by Julia Child
TRIMMING
A whole sweetbread, which is the thymus gland of a calf and usually weighs about 1 pound, consists of 2 lobes connected by a soft, white tube, the cornet. The smoother, rounder, and more solid of the two lobes is the kernel, heart, or noix, and choicest piece. The second lobe, called throat sweetbread or gorge, is more uneven in shape, broken by veins, and is often slit. Separate the two lobes from the tube with a knife. The tube may be added to the stock pot.
For brains, cut off white, opaque bits at the base.
BLANCHING SWEETBREADS
Sweetbreads, trimmed and soaked as in preceding directions
An enameled saucepan just large enough to hold them
Cold water
Per quart of water: 1 tsp salt and 1 Tb lemon juice
Place sweetbreads in saucepan and cover by 2 inches with cold water; add salt and lemon juice. Bring to simmer and cook, uncovered, at barest simmer for 15 minutes. Drain and plunge into cold water for 5 minutes. Drain. The sweetbreads are now ready for sautéing.
BLANCHING BRAINS
Brains, trimmed and soaked as in preceding directions
An enameled saucepan just large enough to hold them
Boiling water
Per quart of water: 1 tsp salt and 1 Tb lemon juice
Place brains in saucepan and cover by 2 inches with boiling water; add salt and lemon juice or vinegar. Heat to just below simmer and maintain water at a not-quite-simmering temperature, timing as follows:
Lamb brains, 15 minutes
Calf or pork brains, 20 minutes
Beef brains, 30 minutes
Then set saucepan aside and let the brains cool for 20 minutes in the cooking liquid; if they are not to be used until later, set saucepan in refrigerator. Drain the brains, and they are ready for sautéing.
PRESSING BLANCHED BRAINS OR SWEETBREADS UNDER A WEIGHT
Some cooks like to weight blanched sweetbreads or brains for 2 to 3 hours under a heavy dinnerplate. This forces the water out of them, and flattens them so they are easy to cut into narrow slices. Follow this system or not, as you wish.
SWEETBREADS
RIS DE VEAU BRAISÉS
[Braised Sweetbreads]
Braising is a preliminary cooking for sweetbreads, and you will note that no blanching is required. The soaked and peeled sweetbreads are first cooked slowly in butter to firm them a little and to render some of their juices; they are then baked with wine and other flavorings. After this cooking, or braising, which may take place as long as the day before you are to use them, the sweetbreads are ready for saucing and serving. Sauced sweetbreads may be arranged in a ring of rice or risotto, in a vol-au-vent or pastry shell, on a platter, or they may be gratinéed. Drained, braised sweetbreads are also good cold, in a salad.
VEGETABLE AND WINE SUGGESTIONS
Rice or risotto, and buttered peas or creamed or braised spinach go well with sweetbreads. Serve a light red wine such a Bordeaux-Médoc, or a rosé with sweetbreads in brown sauce; a white Burgundy or a white Graves with sweetbreads in cream sauce.
For 6 people
¼ cup each: finely diced carrots, onions, celery, and diced ham
4 Tb butter
A medium herb bouquet: 4 parsley sprigs, ¼ tsp thyme, and ½ bay leaf tied in cheesecloth
⅛ tsp salt
Pinch of pepper
A 10-inch enameled skillet
Cook the diced vegetables and ham slowly in the butter with the herb bouquet and seasonings for 10 to 15 minutes, until tender but not browned.
½ tsp salt
Big pinch of pepper
1½ to 2 lbs. sweetbreads previously soaked, peeled, and trimmed as directed
Season the sweetbreads. Arrange them in the skillet and baste them with the butter and vegetables. Cover and cook slowly for 5 minutes. Turn, baste, and cook 5 minutes more. They will render quite a bit of juice.
A buttered fireproof casserole or baking dish about 7 inches in diameter, or just large enough to hold the sweetbreads in one layer
Transfer the sweetbreads to the casserole.
