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The Country Cooking of France

Save Recipe: Veal Chops with Mustard

Photo by France Ruffenach

French cooking and French cuisine have been written about so many times that it may seem we’ve heard it all before and there is nothing new to learn. Yet, in her latest book, “The Country Cooking of France”, Anne Willan presents a vivid, informative, and entertaining cookbook on French cuisine that will teach you much about French cuisine. Willan, well known for her cooking school in France, is also a master at creating cookbooks that teach. Consider her recipe for “Veal Chops with Mustard” (see below). Reading the recipe, and all of the other wonderful recipes in this book, I can almost envision Willan standing next to me and whispering in my ear all of the details needed to make the dish perfect. For the Veal chops she not only tells us to “shake the pan frequently” but also tells us that this is necessary so the chops “color evenly”. She also gently tells us how to properly cook with mustard saying “The fresh, piquant taste of mustard turns bitter when overcooked, so mustard should not be boiled and should always be added toward the end of cooking.”. In addition, Willan includes suggestions on what to serve with the veal chops ensuring we have a complete meal, not simply one dish. It is these details, combined with descriptions of culinary terms, historical context, and simply wonderful recipes that make this cookbook highly appealing. As Jacques Pépin says, this book “is proof that there is always something more to learn about the cuisine of France”.

Veal Chops with Mustard

From The Country Cooking of France, by Anne Willan, Chronicle Books, 2007

Serves 4

The savvy mustard makers of Dijon have done such a good marketing job that today the town is synonymous with the classic aromatic French mustard flavored with wine and herbs. In this recipe, you can take your pick of smooth or grainy mustard, with or without herbal or fruity flavorings. Veal chops, particularly with this creamy sauce, suggest to me a similarly luxurious vegetable, perhaps fresh asparagus, or fine green beans.

4 veal chops (About 2 pounds/900 g total)
salt and pepper
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
6-ounce/170-g piece lean bacon, cut into lardons
16 to 18 baby onions (about 8-ounces/255 g total), peeled
1 tablespoon/7 g flour
¾ cup/175 ml white wine, preferably chardonnay
¾ cup/175 ml veal broth, more if needed
1 bouquet garni including a sprig of fresh thyme, dried bay leaf, and several sprigs fresh parsley
¼ cup/60 ml Crème Fraiche or heavy cream
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard, or to taste
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

Season the chops on both sides with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a large sauté pan or frying pan over medium heat. Add the bacon lardoons and fry until lightly browned, 3 to 5 minutes. Lift them out with a draining spoon and set them aside in a bowl. Add the onions to the pan and sauté over medium heat, shaking the pan often so they color evenly, until browned, 7 to 10 minutes. Remove them with the draining spoon and set aside in a separate bowl. Lastly, add the chops and brown them, allowing 2 to 3 minutes. Turn them and brown the other side, 2 to 3 minutes longer. Take them out, whisk the flour into the pan, and cook until bubbling. Add the wine and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Stir in the broth and return to a boil. Stir in the lardoons, then replace the chops, pushing them down into the sauce, and add the bouquet garni.

Cover the pan and simmer over low heat for 25 minutes. Add the onions and continue simmering until they are soft and the chops are tender when poked with a two-pronged fork, 10 to 15 minutes longer. The cooking time will depend on the thickness of the chops. Turn the chops from time to time and add more broth if the sauce gets too thick.

When the chops are tender, transfer them to 4 warmed plates. Discard the bouquet garni, stir the crème fraiche into the sauce, and bring just to a simmer. Stir in the mustard and parsley and take the pan from the heat. The fresh, piquant taste of mustard turns bitter when overcooked, so mustard should not be boiled and should always be added toward the end of cooking. Taste the sauce, adjust the seasoning, and spoon it over the chops. Serve at once.

About The Country Cooking of France

Renowned for her cooking school in France and her many best-selling cookbooks, Anne Willan combines years of hands-on experience with extensive research to create a brand new classic. More than 250 recipes range from the time-honored La Truffade, with its crispy potatoes and melted cheese, to the Languedoc specialty Cassoulet de Toulouse, a bean casserole of duck confit, sausage, and lamb. And the desserts! Cr pes au Caramel et Beurre Sal (cr pes with a luscious caramel filling) and Galette Landaise (a rustic apple tart) are magnifique. Sprinkled with intriguing historical tidbits and filled with more than 270 enchanting photos of food markets, villages, harbors, fields, and country kitchens, this cookbook is an irresistible celebration of French culinary culture.