🍖 Veal Sweetbreads
Ris de veau are veal sweetbreads — the thymus gland of a calf — prized in French cooking for their delicate flavour and creamy, tender texture. After soaking and blanching, they are pan-fried in butter until golden and crisp outside, then finished with lemon, capers and parsley. They are served as an elegant starter or main course.
Diets
Allergens
Contains (in a typical recipe):
What it is made of
Recipe
Ingredients
- 600 g veal sweetbreads
- 40 g butter
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 2 tbsp capers
- 2 tbsp chopped parsley
- Salt and black pepper
Method
- Soak the sweetbreads in cold water for a few hours, changing the water twice.
- Blanch them in simmering salted water for 3 minutes, cool, then peel off the membrane.
- Press under a weight in the fridge for 1 hour, then slice into thick pieces.
- Season and fry in the butter for 3–4 minutes per side until golden.
- Add the lemon juice, capers and parsley to the pan, baste and serve.
How to make it lighter
- Use half the butter and a non-stick pan; the sweetbreads still turn golden.
- 1 tbsp butter ≈ 100 kcal, so measure what goes in the pan.
- Serve with a large green salad or steamed vegetables.
History
Sweetbreads have long been a delicacy in French haute cuisine and appear in classic cookbooks as a luxurious offal dish. Today they are found mainly on bistro and fine-dining menus in France and elsewhere in Europe.
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Values are estimates per 100 g for a typical recipe; home and restaurant versions vary. Diets and allergens are worked out from the ingredients of a typical recipe — always check with whoever cooked the dish. Not medical advice. Nutrition data: Me Nutrition dish database v13. How we count →