So last Sunday we had our awesome friends over (Angela and Ramesh & kids) for a meal that would rival just about any other incredible meal we’ve had this year. The occasion was Ange’s birthday, sort of…it was a year late but as they say, better late than never! The dinner menu was pretty epic – herb crusted rack of veal drizzled with tarragon/lemon butter sauce, roasted tomato, feta on grilled polenta, mustard-dressed red cabbage, watercress and tomato salad and to top it all off….Heather’s homemade lemon meringue pie!
First start by prepping your veal rack. Unpack it and run it under cool water. Pat dry and then grab some olive oil and coat it liberally. Season well with Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper. Now, combine the following ingredients in a food processor to make a thick paste:
1 bunch of English flat leaf parsley, coarsely chopped
1 bunch of fresh chives, chopped
6 cloves of garlic
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 Cups of breadcrumbs
1/2 Cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Pulse the mixture until it starts to thicken up but don’t let it get too watery. If you need to make room in the food processor, only pulse half at a time then combine it all later with a wooden spoon or simply use your hands to fold together. Now place your veal rack on a cutting board and spread the crust all across the flesh side of the rack. Make sure it’s nice and thick then loosely cover the rack with cling film and pop it in the fridge until you’re ready to grill.
Remove the rack from the fridge about 30 minutes before you’re ready to start. Pre-heat your grill to 300F and set up for indirect heat. Make sure you insert your trusty temperature probe into the middle of the rack, away from the bones. Set your rack on a rack and place onto the grill. Add a small handful of apple wood for a bit of smoke. Don’t overdo it with the wood chips, just a bit will do you fine. Now, you’ll be shooting for an internal temperature of 135F for a perfect medium rare which should take you about 90-100 minutes in total.
When you reach 135F pull the rack off carefully so as not to lose any of the crust. Let it rest for a good 15 minutes before you carve up your cutlets. Now is a great time to prep your tarragon butter. Simply heat 120g of butter, 3 minced garlic cloves, a bunch of fresh French tarragon, lemon rind and juice of one lemon in a saucepan over medium heat for 2 minutes or until foamy. Cut veal into cutlets, drizzle with tarragon butter and serve.
We plated the food with roast tomatoes and feta on grilled polenta and a simple salad – all together it was an incredible meal that yielded absolutely NO leftovers! Shocking I know but hey, these guys were hungry. In the end, we finished up dinner with an amazing homemade LMP (lemon meringue pie) and a few bottles of yummy wine. All in all, a great birthday meal for our buddy Angela (who is now permanently immortalised on this here blog!) HAPPY BIRTHDAY ANGE!
Here is the reaction from Angela herself:
“Singapore has a reputation for being a food lover’s paradise. Little do people realize how far paradise stretches. Nestled in a wonderfully quiet street in Holland Village, surrounded by a lush green back yard and the lovely Matla family is the infamous Big Green Asian Egg! Dinner prepared on the egg by Roman is a culinary experience like no other
The herb crusted veal was undeniably well done with a multitude of flavours bursting in your mouth. It was perfectly teamed with Heather’s delicious grilled polenta, roasted tomatoes and feta; and her famous Lemon Meringue Pie was once again, simply divine!
Thank you for a wonderful evening and for my very delicious belated Birthday meal – it was definitely a feast for the eyes as well as the stomach xx”
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Overall Heather Rating: 10/10
OVERALL ROMAN RATING FOR THE PIE? 100,000,000/10