Veal Collops is a traditional British recipe, based on Mrs Beeton's recipe of 1861, for a classic dish of strips of meat cut from the leg that are overlaid with bacon and forcemeat before being rolled, coated in breadcrumbs, fried and served with a sauce made from the pan juices. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic British version of: Veal Collops.
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This is a traditional British recipe redacted from the redoubtable Mrs Beeton's 1861 volume Mrs Beeton's Book of Household Management, the classic Victorian cookbook.
Original Recipe
VEAL COLLOPS (an Entree).
879. INGREDIENTS.—About 2 lbs. of the prime part of the leg of veal, a few slices of bacon, forcemeat No. 417, cayenne to taste, egg and bread crumbs, gravy.
Mode.—Cut the veal into long thin collops, flatten them, and lay on each a piece of thin bacon of the same size; have ready some forcemeat, made by recipe No. 417, which spread over the bacon, sprinkle over all a little cayenne, roll them up tightly, and do not let them be more than 2 inches long. Skewer each one firmly, egg and bread crumb them, and fry them a nice brown in a little butter, turning them occasionally, and shaking the pan about. When done, place them on a dish before the fire; put a small piece of butter in the pan, dredge in a little flour, add 1/4 pint of water, 2 tablespoonfuls of lemon-juice, a seasoning of salt, pepper, and pounded mace; let the whole boil up, and pour it over the collops.
Time.—From 10 to 15 minutes.
Average cost, 10d. per lb.
Sufficient for 5 or 6 persons.
Seasonable from March to October.
Modern Redaction
Ingredients:
1kg, prime leg of veal
20 slices (about) of streaky bacon veal forcemeat
cayenne pepper, to taste
1 egg
200g breadcrumbs (about)
3 tbsp butter, for frying
2 tbsp butter, for the sauce
1 tbsp plain flour
150ml water
2 tbsp lemon juice
salt and freshly-ground black pepper, to taste
ground mace, to taste
Method:
Slice the veal into long, thin, collops. Flatten these then lay on them a stretched rasher of bacon. Spread the forcemeat over the bacon and sprinkle over a little cayenne pepper.
Roll the collops up tightly (ensure they are no more than 5cm long). Skewer each one to secure it closed then dip in the beaten eggs and coat well with the breadcrumbs.
Melt butter in a pan, add the rolled collops and fry until golden brown, turning them occasionally so they cook evenly.
When they are done through, transfer to a dish and set aside to keep warm. Melt the remaining butter in a pan and scatter over the flour. Stir in to form a smooth roux and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minutes.
Whisk in the water until smooth and bring just to a simmer then add the lemon juice and season with salt, black pepper and mace.
Bring to a boil and take off the heat. Arrange the collops on a serving dish, pour over the gravy and serve.
