Veal cheek with celery mash and mushroom foam

VEAL CHEEKS

1. The day before, toast the juniper berries, peppercorns, clove, star anise and bay leaves in a non-oiled frying pan over a medium heat, until the spices begin to smell. Then finely grind the spices in a mortar. Add the powder to the red wine. Dab the veal cheeks dry with kitchen roll. Put them in a vacuum bag with the marinade and leave to steep in the fridge for at least 24 hours.

2. The next day, peel and finely dice the onions and garlic. Trim the carrots and celery, then peel and finely dice them. Trim the mushrooms, rub them with a cloth if necessary, and slice them. Wash the herbs and shake them dry then pluck the leaves/needles.

3. Heat up the oil in a roaster. Remove the veal cheeks from the marinade. Dab them dry then lightly season them with salt and pepper. Sear them in the hot oil over a high heat, then remove them and fry the vegetables in the cooking fat. Pour in the red wine marinade and vegetable stock and bring to the boil. Add the meat, rosemary and thyme. Braise uncovered in the X BO (120°C/80% humidity) for around 2 hours until the veal cheeks are tender to a knife tip.

4. Remove the cooked meat from the roaster and strain the juices through a sieve. Mix the strained juices with the Madeira and reduce the liquid by around a half over a medium heat without covering. If desired, mix the starch with some water to form a thick paste and thicken the sauce with it. Add the veal cheeks and put the lid on to keep them warm.

MUSHROOM FOAM

5. Trim the button mushrooms and rub them with kitchen towel if necessary. Mix the mushrooms in a bowl with some salt and the olive oil, spread them over the universal tray and roast them in the X BO (200°C/-60% humidity) for around 20 minutes until dark.

6. Next, add the mushrooms to a pan and cover with 2.25 l water, bring to the boil and reduce the mushroom stock to around 600 g. Pour in the milk and cream and reduce the mixture by half once again. Strain the liquid through a sieve and mix in the butter using a hand blender.

CELERY MASH

7. Wash the celery thoroughly, place it on the non-perforated steamer tray and cook in the X BO (160°C/-40% humidity) for around 1 hour 15 minutes until the core tem-perature reaches 92°C. Cut the bulb in half, scoop out the inside, season with salt and mash coarsely with the butter. Season the mash with freshly grated nutmeg.

PICKLED RADISH

8. In a pan, gently heat up 50 g water with the salt and the agave syrup then add the vinegar. In the meantime, peel the radish, slice it into 8 thin strips and marinate them in the liquid for 8–10 minutes.

FINISHING TOUCHES

9. Squeeze the lemon. To serve, arrange some celery mash in the middle of a deep plate. Put the braised veal cheek on top and pour some sauce over it. Top with the radish strips and garnish with fresh herbs. Sprinkle with puffed rice, as desired. Froth up the mushroom foam once again, add lemon juice to taste and serve next to the meat.