Veal with tuna sauce, or veau tonné, is, contrary to what many think, an Italian dish, typical of Piedmontese cuisine.

There are many Piedmontese cities that boast having “given birth“ to this appetizer, known locally as vitello tonnato. But Alba and Garessio are purported to be the best places to eat this dish.

Ingredients
3 hard-boiled eggs
balsamic vinegar
1 carrot
1 celery stalk
1 onion, chopped
6 threads of anchovies
2 cloves of garlic
Salt and pepper
half a litre white wine
1 sprig rosemary
5 bay leaves
4 tbsps olive oil
water or broth
600g beef rod, topside or silverside
15 capers
100g tuna in olive oil, drained

Method

Place the meat in a pan with the carrot, celery, chopped onion, rosemary, bay leaf, cloves, two tablespoons of olive oil and a pinch of salt so that the meat gets enriched with the herbs and spices.

Wet the meat with white wine to make it acquire a greater taste, then add the water (or broth if you prefer).

Let the meat simmer on lowheat for between one-and-a-half or two hours. Once cooked, turn off the heat and let the mixture cool.

Prepare the tuna sauce by blending well the crumbled tuna, hard-boiled eggs, chopped capers, anchovies diluted with a little oil and a bit of stock from the cooked meat in a bowl. You can perform this better with the help of an electric blender.

Place the meat on a plate, put the thick sauce on top and serve warm.

Saul Halevi is an Executive Chef, Hotel Phoenicia, Floriana.