I never had veal. Not that I can remember. It just never hit me that maybe I should give it a try. Maybe it’s just the thought that veal is the meat from young calves that made me not want to try them at first. But after watching Italian Food Safari and seeing how they cooked a veal osso bucco. I really wanted to try veal, at least once. And so I did. Of course I didn’t know what was the best way to cook the veal and so I decided, veal goulash!

So off I went to the supermarket to get the ingredients for a goulash. I walked the aisles of Woolies and just couldn’t think of what to compliment the veal goulash. Mash? Greens? But in the end, I decided that the stew would be perfect with egg tagliatelle. With the delicious gravy coating every single strand of the pasta. What could be better? And might I add, more comforting on a cold night after a day of work?

I cheated today and adapted from the recipe that was found on the packaging of the veal stew meat I bought from Woolies. Was a bit apprehensive because they put the juice of a whole orange in the stew. Something sweet in savoury? Will it work? Then I remembered the winners of MKR (Leigh & Jennifer) who used pineapple juice when cooking their massaman curry (so going to try it!), making Judge Manu Feildel go “OMG!” I immediately decided to give it a shot. And I am so glad I did! It was delicious!

As it cooks, the smell of the orange gets stronger. But when you actually taste it, there is only a subtle taste of the orange and it actually works beautifully!  With the saltiness of the parmesan cheese, everything just went so well together. We loved it!

Veal Goulash (adapted from Woolworths Recipe)

400g veal stew cut, diced

1 red onion, sliced into small wedges

1 heap tbs plain flour

1 tin (400g) diced tomatoes

1/2 cup green split olives

Juice of 1 orange

Rind of 1 orange, grated

250ml beef stock

1 tsp paprika (can add more if you like the spice!)

1 heap tbs thickened cream

salt and pepper, to taste

Steps :

1) Heat a heavy-based pot over medium-high heat with 1 tbs of olive oil and brown the veal. Brown them in 3 batches so that it will give the stew a nice dark colour. Take them out and put them aside.

2) Add another tbs of olive oil and the onions. Fry till the onions start to break down and soften. Add the plain flour and stir until the onions are well coated.

3) Slowly add the beef stock, olives, diced tomatoes, orange juice, orange rind and paprika. Allow the stew to simmer for at least 2 hours, stirring occasionally. Pop the lid on but do not cover the pot completely. Give a small gap to allow some of the liquid to evaporate, thickening the stew. Season with salt and pepper.

4) Just before you serve, add the cream and stir it well. If serving with pasta, cook the pasta according to the package and add it into the goulash coating the pasta well. Top it with shaven or grated parmesan and ENJOY! (:

If you ask me, a messy plate is a yummy plate. haha (: If you have any good veal recipes, please point me to the direction! Would love to learn more ways to cook this gorgeous meat!