Braised Calf's Heart

Name: Braised Calf's Heart
Total time: 2 h 45 min
Yield: 4 to 6 servings
Ingredients: 2 2-to-3-pound calves' hearts; Salt and black pepper; 2 cups minced parsley; 1 cup finely minced onion; 2 tablespoons grated lemon rind; 6 tablespoons butter; 1 large carrot, scraped and minced; 1 medium size onion, finely chopped; 1 stalk celery, finely chopped; 1 tablespoon sweet paprika; 1 bay leaf; 1 cup beef stock, or as needed; 1 tablespoon flour; 3/4 cup sweet cream

By Mimi Sheraton

Total Time: 2 hours 45 minutes
Rating: 4(9)
Comments: Read comments

Featured in: BRAISING: AN IDEAL COOKING TECHNIQUE FOR WINTER FARE

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Ingredients

Yield:4 to 6 servings

22-to-3-pound calves' hearts
Salt and black pepper
2cups minced parsley
1cup finely minced onion
2tablespoons grated lemon rind
6tablespoons butter
1large carrot, scraped and minced
1medium size onion, finely chopped
1stalk celery, finely chopped
1tablespoon sweet paprika
1bay leaf
1cup beef stock, or as needed
1tablespoon flour
¾cup sweet cream

Ingredient Substitution Guide

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Preparation

Step 1
Using scissors, cut all inner tubes, sinews and arteries from inside of hearts to leave clear, hollow shell. Wash inside under running cold water. Pat dry.
Step 2
Sprinkle inside of each heart with salt and pepper. Combine parsley, onion and lemon rind. Place half of filling in each heart. Add 1 tablespoon butter, diced, to each heart. Sew opening closed across top. Sprinkle salt and pepper on outside of hearts.
Step 3
Place remaining butter in casserole and melt. Slowly brown hearts on all side. Remove when brown. Add minced carrot, onion and celery to pan and saute slowly until vegetables just begin to turn golden brown - about 10 minutes. Stir in paprika and saute for 2 minutes.
Step 4
Place browned hearts on top of vegetables, add bay leaf and pour in beef stock. Cover and simmer gently but steadily over moderate heat for about 2 hours, or until hearts are completely tender when pierced. Turn hearts about every 20 minutes during cooking, adding stock if needed.
Step 5
Remove hearts when tender and remove thread.
Step 6
Skim fat off pan juices, then strain juices, rubbing vegetables through sieve. Discard bay leaf.
Step 7
Return strained juices to casserole. Stir flour into sour cream and stir into pan juices. Adjust seasonings.
Step 8
Cut hearts in half and serve with sauce on side. Noodles, spatzle or boiled potatoes go well with this.

Ratings

4 out of 5

9 user ratings

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Comments

Sally7 years ago

The ingredient list calls for sweet cream, but the instructions specify sour cream. When I got to that point, I felt the sauce needed the tang of sour cream, so deciding which to use wasn't a problem. To puree the cooked vegetables, I used an immersion blender - much easier than a sieve!

Sally7 years ago

thomaseuler5 years ago

I assume the goal with the vegetables is not to puree them but to make a sauce and to that end squeezing all the taste out of them into the liquid. If that is correct "rubbing them through the sieve" should maybe rather read "squeeze them in a sieve to get all the liquid and taste out".

Sue3 years ago

No, the recipe is written accurately with respect to the vegetable-sieve step, and an immersion blender is an excellent strategy. Pushing the cooked veg through the sieve creates a coarse puree that adds body to the sauce. The sieve will also catch any fibrous bits (if, say, your cooked veg includes a whole celery stalk), but with the veg being minced, that's a non-issue here.

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