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
¾ cup dry white wine or ½ cup dry white vermouth
1 cup brown stock or canned beef bouillon if you are serving a brown sauce; 1 cup white stock or canned chicken broth if you are serving a white sauce
Pour the wine into the skillet with the sweetbread juices and vegetables, and boil down rapidly until the liquids have reduced to ½ cup. Then pour the liquids, vegetables, and herb bouquet over the sweetbreads; add sufficient stock, bouillon, or broth barely to cover them.
Bring to the simmer on top of the stove. Cover the casserole and place in lower third of oven. Regulate heat so the sweetbreads cook at the barest simmer for 45 minutes.
(*) Let the sweetbreads cool in their cooking stock until you are ready to use them.
VARIATIONS
Ris de Veau Braisés à l’Italienne
[Braised Sweetbreads with Brown Mushroom Sauce]
For 6 people
The braised sweetbreads in the preceding recipe
Remove the sweetbreads from the braising casserole. Drain, cut into ½-inch slices, and set aside.
1 Tb cornstarch blended with 1 Tb dry white wine or vermouth
1 Tb tomato paste
½ lb. finely diced fresh mushrooms sautéed in butter
¼ cup diced, boiled ham
Salt and pepper
Rapidly boil down the cooking stock in the casserole to 1½ cups. Remove from heat and discard herb bouquet. (The braising vegetables and ham remain, and become a part of the sauce.) Beat in the starch mixture and the tomato paste. Stir in the mushrooms and additional ham; simmer for 3 minutes, stirring. Correct seasoning and fold in the sliced sweetbreads.
(*) If not to be served immediately, film sauce with a spoonful of stock.
2 Tb minced green herbs such as parsley, chervil, and tarragon, or parsley only
Reheat for 2 to 3 minutes at below the simmer just before serving. Arrange on a serving dish, or in a patty shell or ring of rice. Sprinkle with herbs, and serve.
Ris de Veau à la Crème
Ris de Veau à la Maréchale
[Creamed Sweetbreads]
1½ to 2 lbs. braised sweetbreads, master recipe
Cut the braised sweetbreads into slices ½ inch thick and set aside. Rapidly boil down their cooking stock until it has reduced to 1¼ cups.
A 6-cup enameled saucepan
2½ Tb butter
3 Tb flour
In a separate pan, cook the butter and flour slowly together until they foam for 2 minutes without browning. Off heat, strain in the hot cooking stock and beat vigorously to blend. Bring to the simmer, stirring, for 1 minute. Sauce will be very thick.
⅔ to 1 cup whipping cream
Salt and pepper
Drops of lemon juice
Beat in ½ cup of cream, simmering, then beat in more by spoonfuls until the sauce thins out and coats the spoon nicely. Correct seasoning, adding drops of lemon juice if you feel it necessary.
Replace the sweetbreads in their original casserole, or in a fireproof serving dish, and pour the sauce over them.
(*) If not to be served immediately, film top with a spoonful of cream.
2 Tb minced, mixed green herbs or parsley
Reheat for 3 to 4 minutes at below the simmer before serving, then decorate with the herbs.
Ris de Veau à la Crème et aux Champignons
[Creamed Sweetbreads with Mushrooms]
Ingredients for the preceding creamed sweetbreads
½ lb. sliced fresh mushrooms
After making the sauce, stir in the mushrooms and simmer for 10 minutes, allowing the sauce to reduce slightly as the mushrooms will thin it out. Then proceed with the recipe.
Ris de Veau au Gratin
[Sweetbreads au Gratin]
Ingredients for the braised sweetbreads and any of the preceding sauces
¼ cup grated Swiss cheese
1 Tb butter, cut into bits
Arrange the sliced sweetbreads in a buttered baking dish or individual shells or dishes. Pour sauce over them. Sprinkle on the cheese, and dot with the butter. Set aside until ready to serve.
About 10 minutes before serving, place 7 to 8 inches under a moderately hot broiler to heat the sweetbreads through and to brown the top of the sauce lightly.
ESCALOPES DE RIS DE VEAU SAUTÉS
[Sweetbreads Sautéed in Butter]
These are done exactly like brains sautéed in butter, and are accompanied by any of the sauces suggested at the end of that recipe.
