Veal Chops Two Ways, with Mushroom Sauce
The sauce for two of the grilled chops is a heady blend of mushrooms and glace de viande, that luxurious and intensely flavored reduction of meat stock. You may buy the glace in a specialty foods store, or use demi-glace. The other two veal chops are pan-fried and served with a mushroom sauce without glace de viande.
Ingredients
- Veal Chops - four, 10-ounce
- Olive oil - for brushing, plus 1 tablespoon
- Flour for dredging
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- Unsalted Butter - 3 tablespoons
- White Mushrooms - 2 pounds, coarsely chopped
- Glace de Viande or Demi-Glace - b
- French White Wine - 1 cup, or chicken stock
- Gratin Dauphinois
- Gratin Dauphinois (Serves 4)
- Baking Potatoes - 3 large, peeled and finely sliced
- Garlic - 2 tablespoons, minced
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- Heavy (whipping) Cream or milk - 2 cups
- Half-and-half - 2 cups
Instructions
To prepare the grilled chops: Prepare a medium-hot fire in an outdoor of indoor grill. Lightly brush two of the veal chops with a little olive oil and grill them, turning twice, for a total of about 10 minutes for medium, or until cooked to the desired doneness. Set aside and keep hot.
To prepare the pan-fried chops: Lightly dust the remaining two chops with flour, salt, and pepper. In a large saute pan or skillet over medium-high heat, heat the 1 tablespoon of olive oil with 1 tablespoon of the butter. Add the chops to the pan and cook, turning every 2 minutes, for a total of 8 to 10 minutes. Cover the pan and cook an additional 5 minutes for medium, or until the chops are cooked to the desired doneness. Remove the chops from the pan, set aside, and keep warm.
To make the mushroom sauce for the grilled chops: In a large saute pan or skillet over medium-high heat, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter and saute half of the mushrooms until they have released their juices and most of the liquid has evaporated, about 5 minutes. Add the glace de viande and 1/2 cup of the wine or stock, cooking and stirring for 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper; set aside and keep warm.
To make the mushroom sauce for the pan-fried chops: Place the pan in which the chops were sauteed over medium-high heat, add the remaining tablespoon of butter and the remaining mushrooms, and saute until they have released their juices and most of the liquid has evaporated, about 5 minutes. Season the mushrooms with salt and pepper. Add the remaining 1/2 cup wine or stock to the pan, stir to scrape up the glaze from the bottom of the pan, and cook for 2 minutes. Set aside and keep warm.
To serve: Arrange the grilled chops on one end of a large serving platter and spoon their accompanying sauce over them. Place the pan-fried chops on the other end, along with their sauce. Serve with gratin dauphinois.
Gratin Dauphinois
Preheat the oven to 450 F. Generously butter a 12-inch baking dish. Place some of the potatoes in a layer in the bottom of the pan and sprinkle with some of the garlic, then season with salt and pepper. Continue in this fashion to make three layers of potatoes, garlic, salt, and pepper. Pour the cream or milk and half-and-half over the dish, stir, and smooth the top of the gratin with the back of a spoon. Bake until the potatoes are tender when pierced with a knife, and the top is browned and bubbly, 35 to 40 minutes.
