Vitello Tonnato (sliced veal antipasto)
- Published: 6 Nov 19
- Updated: 18 Mar 24
Vitello tonnato – a dish of cold, sliced veal originating from Piedmont – makes an impressive main course of an Italian meal or a smashing antipasto for a special occasion.
This beef tagliata with potato, rocket and parmesan is another fail-safe dinner that’s bound to impress.
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Serves 6
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Hands-on time 20 min, plus resting
Ingredients
- Splash olive oil for frying
- 400g British rose veal escalopes, at room temperature (see Know-how)
- 4 red chicory heads, leaves separated and halved
- 60g wild rocket
- A few fresh flatleaf parsley sprigs, leaves roughly chopped
- Parmesan shavings to serve
For the tonnato sauce
- 1 medium free-range egg yolk
- 1 tsp white wine vinegar
- 2 anchovy fillets in oil, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp capers, plus extra to serve
- ½ tsp dijon mustard
- ½ x 145g can top quality, line-caught tuna in olive oil, drained
- Finely grated zest and juice ½ lemon
- 50ml extra-virgin olive oil
- 50ml light olive oil
You’ll also need…
- Food processor
Method
- For the tonnato sauce, put the egg yolk, vinegar, anchovies, capers, mustard, tuna and lemon zest in a food processor, then blend until smooth. With the motor running, very slowly pour in both the oils to form a smooth sauce with a loose mayonnaise consistency. Taste and season, adding the lemon juice and black pepper (anchovies and capers are quite salty, but you might need to add a pinch of salt). Set aside.
- Heat a little olive oil in a large frying pan, then add the veal escalopes and fry on a high heat for 1-2 minutes on each side. Remove to a lipped baking tray and season well. Set aside to rest.
- When ready to serve, slice the veal into thin strips. Arrange on a platter (or divide among 6 plates) with the chicory, rocket and parsley, then drizzle over the tonnato sauce. Scatter the salad with a few extra capers, parmesan shavings and ground black pepper and serve straightaway.
- Recipe from October 2019 Issue
Nutrition
- Calories
- 191kcals
- Fat
- 12.4g (2.1g saturated)
- Protein
- 18g
- Carbohydrates
- 1.4g (0.4g sugars)
- Fibre
- 0.8g
- Salt
- 0.2g
delicious. tips
You’ll have sauce left over -drizzle it over salad or spread onto crostini with white beans as a nibble.
To ensure your veal has been reared to high welfare standards, choose British rose veal.
A young, bright barbera has the fresh acidity to take on the sharper elements of the tonnato.
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