BRAINS
Although calf’s brains are those most universally known in America, lamb brains are equally good. Mutton, pork, and beef brains are less delicate in texture than calf brains and are best when braised, but you may sauté them if you wish. Soaking and peeling directions for brains are at the beginning of this section on this page. We shall call everything in the following recipes calf’s brains with the understanding that calf, lamb, mutton, pork, and beef brains are interchangeable though their cooking times differ slightly as indicated in the blanching directions.
CERVELLES AU BEURRE NOIR
[Calf’s Brains in Brown Butter Sauce]
Brown butter sauce and calf’s brains are almost synonyms, they go so well together. To be at its best, the sauce should always be made separately, not in the pan in which you sautéed the brains. It is thus clear and unspeckled, and also much more digestible. In addition, as the brains can be sautéed only at the last minute, the dish will then be ready to serve almost at once.
Of the several methods for cervelles au beurre noir, we have chosen that of pre-cooking the brains, slicing them, marinating them in a vinaigrette, then sautéing and saucing them. As alternatives, you may simply pour a brown butter sauce over hot, blanched brains, or you may omit the pre-cooking and marination altogether. In this case, slice raw, soaked, and trimmed brains, season, dredge in flour, and sauté them; then pour the sauce over them.
VEGETABLE AND WINE SUGGESTIONS
This dish often constitutes a separate course, but if you wish to serve the brains as a main course, accompany them with mashed or parsley potatoes and either buttered green peas or the spinach braised in stock. Wine choices would be a light red, such as Bordeaux-Medoc, or a rosé; good but less usual would be a white Burgundy.
For 6 people as a main course
1½ lbs. calf’s brains, previously soaked, trimmed, and blanched according to directions
Cut the blanched brains into slices ½ inch thick.
3 Tb lemon juice
⅛ tsp salt
A 2½ quart mixing bowl
Pinch of pepper
1 Tb olive oil
2 Tb minced parsley
Beat the lemon juice and salt in the bowl until the salt has dissolved. Then beat in the pepper, oil, and parsley. Fold the sliced brains into the sauce. Marinate for 30 minutes, or until you are ready to sauté them.
1 cup brown butter sauce, with or without capers
While the brains are marinating, prepare the sauce and keep hot over simmering water.
1 cup flour sifted into a dish
Just before sautéing, drain the brains. Roll in the flour and shake off excess flour.
1 or 2 heavy skillets
2 Tb butter and 1 Tb oil for each skillet
Set the skillet or skillets over moderately high heat with the butter and oil. As soon as you see that the butter foam has almost subsided, brown the brains lightly for 3 to 4 minutes on each side.
A hot platter
Arrange on a hot platter, pour the hot butter sauce over them, and serve.
VARIATIONS: SAUCES
Sauce à l’Italienne, tomato-flavored brown sauce with diced mushrooms, diced ham, and herbs
Coulis de Tomates, fresh tomato sauce with herbs
CERVELLES BRAISÉES
[Braised Calf’s Brains]
The brains are cooked in butter with aromatic vegetables, herbs, wine, and stock. Follow the recipe for braised sweetbreads, and use the same sauces, but the oven-simmering times are:
20 minutes for lamb brains
30 minutes for calf and pork brains
45 minutes for beef brains
CERVELLES EN MATELOTE
[Calf’s Brains in Red Wine with Mushrooms and Onions]
This dish makes a complete course in itself. Serve a light red Burgundy or Mâcon wine.
For 6 people
2 cups good, young, red wine (Mâcon or Burgundy)
1 cup brown stock or canned beef bouillon
An enameled saucepan just large enough to hold the brains in one layer
¼ tsp thyme
4 sprigs of parsley
½ bay leaf
1 clove mashed garlic
1½ lbs. calf’s brains, previously soaked and peeled
A buttered, fireproof serving dish
Bring the wine and stock or bouillon to the simmer in the saucepan with the herbs and garlic. Add the brains, bring to the simmer, and cook uncovered at just below the simmer for 20 minutes. Allow the brains to cool in the cooking liquid for 20 minutes, so they will absorb flavor, and firm up. Then drain them, slice into ½-inch pieces, and arrange in the buttered serving dish.
