Stewed Breast of Veal and Peas is a traditional British recipe, based on Mrs Beeton's recipe of 1861, for a classic dish of breast of a boned breast of veal that's fried, stewed with spices and finished in tomato sauce before being served on a bed of peas. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic British version of: Stewed Breast of Veal and Peas.
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This is a traditional British recipe redacted from the redoubtable Mrs Beeton's 1861 volume Mrs Beeton's Book of Household Management, the classic Victorian cookbook.
Original Recipe
STEWED BREAST OF VEAL AND PEAS.
858. INGREDIENTS.—Breast of veal, 2 oz. of butter, a bunch of savoury herbs, including parsley; 2 blades of pounded mace, 2 cloves, 5 or 6 young onions, 1 strip of lemon-peel, 6 allspice, 1/4 teaspoonful of pepper, 1 teaspoonful of salt, thickening of butter and flour, 2 tablespoonfuls of sherry, 2 tablespoonfuls of tomato sauce, 1 tablespoonful of lemon-juice, 2 tablespoonfuls of mushroom ketchup, green peas.
Mode.—Cut the breast in half, after removing the bone underneath, and divide the meat into convenient-sized pieces. Put the butter into a frying-pan, lay in the pieces of veal, and fry until of a nice brown colour. Now place these in a stewpan with the herbs, mace, cloves, onions, lemon-peel, allspice, and seasoning; pour over them just sufficient boiling water to cover the meat; well close the lid, and let the whole simmer very gently for about 2 hours. Strain off as much gravy as is required, thicken it with butter and flour, add the remaining ingredients, skim well, let it simmer for about 10 minutes, then pour it over the meat. Have ready some green peas, boiled separately; sprinkle these over the veal, and serve. It may be garnished with forcemeat balls, or rashers of bacon curled and fried. Instead of cutting up the meat, many persons prefer it dressed whole;—in that case it should be half-roasted before the water, &c. are put to it.
Time.—2-1/4 hours. Average cost, 8-1/2d. per lb.
Sufficient for 5 or 6 persons.
Seasonable from March to October.
Modern Redaction
Ingredients:
1 breast of veal
60g butter
1 bunch of savoury herbs (must include parsley)
1/4 tsp ground mace
2 cloves
6 shallots
1 strip of pared lemon zest
6 allspice berries
1/4 tsp freshly-ground black pepper
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp butter mixed to a paste with 2 tbsp plain flour, as a thickener
2 tbsp sherry
2 tbsp tomato sauce
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp mushroom ketchup
250g green peas
Method:
Bone the breast, cut in half then divide the meat into serving-sized pieces. Melt the butter in a frying pan, add the pieces of veal and fry until well browned all over (if the breast is large you may have to do with batches).
Transfer the fried veal pieces to a large flame-proof casserole or pan then add the herbs, mace, cloves, shallots, lemon zest, allspice, salt and black pepper. Pour in just enough boiling water to cover the meat then bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover with a tight-fitting lid and cook gently for about 2 hours.
Bring a pan of lightly-salted water to a boil, add the peas and cook as you prepare the sauce.
At this point strain off the liquid (set the meat aside to keep warm). Pour the strained liquid into a saucepan then whisk in the butter and flour mix a little at a time. Add the sherry, tomato sauce, lemon juice and mushroom ketchup then bring to a simmer. Cook for about 10 minutes, or until well thickened.
Arrange the veal pieces in a serving dish, and pour over the sauce. Drain the peas, scatter over the top of the dish and serve.
