So Many Dishes

After three years of graduate school and living on our combined stipends, Ken and I took advantage of the fact that we had a real paycheck coming in. For one thing, Ken asked that I not make macaroni and cheese for dinner ever again. (He relented eventually, but it took quite a few years.). We tried a wines that weren’t the cheapest on the shelf. And I indulged in a subscription to the Time-Life Foods of the World cookbooks.

Foods of the World was a series of 27 cookbooks, published over more than 10 years beginning in 1968. Each issue had two parts: a hard bound book that was a travelogue/cultural history, and a spiral bound collection of recipes. I think I had about a dozen issues; over the years, I gave away all the hard bound books, and kept just six of the recipe collections. One of those is called A Quintet of Cuisines, and that’s what I cooked from Friday evening.

There are recipes from 10 countries in the book, including Switzerland, the Low Countries, Poland, Bulgaria, Romania, and Algeria, plus Morocco and Tunisia. I learned about salted lemons from this book, and cooked the recipe for Moroccan chicken and olives it contains before I started using my current recipe. The recipe I made on Friday is Bulgarian in origin.

It’s probably 40 years or more since I first made Bulgarian veal stew with horseradish. It’s a very simple dish that depends on the horseradish for flavor. Whenever we find cubed veal in the market, this is the first meal that comes to mind. When I blogged about veal Marengo a couple of months ago, I mentioned that there was another recipe that was one of our “go-to” dishes with veal; this is it. I’ve made some adjustments to quantities in the recipe, mostly because of using a smaller quantity of meat, so there’s a higher vegetable to meat ratio, but I don’t think that’s a bad thing. Plus, it doesn’t affect the flavor.

Veal Stew with Horseradish (Teleshko s Khrian)

• 1 to 1 1/4 pounds boneless veal shoulder, trimmed and cut into 1-inch cubes
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 2 cups water
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 3 medium carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch dice (about 2 cups)
• 3 medium celery stalks, trimmed and cut into 1/2 inch dice (about 2 cups)
• 2 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch dice (about 2 cups)
• 3 ounces prepared white horseradish, squeezed dry in a towel (or 2 tablespoons freshly grated horseradish, which I have never seen in our market)
• 2 tablespoons cider vinegar (or more to taste)

In a large pot or Dutch oven, combine the veal, chicken stock, water, salt, and a few grindings of pepper. Bring to a boil over high heat, skimming off the scum and foam as they rise to the surface. Reduce the heat to low, cover the pot, and simmer for 45 minutes. Stir in the carrots, celery, and potatoes, and simmer, covered, for about 30 minutes. Stir in the horseradish and vinegar. Taste for seasoning, including additional vinegar, if desired. Serve in bowls. Serves 4.

We usually have rye bread to soak up the broth, but ended up with a soft white bread that was still warm when we bought it Friday morning. It worked just fine. It’s not a fancy dish, but it certainly is delicious.

Happy eating!