grape, but it is a controlled wine name, like Beaujolais or Bourgogne or Bordeaux or Chianti, etc. It is a maderized wine, like sherry. It’s surprising that it is not available in Australia. We are not familiar with Australian sherries. If you can find a decent Amontillado sherry, that may be okay, although it cannot duplicate the aromas of the Marsala.
Pounding, while it is the appropriate culinary term, does not accurately describe the action. Stretching would be closer to it. As the pounder comes down and makes contact with the meat, you must immediately slide it forward while maintaining pressure on the slice of meat. You are stretching the fibers, not beating them down. If you are just literally pounding, your scaloppine will be thick, as in the photo. They need very little flour, dredge them airily, and shake off vigorously.
Marsala is not a grape, but it is a controlled wine name, like Beaujolais or Bourgogne or Bordeaux or Chianti, etc. It is a maderized wine, like sherry. It’s surprising that it is not available in Australia. We are not familiar with Australian sherries. If you can find a decent Amontillado sherry, that may be okay, although it cannot duplicate the aromas of the Marsala.
Thank you Marcella. I will keep looking.
David