CookEat Recipe
Braised Calf Sweetbreads with Béarnaise
Whole calf thymus sweetbreads braised over vegetables and herbs, with strained pan juices and warm Béarnaise served separately.
Method
Steps
Step 1
Use six complete whole raw calf thymus sweetbread glands, professionally supplied for cooking. Thaw in the refrigerator first if supplied frozen, following the label. Clean and neatly trim them, then submerge in cold potable water and soak for two hours in the refrigerator at 40°F or below, changing the water three times. Discard all the used soaking water.
Step 2
Drain the same six sweetbreads. Plunge them into a separate pan of fresh boiling water with one teaspoon salt and blanch for five minutes. Drain thoroughly, discard the blanching water and cover with a clean cloth. This blanch is preparatory; continue promptly with the braise.
Step 3
Slice half a medium carrot, half a medium onion and half a leek. Chop half a branch celery and half an ounce raw unrendered pork fatback. Put these in a wide ovenproof saucepan with half a parsley branch, one clove, one ripe chopped tomato, two allspice berries, half a bay leaf, one saltspoon thyme and one teaspoon butter. Cook gently on the hob for ten minutes, mixing occasionally.
Step 4
Preheat a conventional oven to 350°F. Lay all six blanched sweetbreads on top of the aromatic base and sprinkle with the separate one teaspoon salt. Pour in cold potable water up to half their actual height in the pan. Cover with a buttered piece of food-safe oven parchment rated for this temperature, cut to fit inside the pan and kept clear of flames and heating elements. Bring the liquid to a boil on the hob.
Step 5
Put the pan in the oven, retaining the buttered parchment cover. Braise for thirty minutes as a guide, continuing as needed until tender and the thickest centre of every gland reaches at least 160°F for two minutes. Make sure the chopped pork fatback is fully cooked. Prepare the following Béarnaise while the sweetbreads are braising, so both finish close together.
Step 6
For the separate Béarnaise, finely chop four small peeled shallots and chop one branch fresh tarragon. Put them in a small saucepan with two tablespoons white-wine vinegar and one teaspoon freshly crushed whole white peppercorns. Reduce slowly to half the actual mixture, then press through a clean food-safe cloth into another small saucepan, discarding the aromatic solids.
Step 7
Separate two yolks from commercially pasteurized intact shell eggs and add to the strained reduction. Whisk briskly over low heat for four minutes, without allowing it to boil. Gradually whisk in two and a half ounces hot freshly melted butter, mixing continuously and keeping the sauce below a boil.
Step 8
Season the Béarnaise with one saltspoon salt and half a saltspoon cayenne. Mix well for one minute, then add half a teaspoon finely chopped parsley and mix again. Put all the finished sauce in a separate warm bowl and keep briefly hot at 140°F or above while the sweetbreads finish; serve promptly.
Step 9
Lift the cooked sweetbreads onto a hot dish. Strain their own braising juices over them, removing the vegetables and other solids. Serve hot with the complete warm Béarnaise in its separate bowl.
Cooked it? Rate it.
Cooked 0 times