Veal Parmigiana

Veal Parmigiana

I think this was the first time I knowingly ever ate veal.

I couldn’t understand why anyone would want to eat veal.

I imagined it to be dry and tasteless. No. I didn’t even want to try it.

I am a proud Irish Italian American.

My mom never really cared for cooking so I learned many of my skills and spice combinations from my Irish grandmother.

She made a lot of potato dishes and used home grown spices. The rest of the meal was something she was able to get as she could.

She lived through the depression and learned many tips and tricks and passed those down to my sister and me.

My maternal grandma lived out of state. She was a Southern gal with a strong Italian background.

Needless to say her dinners and soups were “unique”.

She made dishes with home made pasta and garden veggies. She also had a small herb garden.

Her meals were Southern inspired but yet definitely had an Italian flair.

We saw her on holidays and she came to visit for a month each year.

That was when I was exposed to my favorite foods.

Cheese. Double and triple gooey runny cheese.

It covered all sorts of veggies and almost always had some sort of red sauce on it.

Italian immigrants brought this dish to America, and since then veal parmigiana has become a classic New York dish, and rightly so.

I love it when it’s layered up like this, with the tomato sauce and cheese, then baked in the oven to allow the ingredients to simmer together while bringing out the subtle differences of each one.

These are the INGREDIENTS you will need:

• Few sprigs fresh basil
• Olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled and finely sliced
• 3 anchovies
• 1 fresh red chili
• Sea salt
• 28 oz chopped tomatoes
• freshly ground black pepper
• 7 0z fresh breadcrumbs
• Few sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
• 1 lemon
• 1 Cup Flour
• 2 large eggs beaten
• 1 lb Veal or pork leg, flattened to a thickness of 3/4 inch
• 6 oz ball of buffalo mozzarella cheese

These are the INSTRUCTIONS for preparation:

• Preheat oven to 400 F
• Meanwhile, prepare your meat. Mix the breadcrumbs in a bowl with the thyme leaves and Parmesan. Finely grate your lemon zest into the breadcrumbs, mix again, then lay out three plates in front of you. 
• Put the flour on one and season it with salt and pepper, pour the eggs on to the next plate and put the herby breadcrumbs on the third. 
• Dip the meat, one at a time, into the flour until well coated. Shake off any excess, then dip into the egg. Let the extra egg drip off, then lay the meat in the breadcrumb mixture. Sprinkle a handful of crumbs over the top and press them down. Make a real point of getting breadcrumbs on to every part of the meat.
• Heat a large non-stick frying pan over a medium heat and add a good splash of olive oil. Let it heat up a bit, then add your meat. If your pan isn’t big enough, you may have to cook them in batches, adding a little extra oil if needed. 
• Cook for a few minutes on each side until lightly golden, then transfer to a plate lined with kitchen paper to drain. 
• Using an 8×11 sized baking dish spread the tomato sauce in the dish. Lay your meat on top, side by side. Tear the buffalo mozzarella into pieces and dot these over the dish with a few basil leaves.
• Bake in the oven for 20 minutes until golden, bubbling and deliciously cooked. Sprinkle the rest of the basil leaves over. 
• Perfect with a crunchy zingy salad, but in America they’d also serve it with things like spaghetti, rice or mashed potatoes, polenta or crusty bread.

When I met my husbad I was impressed with the many dishes he ate. Some I even sampled.

He is second generation Polish so I learned to make some of his favorites but I wasn’t good at it. But true to the man he is, he suffered through with a smile and a mmmmmm as he tried my cooking.

I learned if I served everything by candlelight he would eat and lie that I made the best Polish food.

He wasn’t a very good liar. I saw the face he made while eating my tomato juice inspire Golabki. When he had to pick out the toothpicks from the roll he gasped.

He quickly got tired of my pasta dishes and started taking me out once a week.

I started to broaden my list of recipes to cook as I learned there was more to cooking than I knew.

So one day he took me to this restaurant that served Italian food.

I was a bit suspicious but I was pleased just the same.

He ordered our meals while I was away from the table.

When I got back there was a nice Antipasto Salad waiting for me.

