Ris de Veau aux Morilles

Method

Make ahead: prepare the sweetbreads

For the original 1 kg preparation batch, choose heart lobes. Soak in cold water for 30 minutes, changing the water whenever it becomes cloudy.
Blanch in gently simmering water for 10 minutes, then rinse in cold water.
Carefully remove fibrous and sinewy parts. The blanched sweetbreads are fragile; handle gently.
Poach in a gently simmering court-bouillon with the onion, cloves, carrot, bouquet garni and salt for 30 minutes.
Drain in a colander. Wrap each lobe tightly in food-safe cling film, make small holes to let residual moisture escape, and refrigerate. The source gives no chilling duration.

Make ahead: brown-braise the prepared sweetbreads

The braising technique uses a separate source batch of 1 kg cleaned, blanched and poached sweetbreads. Weigh the prepared meat; do not assume that the preceding raw batch yields the same weight. Unwrap before cooking.
Sauté the sliced button mushrooms and chopped shallots in butter in an ovenproof sauté pan. Add the prepared sweetbreads and deglaze with Madeira.
Add the brown veal stock to halfway up the sweetbreads. Keep the source's salt and freshly ground pepper available for seasoning.
Cook at 170°C / 338°F for 30–40 minutes, depending on lobe size. Baste regularly. The sweetbreads are ready when a skewer meets no resistance; reduced juices should give a glossy glaze.
For the original four starter portions below, measure 300 g of the brown-braised sweetbreads and 300 ml of reduced braising liquid. The source does not state the cooked-meat or liquid yield of the larger batch.

Finish: original four starter portions

Choose fresh morels in season. If using dried morels, soak in cold water for at least 30 minutes and drain. This can be done while preparing the sweetbreads.
Reduce the measured braising liquid over low heat, then add the morels.
Add the cream and simmer until the sauce has reduced by one-third.
Cut the measured braised sweetbreads into medium dice and warm gently in the sauce for a few minutes.
Arrange in shallow bowls, spoon over the sauce and morels, and finish with chervil.

Equipment

Large bowl; Saucepan for blanching and poaching; Colander; Small knife; Food-safe cling film; Ovenproof sauté pan; Basting spoon; Saucepan for the morel sauce; Strainer; Shallow serving bowls

Notes

Allow time for the whole preparation: the twenty-minute preparation and twenty-minute cooking headline covers the finish only. Before that come a thirty-minute soak, ten-minute blanch, thirty-minute poach, chilling of unstated length, and thirty to forty minutes of brown braising.
Keep the batches separate: the preparation technique starts with 1 kg raw sweetbreads. The braising technique starts with 1 kg already cleaned, blanched and poached sweetbreads. Weigh after preparation; one kilogram of raw meat is not stated to yield one kilogram prepared.
For the four-starter finish, measure 300 g braised sweetbreads and 300 ml reduced braising liquid. Neither larger technique publishes its final meat or liquid yield, so check both before assembling the sauce.
Scaling changes the finishing ingredients only. The two prerequisite batches remain fixed at their original quantities; prepare further batches if a larger finish needs them.
Choose pink, milky-looking heart lobes. Handle them gently after blanching and remove fibrous parts carefully. Drain, wrap tightly and chill as directed; no exact chilling time is given.
During braising, baste regularly. A skewer should meet no resistance, and the reduced liquid should leave a glossy glaze. The button mushrooms belong to this braise; they are distinct from the morels added to the final sauce.
Use fresh morels in season, or soak dried morels in cold water for at least thirty minutes and drain. This soak can take place during the earlier preparation stages.
Reduce the jus, add the morels and cream, then let the sauce reduce by one-third before the diced meat goes in. Reheat the sweetbreads gently for only a few minutes, spoon into shallow bowls and finish with chervil.