Veal Saltimbocca

This superb dish is usually made with thin cutlets called Scallopini. These thin cutlets are first pounded even thinner with a metal meat tenderizer type pounder; next covered with a thin coating of dry rubbed sage or, in season, a layer of fresh sage leaves and after this, they are covered with a thin slice of Prosciutto which is then pinned to the Scallopini with tooth picks or, better yet, thin metal skewers.

Instead of Scallopini, I prefer to use small rib veal chops about 1/2 an inch thick. They are very tender. I cut the bone almost away but leave it hanging on. A little elegance here. The chop is pounded flat and dressed in the same manner as the scallopini.

Put one tablespoon of unsalted butter and one tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil in a frying pan, heat and let bubble but not brown. Then cook the veal 3-4 minutes on each side, and remove to warm platter when done. You will have to add equal amounts of butter and oil as you cook, depending on the amount to be cooked.

Now for the pièce de resistance. Most restaurants will deglaze the frying pan, to make a sauce, with a little more butter, or oil or combo of same. Some cook books tell you to use water to deglaze the pan. YUK! Several years ago, we were having Veal Saltimbocca at Ruggiero's Restaurant in New York City's Little Italy. The light sauce covering the veal was superb. After a little coaxing, I was told that when the veal was done they added a bit more butter to the pan, melted it and then added a dry white wine to create this delicious sauce. (The sauce is ready when the sharp smell of alcohol was gone.) I like to use half unsalted butter/half extra virgin olive oil and a Chablis or Pinot Grigio for the deglazing. No salt is used with this dish because the Prosciutto supplies it all. And now a surprise:

This recipe is kindly provided by, and © Leonard Bibbo.

Two more variations:

• Saltimbocca alla Romana
  A very simple Roman recipe.
• Saltimbocca alla GianLeonardo
  Caught short one day, Leonard developed another saltimbocca variation, with a red wine and tomato based sauce.

Classic Italian Recipes

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