Veal Scaloppine
Veal Scaloppine is a classic Italian dish that’s as elegant and refined as it is quick and easy to make. Scallopine are “scallops,” or cutlets, that are so thin they cook in a matter of just a few minutes. That they cook so quickly actually presents a dilemma: the scaloppine are overdone before the exteriors can attain decent browning. Our solution is to sauté the cutlets until deeply colored on one side only and until just lightly golden on the other—this way, we have the flavor benefits of good browning, but the cutlets are still moist and tender because they’re properly cooked. Sautéing the cutlets leaves fond, or browned bits, in the skillet that are the flavor backbone for a pan sauce. But because the sauce takes longer to reduce than the scaloppine should wait to be served, in this recipe, we begin making the sauce before sautéing the cutlets, and put the finishing touches on the sauce after the cutlets are cooked. The typical veal cutlets sold at the grocery store are not the super-tender scaloppine cut from the pricey loin muscle that you might find being served in better Italian restaurants. Rather, average veal cutlets are sliced from the leg or shoulder, and because they have considerable chew, they require the help of a meat pounder as well as some meat tenderizer to achieve a pleasing texture.