½ Tb tomato paste
2 Tb flour mashed to a paste with 2 Tb softened butter
Salt and pepper
Beat the tomato paste into the cooking stock, and boil down rapidly until the liquid has reduced to 1½ cups. Off heat, beat in the flour-butter paste. Boil, stirring, for 1 minute. Correct seasoning.
24 small, brown-braised onions
½ lb. fresh mushrooms sautéed in butter
Arrange the onions and mushrooms around the brains, and strain the sauce over the brains and vegetables.
(*) If not to be served immediately, film the sauce with a spoonful of stock or melted butter.
1 to 2 Tb softened butter
Just before serving, set over low heat to warm through for 3 to 4 minutes without simmering. Off heat, tip dish, add butter, a half-tablespoon at a time, and baste brains and vegetables with the sauce until the butter has absorbed.
12 heart-shaped croûtons (white bread sautéed in clarified butter)
2 to 3 Tb minced parsley
Decorate with croûtons and parsley, and serve.
VEAL AND LAMB KIDNEYS
Rognons de Veau et de Mouton
Cooked kidneys should be tender and slightly pink near the center. The bursting-out of juices is always a problem when they are sautéed in slices. Unless your source of heat is a very strong one, within a few seconds after the slices hit the pan their juices pour out and the kidneys boil and toughen rather than sauté. An excellent solution—and, in fact, the best method for kidneys in our experience—is to cook the whole kidney in butter, then slice it, and warm the slices briefly in a sauce. However, if you prefer to sauté raw sliced kidneys, do so in very hot butter and oil for only 2 to 3 minutes. They do not brown; they just cook through, turning a uniform gray outside but remaining somewhat pink inside. Then remove the kidneys to a hot dish, make one of the sauces described in the following recipes, and return the kidneys to warm in the sauce without boiling.
Any of the following recipes may be done at the table in a chafing dish.
LAMB KIDNEYS
All of the following recipes are for veal kidneys, but are equally applicable to lamb kidneys. Allow 2 or 3 lamb kidneys per person. Cook them whole in butter as described in the master recipe, but only for 4 to 5 minutes rather than the 10 for veal kidneys. Then proceed with the recipe.
PREPARATION FOR COOKING
Both lamb and veal kidneys are encased in a layer of fat which has usually been peeled off, presumably without breaking the kidneys, before you buy them. Under this is a thin filament surrounding the kidney; it should also be peeled off. Cut out most of the button of fat on the underside of lamb kidneys, and most of the knob of fat under a veal kidney. A trimmed veal kidney wil
l weigh 6 to 8 ounces; a lamb kidney, 1½ to 2 ounces. Kidneys should have a good, fresh odor and only the faintest suggestion, if any, of an ammonia smell. Veal and lamb kidneys should never be washed or soaked in water, as they absorb too much of it.
ROGNONS DE VEAU EN CASSEROLE
[Kidneys Cooked in Butter—Mustard and Parsley Sauce]
If you want to serve this as a main course rather than as a hot hors d’oeuvre, potatoes sautéed in butter and braised onions make good accompaniments. Red Burgundy goes especially well with kidneys.
For 4 to 6 people
4 Tb butter
A fireproof casserole or chafing dish which will just hold the kidneys easily side by side
3 veal kidneys, peeled and trimmed of fat
A hot plate and cover
Heat the butter in the casserole or chafing dish until you see the foam begin to subside. Roll the kidneys in the butter, then cook them uncovered for about 10 minutes; turn them every minute or two. Regulate heat so butter is always very hot but is not discoloring. A little juice from the kidneys will exude and coagulate in the bottom of the casserole. The kidneys should stiffen but not become hard, brown very lightly, and be pink at the center when sliced. Remove them to a hot plate and cover to keep warm for a few minutes.