Vitel Toné (Cold Veal with Tuna Sauce)
Boiled veal, chilled and thinly sliced, coated in a creamy tuna, mayonnaise and caper sauce. The classic cold dish of Argentine holiday tables.
- 1 kg (2.2 lb) eye of round veal (or pork tenderloin)
- 1 onion
- 1 carrot
- 1 bay leaf
- Coarse salt and peppercorns Tuna sauce
- 1 can tuna in water, drained
- 200 g (¾ cup) mayonnaise
- 2 tbsp capers, plus extra for garnish
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 to 3 tbsp of the cooking broth (to loosen the sauce)
- Pepper, to taste
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1
Boil the veal
Put the veal in a pot with cold water to cover, along with the onion, carrot, bay leaf, coarse salt and peppercorns. Bring to a boil and cook covered over low heat for 1 hour, or until tender.
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2
Cool it in its own broth
Turn off the heat and let the meat cool down inside the broth: that keeps it much juicier. Refrigerate, ideally overnight.
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3
Slice it thin
Once fully chilled, take the veal out and slice it as thinly as possible with a sharp knife.
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4
Make the tuna sauce
Process or mash the drained tuna with the mayonnaise, capers and lemon juice until smooth. Loosen it with a couple tablespoons of the strained broth until creamy but still thick.
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5
Assemble and serve
Arrange the veal slices on a platter, cover with the tuna sauce and garnish with extra capers. Refrigerate until serving time, ice cold.
- The thinner you slice the meat, the better it soaks up the sauce: if you have a meat slicer, this is the time to use it.
- It can easily be made a day ahead: it actually improves after resting in the fridge.
- If you can't find eye of round, pork tenderloin or veal roast works well too.