The quiet strength behind countless brown sauces. Roasted veal bones, vegetables and time, that’s all, but it yields a jus with a depth that no jar ever achieves. Plan for a day when you are at home anyway; the work itself is half an hour, the pan does the rest.
Veal jus
Jus de veau
Veal jus
Jus de veau
Method
01
Roast
Preheat the oven to 220 °C. Lay the bones in a single layer in a roasting tin and roast them for 30–40 minutes until deep golden brown; turn them halfway. Brown is flavour, black is bitter, so keep an eye on them.
02
Vegetables
Roughly chop the carrot, leek and celeriac. Add them to the bones for the last 15 minutes, together with the tomato purée. Separately, caramelise the onion halves, cut side down, in a dry pan until almost black: that gives colour and depth.
03
Loosen the browned bits
Scoop everything into a large pan. Put the roasting tin on the heat, deglaze with the red wine and scrape up all the browned bits. Pour this over the bones; a quarter of your flavour is in here.
04
Simmer
Add enough cold water to cover everything generously. Bring slowly to just below boiling and skim the surface. Add the bouquet garni, peppercorns and cloves. Leave to simmer for 6–8 hours over the gentlest heat, just below boiling point. Don't stir, don't let it bubble.
05
Strain and reduce
Pass through a fine sieve and then through dampened muslin. Reduce to about a fifth of the volume, until the jus lightly coats a spoon and gleams. Only now season with salt; salt earlier and you will end up with a salt crust.
06
Optional thickening
Mix the starch with a tablespoon of cold water, bring the jus to the boil and stir in the slurry little by little until you reach the desired thickness.
Tips & notes
Boiling makes the jus cloudy and emulsifies the fat into it, so simmer, never bubble. Chill the jus overnight in the fridge: the fat sets on top and you can lift it off easily. Freeze it in ice-cube trays; one cube in a pan with browned bits and a knob of cold butter is already a sauce.
Chef's tip
Veal jus is the quiet engine behind at least half of all brown sauces: demi-glace, jus lié and dozens of derivatives start here. Make a big pan at the weekend and freeze it in cubes.
Variations
- Jus lié – Lightly thickened with arrowroot for a modern, smooth jus.
- Veal jus with thyme and garlic – Briefly infused, quick and versatile.
- Demi-glace – Reduced further with wine to a jelly-like concentrate.
Contains:
Celery
Sulphites
Serve with
- Veal
- Steak
- Roast chicken
- Sweetbreads
- Potato gratin
| Calories | 159 kcal |
|---|---|
| Protein | 6 g |
| Carbohydrates | 36 g |
| Fat | 2 g |
| Fibre | 13 g |
Estimated values, calculated from standard nutritional values per ingredient.
