(Steamed veal chops, Asian flavors.)I'm not grilling today. The only things that keep me from cooking outdoors are visible lightning and winds high enough to blow the lawn furniture off the porch.
I had defrosted two 3/4-inch veal rib chops from our farm. We raise "pink veal" which means the animals have space to walk around and socialize, with milk and dry hay to eat. We raise only four each year, so actually having some to eat instead of selling it is pretty special.
I had a bunch of colored baby carrots from Half Pint Farm.
Hon Tsai Tai from Arethusa Collective Farm.
I set the smallest carrots I had in a single layer over the meat dish.
A squeeze of vinegar-based dressing, a few drops of fish sauce and hot pepper oil, and a pinch of sugar are sprinkled over the meat. Sour, sweet, salty and hot are all represented.
The carrots and meat were set over the greens.
They all went on the preheated steamer for 12 minutes. The greens and meat were removed to the counter and covered to keep them warm. The carrots were left on the steamer for 2 more minutes, then I turned the burner off and left them over the water for a further 10 minutes to stay warm and finish cooking through.
Still steamy. It looks overdone and a bit purple from having the colored carrots drip into the dish, but it was perfectly rare with a delicious au jus that I served over sticky rice. Just like with chicken and fish, the steaming process made the meat silky soft.No plated photos, Dan came in from chores late, and it was a great mess on a plate in the dark. This served two with some carrots left over.
