Jarret de Veau. The Dish Called Osso Buco in Italian. In France Jarret is Also a Cut Used for Many Other Dishes Made With Veal, Beef, Lamb and Pork.

Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com


 
Jarret de Veau
or
Osso Buco.
Photograph courtesy of tannaz
www.flickr.com/photos/tannazie/2552435205/

  

Jarret de Veau in French or Osso Buco in Italian is essentially the same dish, distinguished mainly by slight variations in the herbs used and the accompanying vegetables. Arguments over which herbs and vegetables to use—and how to prepare them—will likely go on forever. Under its French name, jarret de veau, or the dish’s Italian name, osso buco, and whether prepared in Italy or France, this is a dish that must be cooked very, very slowly to absorb all the flavors.

 

The meat, along with white wine, will have been braised for hours, with the bone marrow adding its special magic of flavors and texture as the meat braises and the flavors and texture combine. With a well-prepared jarret de veau on the first bite, you encounter a taste of the veal that will practically melt on your tongue, and the combined flavors of the other ingredients will provide a symphony of tastes. Well-trained chefs show their skills through a jarret de veau that keeps the customers returning


Jarret de Veau.
Photograph courtesy of Carnivore Locavore
www.flickr.com/photos/46722918@N08/8638857938/
The jarret is cut from the shin or shank of veal, sliced across the bone just below the knee, with the meat surrounding the marrow -filled center, which is the heart of the dish.
In France, the jarret is also used for other dishes made with veal, beef, lamb, or pork.


The French cuts of veal.
The jarret comes from both the fore and hind legs.
In the USA these are the veal shank and in the UK the veal shin and leg.
N.B. Occasionally a French menu will translate jarret de veau into English as a veal knuckle, which it is not.
 

Chefs may argue about the white wine used, how the vegetables are prepared, how much garlic and parsley are to be added and more.  However,  I write as a diner, not as a chef,  and when you taste the gravy, you taste how the chef has balanced the wine, veal stock, olive oil, onions and garlic with the flavor and texture of the veal marrow. 

Servings of jarret de veau may vary significantly in size.  A calf just weaned will provide the softest meat; however, the chefs will tell you that a slightly older animal will offer more taste and, of equal importance, a more substantial portion.   In Italian, the name osso buco just means a bone with a hole, and that is all that is left when you have been served a well-made jarret de veau.

                 
Jarret de Veau 

Your menu may offer:

               

Jarret de Veau Rôti à la Sauge et aux Girolles – A veal shank braised together with sage and served with girolle chanterelle mushrooms.

  

Jarret de Veau Confit 12 Heures au Vin Blanc et Romarin - A veal shank slowly cooked for over 12 hours in white wine and rosemary.  A dish with veal confit will melt on your tongue.

 

Jarret de Boeuf

These menus use beef instead of veal.  Beef has a stronger taste and a different texture, and it has its devotees.

 

Jarret de Bœuf Fondant, Sauce Ravigote On this menu listing, the chef says it is fondant, practically melting.  When the veal has been simmered (the longer the better), it should melt on your tongue.

Sauce Ravigot: Sauce Ravigote is a thick vinaigrette sauce served with fish, shellfish, poultry, and meat dishes. The ingredients include mustard, eggs, olive oil, shallots, spring onions, chives, parsley, and chervil.   

 

Jarret de Bœuf aux Fruits Secs (Abricots et Pruneaux) - A beef shank slowly cooked with dried fruits, apricots, and prunes.

 

Jarret d'Agneau

This Jarret is the same cut as that used for veal but from a leg of lamb. A Jarret d’Agneau while on an Italian menu would be Osso Buco d'Agnello or Stinco d'Agnello while an Italian restaurant in France may offer Osso Buco d'Agneau.

 

Jarret d'Agneau Braisé à l'Ail et au Romarin - Lamb shank slowly braised with garlic and rosemary.  Although this menu listing does not mention the wine, when lamb shanks are braised with rosemary, it is usually with red wine.

 

Jarret d'Agneau Braisé et Pommes de Terre Façon Salardaise - Lamb shank slowly braised and served with potatoes prepared in the manner of the town of Sarlat in the Dordogne, which is a center of Cuisine à la Périgourdine.

Pommes de Terre Sarladaises: Potatoes, thinly sliced, and fried in duck fat, flavored with garlic and parsley. When served, these potatoes should be crisp on the outside and soft inside; at their best, they are exchangeable for the ambrosia of the gods. Nearly all dishes with Sarladaise in the name will also have some connection to ducks and or geese.

The town of Sarlat: Sarlat is in the department of Dordogne in Nouvelle Aquitaine and is famous for its ducks, especially its duck foie gras, fattened duck's liver. When you visit Sarlat, you will see that for frying, the preferred fat, should I say the only fat, is duck fat?

 

Jarret de Porc – A pork shank.

   

Jarret de Porc Doré à la Broche, Jus de Viande – A pork shank cooked on a spit until golden and served with its natural cooking juices.


 


Jarret de Porc
Here a pork shank is cooked like the traditional veal shank.
Photograph courtesy of Trip Advisor
Au Koïfhus, Colmar, France.

    

Finally, on another French menu I saw a listing that offered an osso buco de dinde, a turkey osso buco. That may seem a long way from what the original creator intended, but we probably shall not have to wait long before there is a vegetarian jarret de....., as well.

--------------------------------------------------------  

Searching for the meaning of words, names or phrases
on
French menus?
 

Just add the word, words, or phrase you are searching for to the phrase "Behind the French Menu" enclosed in inverted commas (quotation marks) and search using Google, Bing, or another search engine.  Behind the French Menu's links include hundreds of words, names, and phrases commonly seen on French menus. There are over 450 posts featuring more than 4,000 French dishes, all accompanied by English translations and explanations.

  

Connected Posts:
  

Agen in South-west France is Home to the gold standard in prunes. This pretty and walkable town is surrounded by castles and Chateaus and some the prettiest villages in France

Ail - Garlic. Garlic in French Cuisine.

The Apricot or Abricot. The Wonderful Fruits of France.

Chanterelle Mushrooms; the Famous Four. Chanterelle Mushrooms on French Menus. The Mushrooms of France IV.

Cuisine à la Périgourdine - Dining in the Four Colors of the Dordogne-Perigord.

Foie Gras in French Cuisine. Foie Gras is Fattened Goose or Duck Liver Foie. Foie Gras on French Menus.

French Olive Oils. Enjoying France's Best Olive Oils.

La Dinde, the Tasty Turkey on a French Menu

Moutarde – Mustard and Dijon Mustard in French cuisine.

Persil - Parsley in French Cuisine.

Romarin - Rosemary, the Herb in French cuisine.

What is a Confit? All About That Confit on Your French Menu


Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com
Copyright 2010, 2014, 2019, 2025

No comments:

Post a Comment

Responsive ad