Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Volume 2 (71 page)

NOTE
: When beef is tender, at end of Step 3, and you have drained out, skimmed, boiled down, and seasoned the cooking liquid as directed in the next step, you will probably find that it has thickened enough so that you need do nothing more to it.

STUFFED BEEF ROLLS

Paupiettes de Boeuf—Roulades

Thin slices of beef rolled around a stuffing and braised in wine is only a more elaborate way of presenting the familiar beef stew.
Paupiettes
with a pork and veal stuffing and mustard sauce appear in Volume I on page 319, an excellent recipe. The first one here is a giant
paupiette de Gargantua
, serving 6 people, while variations are for individual rolls. Stuffings include a Provençal mixture of greens, onions, pork, and ham, an olive mixture, a pepper mixture, and a final combination of rice, garlic, and herbs.

BEEF CUTS FOR PAUPIETTES

Look for solid pieces of meat that will make large, thin, cross-grain slices with no muscle separations. Avoid cuts like brisket, which tend to fall into long, loose fibers after cooking. Top round (
tende de tranche, noix
) is our first choice, and a cut from the upper-middle portion will give perfect slices 10 to 12 inches across by 5 to 7 inches. Rump (
rumsteck
) works nicely, of course, but it is a waste to spend the extra money for rump when round is equally good. Bottom round (
gîte à la noix
) is a little grainier than top round, but a satisfactory alternative. Shoulder-arm steak (
macreuse
) is fourth choice only because of the gristle running through part of the slice, but you can clip the gristle in several places so that it will not draw the meat out of shape.

  
LA PAUPIETTE DE GARGANTUA

[Giant Stuffed Beef Roll]

Rather than making a number of individual
paupiettes
, this recipe rolls them all into one, and, because the stuffing is green, you need no green vegetable garnish. You could accompany the
paupiette
with broiled tomatoes, sautéed mushrooms, and glazed carrots, or with braised lettuce or endives and sautéed potatoes. Another suggestion is one of the
unusual purées
, squash and white beans, rice and turnips with garlic, or rutabagas. A full red wine is called for, as in all beef dishes: Burgundy, Moulin-à-Vent, Côtes-du-Rhône.

For 6 people

1)
Preparing the meat

A 2- to 2½-lb. slice of top round of beef approximately 12 by 6 inches and ¾ to 1 inch thick (
see Beef Cuts for Stews
)

3 Tb strong Dijon-type prepared mustard

½ tsp mixed herbs such as thyme and bay leaf, or Italian Seasoning

Trim outside fat and gristle off meat. You are now to cut the slice of beef so that you can open it up like a book, making 2 flaps of meat hinged together at one side. To do so, lay it flat on table and start at one of the long sides with a long, very sharp knife; slice through center of meat, parallel to table, ending ½ inch from other long side. Open up the meat, spread mustard and herbs on inside surface, and set aside while preparing stuffing, next step.

2)
Green stuffing with pork, ham, and onions—for about 3 cups

1 cup minced onions

2 Tb rendered pork fat or cooking oil

An 8-inch enameled or no-stick frying pan

Cook the onions with the fat or oil in the pan over moderately low heat until tender but not browned.

About ½ lb. greens (collard, kale, turnip, or spinach, fresh or frozen)

A large stainless-steel knife

If greens are fresh, pick them over to remove stems; drop leaves into a large kettle of boiling, salted water, and boil until wilted and fairly tender (2–3 minutes for spinach, more for the others). If frozen, boil for sufficient time in a covered pan with ½ cup salted water until defrosted and fairly tender. Drain cooked greens, refresh in cold water, squeeze out as much water as possible, and chop fine. Then add greens to onions, and stir over moderate heat for several minutes to evaporate moisture and to finish cooking.

A 3-quart mixing bowl (or heavy-duty electric mixer)

1 egg

1 tsp salt

½ tsp
épices fines
, or mixture of all-spice, thyme, and bay leaf

¼ tsp pepper

1 large clove garlic, mashed

¼ cup dry crumbs from nonsweetened, homemade-type white bread

1 cup diced boiled ham

½ cup fresh sausage meat

Scrape greens and onions into mixing bowl and vigorously beat in the rest of the ingredients listed. Sauté a spoonful, taste, and correct seasoning.

3)
Assembling the paupiette

Either
a 14-inch square of caul fat
;

Or
a 12- by 8-inch sheet of pork fat ¼ inch thick;

Or
6 to 8 strips of thick bacon or salt pork, and a 12- by 6-inch piece of beef suet ¼ inch thick

White kitchen string

(If using salt pork or bacon, blanch 10 minutes in 2 quarts of water, and pat dry.) Spread the stuffing over the meat, leaving an inch border of clear meat all around. Starting at one long side, roll the meat rather loosely around the stuffing, making a sausage shape about 4 inches in diameter. Fold over the two ends. If you have caul fat, roll the meat in a double thickness of it; tie lengthwise and in several places around the circumference. Otherwise, place strips of pork fat, bacon, or salt pork over length, particularly the seam, and the ends; tie in place, and reserve remaining pieces of fat for later.