Classic Italian vitello tonnato

Classic Italian vitello tonnato

Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

Classic vitello tonnato recipe: the ultimate Italian Christmas dish. Vitello tonnato, also called vitel tonnè, is a dish from the Piedmont. This dish is often eaten during Holidays, especially during Christmas! It is made in many different ways, but I like to keep it simple and traditional: veal with tuna mayonnaise. Fun fact is that 'tonnato' does not refer to the tuna sauce but to the meat, which is prepared the way they used to make tuna! 

Classic Italian vitello tonnato
Cover the meat with a (thick) layer of tuna mayonnaise.

Classic Italian vitello tonnato

It is absolutely recommended to prepare the vitello tonnato a day in advance, so that the flavor of the sauce can fully penetrate the meat. This preparation time is invaluable as the delicious flavors can develop deeper into the meat, resulting in an irresistible dish that everyone will enjoy. The taste experience will be even more refined and the subtle nuances will elevate every bite to a culinary highlight.

Classic Italian vitello tonnato

You may think it's a strange combination of meat and fish, but I can guarantee that these flavors match perfectly. Some people may be hesitant about this blend at first, but the harmony between these two unique flavors is sure to surprise you and delight your taste buds.

Delicious with some freshly ground pepper and fresh herbs on top.

This unexpected culinary association opens up a world of gastronomic possibilities, where the rich savory of meat and the refined umami of fish merge into an extraordinary taste experience.

Classic Italian vitello tonnato

Below is the full recipe with ingredients. Have fun making the recipe below. Delicious bites!

Classic Italian vitello tonnato

Classic Italian vitello tonnato

What do Italians like to eat for Christmas? This vitello will be on the table in many households!

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Hallway: Side dish
Kitchen: Italian
Keyword: eggs, veal, mayonnaise, tuna, carrot
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Preparation time: 1 day 10 minutes
Total time: 1 day 25 minutes
Servings: 6 people
Author: Tim Harzing
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You need:

kitchen twine

Ingredients:

For the Vitello:

  • 500 gram veal mouse
  • 1 root
  • 2 stems celery
  • 1 ui
  • 1 teen Garlic
  • 3 bay leaves
  • 500 ml vegetable stock
  • 500 ml White wine

For the tuna mayonnaise:

  • 8 eggs - cooked, only the yolk *see notes
  • 100 gram mayonnaise
  • 300 gram tuna
  • 1 el capers
  • 3 anchovies
  • 50 ml olive oil
  • ½ tl black pepper

Nice and easy: click on the logo of your favorite supermarket to add the ingredients.

And this is how you make it:

  • Finely chop the onion, carrot and celery. 
  • Tie the veal with roasting twine. This ensures that the meat does not fall apart during cooking. 
  • Grab a deep pan (stew pan is also possible) and heat a dash of olive oil in it. Add the onion, carrot, celery, garlic clove and bay leaf and fry for a few minutes. 
  • Place the veal in the pan and fry briefly on both sides. Season with a little pepper. Add the broth and white wine. Put the lid on the pan and let it simmer for about 20 minutes. For this dish, it tastes best when the meat is medium/well cooked.
  • Remove the meat from the pan and remove the roasting twine. Cut into thin slices and let cool. 
  • Remove the remaining liquid from the pan through a sieve and keep this liquid.  
  • Boil the eggs for 8/10 minutes in a pan of hot water. Remove the egg yolk and keep the rest of the egg to fill them, for example.
  • Grab a bowl and put the eggs in it and puree with a hand blender and pour in the olive oil in the meantime. Then add the mayonnaise together with the capers, pinch of pepper, anchovies and tuna.
  • Puree the whole with the hand blender and add a few dashes of the remaining cooking liquid little by little. It should be a thin and smooth tuna mayonnaise. 
  • Grab a large plate or serving platter and place the meat on it. Cover all the meat well with the tuna mayonnaise. Cover and refrigerate overnight to let it soak in.
  • On the day itself, remove the dish from the refrigerator an hour before serving and decorate with some capers and some freshly ground black pepper.
  • Delicious bites!
Tip: You can fill the hollowed-out eggs with tuna mayonnaise. Delicious as a snack or as a garnish on the vitello tonnato
It is best to keep the vitello tonnato in the fridge for a day before eating it. This way all the flavors infuse into the meat. Garnish with some capers.
 
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Have you ever tried this recipe?Mention @delicioushappen or tag #delicious snacks!

This blog “Classic Italian vitello tonnato“ is a contribution of Tim from La Cucina Di Tim. We virtually cross with him through Italy and have already visited a lot of beautiful places. And very nice to know: the journey is far from over! In the coming period we will therefore discover many more beautiful Italian classics. A few easy and tasty recipes include:

We made an Italian crema al caffé. 

And also homemade ricotta, which is very simple. 

Slightly more complicated but worth it are cannoli's! 

This is how you make the perfect pasta. 

And pesto is an indispensable part of Italian cuisine. 

Delicious Happen is a multi-media company, so you can also find me on various social media. follow me on FacebookPinterest en Instagram under @delicioushappen. If you make this recipe I would love it if you tagged me #delicioushappen. A comment below in the comments is also nice of course!

vitello tonnato recipe

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