Vitello Tonnato (Classic Italian dish)

Name: Vitello Tonnato (Classic Italian dish)
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 60 min
Total time: 80 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: veal loin 600 g; canned tuna 120 g; mayonnaise 4 tbsp; capers 1 tbsp; anchovy fillets 2 pcs; lemon juice 1 tbsp; onion 80 g; white wine 100 ml

Quick answer

Total time: 80 min
Level: Medium
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients: 8

About this dish

Chilled, thinly sliced veal disappears under a cold sauce of tuna, capers, and anchovy blended smooth with mayonnaise and lemon.

The meat is gently cooked in white wine over a bed of onion, then cooled completely so it slices thin without tearing. That cooking liquid is saved to loosen the sauce until it flows slowly off a spoon. Capers and anchovy bring the salt and acidity that the mild veal lacks, and a few extra capers are scattered on top before it is served cold.

Ingredients

servings

IngredientAmount

anchovy fillets2 pcs

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Instructions

6 steps

1

Pat the 600 g veal loin dry and season it very lightly with salt.

Thinly slice the 80 g onion and spread it across the bottom of the pot so the meat does not sit directly on the hot surface.
2

Place the veal on the onion, pour in 100 ml white wine, and cover the pot.

Cook over low heat for 25 to 35 minutes, turning once halfway through, until the outside is firm and the juices run lightly clear.
3

Let the veal cool briefly in the pot, then lift it out.

Strain and reserve the cooking liquid, because it will adjust the sauce later, and chill the meat completely so it slices cleanly instead of tearing.
4

Blend the 120 g canned tuna, 4 tablespoons mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon capers, 2 anchovy fillets, and 1 tablespoon lemon juice until smooth. If small tuna or caper pieces remain, blend again before thinning the sauce.
5

If the sauce is too thick, loosen it gradually with the cooled cooking liquid.

Stop when it flows slowly from a spoon but still coats it, because a watery sauce will slide off the chilled veal.
6

Slice the fully chilled veal thinly across the grain and arrange the slices flat on a plate.

Cover generously with the tuna sauce, add a few extra capers for brightness, and serve well chilled.