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.
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Ail - Garlic. Garlic in French Cuisine.
The Apricot or Abricot. The Wonderful Fruits of France.
Cuisine à la Périgourdine - Dining in the Four Colors of the Dordogne-Perigord.
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
