Veal (Humanely Raised) Stew Forestière

I haven’t had veal since I was a young child (about 16 years or so)… when I found out how they were raised I couldn’t eat it any longer. Today when I was at the grocery I found some humanely raised free roaming veal stew meat on sale because it needed to be sold by June 7th. I’ve seen it before but it was always an expensive addition to my grocery list of already expensive free-range meats like bison and chicken so I never bothered…

Forestière:

[ah lah foh-rehs-TYEHR] French term meaning “of the forest,” referring to dishes (usually poultry, meat or game fowl) garnished with butter-sautéed potatoes or potato balls, bacon or salt pork and wild mushrooms such as chanterelles, morels and porcini.

Prep: 15-20 min

Cook Time: 2.5-3 hrs

Serves: 2-3

Ingredients:

• 1lb Veal stew meat, HUMANELY RAISED from a REPUTABLE SOURCE
• 2 TBS Extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 C. shallots, diced
• 2 Cloves garlic, diced
• 16oz Container of fresh mushrooms, your choice or a blend
• 1/2 C. Dry sherry or Marsala wine
• 2 C. Chicken stock
• 6-8 Thyme stems, take off the stem
• 4 Slices Prosciutto, or other aged ham of choice
• 1 TBS Butter, room temperature
• 1 1/2 TBS flour
• 1/4 Sour cream, I used light (you can use cream for this as well).
• 1/2 TBS Fine herbs
• Egg noodles * if desired- get a good quality brand

Instructions:

1. In a medium to large brasier, heat the olive oil on medium-high heat. Sear the cubes of meat on all sides until brown, don’t worry about cooking the meat all the way through. Remove meat to a plate.
2. Add a bit of olive oil and lower the heat to medium-low. Add the shallots and the garlic and sweat very gently for 1-2 minutes, until the shallots are translucent, and the garlic is fragrant.
3. Add the mushrooms to the pot, and turn up the heat slightly. Cook until soft and a touch brown around the edges. Season with fresh sea salt and ground pepper.
4. Deglaze the pan with the cooking sherry. *Take the pan off the heat, and add it in. Turn the heat up so that the sherry simmers and reduces. Now add the meat back into the pot.
5. Add the chicken stock and the thyme and bring to a boil over high heat. When the pot boils, reduce the heat to low, cover and cook for 2-2.5 hours.
6. Pre-Heat oven to 450 degrees, spray a baking sheet with nonstick spray, PAM. Lay out 4 slices of Prosciutto on the baking sheet, and place in the 450°F oven for 10 minutes until crisp. Allow to cool. Brake the crispy ham into pieces.
7. Make a beurre manié by smashing together the flour and the butter. Stir into the stew, and let it simmer a few minutes until the stew has thickened. Take the pot off the heat, and stir in the sour cream. Add the crispy pieces of ham on top along with the fine herbs.
8. Serve on top of egg noodles if desired.