When I inquired about the main meal he simply said I would love it!

It was homemade pasta with lots of cheese and a red sauce.

I was delighted he would order something I could easily make at home.

Except this I never had.

He kept it a secret and talked about the choices he had for this Parmigiana.

The choices were simple and he hesitated between Eggplant and this version. Of course I made a face when he said Eggplant. He laughed.

When the meal came it smelled so good! I picked up a bread stick to dip into the sauce on the plate and approved his choice.

I ate heartily as I complimented him for his great choice.

It was a tender dish yet had a texture and flair I couldn’t place.

When we were done eating and enjoying our Gelato he told me the secret ingredient.

Veal. Lots of tender and tasteful meat. But veal.

I didn’t want to tell him I really liked it. But I raved about all the other aspects of the Veal Parmigiana.

He knew I was holding back. So I decided I would make veal kabobs soon.

The meal was DELICIOUS. But please keep that between us.

The only part I didn’t like was the anchovies. I picked them off quietly and hid them in my napkin.

A girl has to do what a girl has to do!

Feel free to swap veal for pork leg or even chicken that’s been battered out.

If you want to spike this with a bit of extra flavour you could also add a few capers or olives to the tomato sauce.

I hope you get to try this recipe soon. It may change your mind about veal!

Veal Parmigiana

When adding lean veal, tomatoes and different cheeses to Italian seasonings you create a comforting and delicious meal. Veal Parmigiana is ready for your family when they are hungry!

4.84 from 12 votes

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Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: cheese, tomato, veal

Method: Bake, Stove Top

Skill Level: Intermediate

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Adjust Servings: 4

Calories: 556kcal

Author: Marilyn

Ingredients

• Few sprigs fresh basil
• Olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled and finely sliced
• 3 anchovies
• 1 fresh red chili
• Sea salt
• 28 oz chopped tomatoes
• freshly ground black pepper
• 7 0z fresh breadcrumbs
• Few sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
• 1 lemon
• 1 Cup Flour
• 2 large eggs beaten
• 1 lb Veal or pork leg, flattened to a thickness of 3/4 inch
• 6 oz ball of buffalo mozzarella cheese

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 400 F
• Meanwhile, prepare your meat. Mix the breadcrumbs in a bowl with the thyme leaves and Parmesan. Finely grate your lemon zest into the breadcrumbs, mix again, then lay out three plates in front of you. 
• Put the flour on one and season it with salt and pepper, pour the eggs on to the next plate and put the herby breadcrumbs on the third. 
• Dip the meat, one at a time, into the flour until well coated. Shake off any excess, then dip into the egg. Let the extra egg drip off, then lay the meat in the breadcrumb mixture. Sprinkle a handful of crumbs over the top and press them down. Make a real point of getting breadcrumbs on to every part of the meat.
• Heat a large non-stick frying pan over a medium heat and add a good splash of olive oil. Let it heat up a bit, then add your meat. If your pan isn't big enough, you may have to cook them in batches, adding a little extra oil if needed. 
• Cook for a few minutes on each side until lightly golden, then transfer to a plate lined with kitchen paper to drain. 
• Using an 8×11 sized baking dish spread the tomato sauce in the dish. Lay your meat on top, side by side. Tear the buffalo mozzarella into pieces and dot these over the dish with a few basil leaves.
• Bake in the oven for 20 minutes until golden, bubbling and deliciously cooked. Sprinkle the rest of the basil leaves over. 
• Perfect with a crunchy zingy salad, but in America they'd also serve it with things like spaghetti, rice or mashed potatoes, polenta or crusty bread.

Notes

©MARILYN’S TREATS. All images are copyright protected. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 556kcal (28%) | Carbohydrates: 33.5g (11%) | Protein: 64.1g (128%) | Fat: 18g (28%) | Saturated Fat: 8g (40%) | Sugar: 6.3g (7%)

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Nutrition Information is estimated based on the ingredients and cooking instructions as described in each recipe and is intended to be used for informational purposes only. Please note that nutrition details may vary based on methods of preparation, origin and freshness of ingredients used.

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