Tafelspitz (boiled fillet of beef)

Austrian beef dish

"Tafelspitz" is a typical Austrian dish. It is made with a well-hung piece of beef from the rump of a young ox and gets its name from the characteristic pointed shape of the cut (German "Tafel" = table, "spitz" = pointed).

(See sketch under www.lebensmittellexikon.de (search "Tafelspitz"), section shaded dark grey.)

"Tafelspitz" is boiled meat.

The Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph (1830-1916, symbol of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy) was a great lover of "Tafelspitz". In the official cookery textbook, dated 1912, which was used in domestic science schools throughout the Austro-Hungarian Empire, it says: "His Majesty's private table is never without a fine piece of boiled beef, which is one of his favorite dishes."

Ingredients

(serves 8)

2.5 to 3 kg fillet of beef

Alternatively, a similar cut of beef from a young ox, properly hung, with firm white fat (not yellow). The fat must be left on to prevent the meat from becoming dry.

2 slices shin of beef with marrow, otherwise 1 kg beef bones (with marrow)

Root vegetables:
3 carrots
1 large piece of celeriac
2 leeks
1 root of hamburg parsley
Lovage

200 g onions
15 peppercorns
Salt
Freshly ground sea salt

Preparation

Place the meat and bones in boiling water (or boil up with the water).
Halve the onions without peeling. Fry in a pan with the cut surface down until well browned, then add to the meat with the peppercorns.

Boil gently, skimming off any scum.

Boil for 3 to 4 hours, depending on the quality of the meat.

1 hour before the end, add the washed and peeled root vegetables and boil for another hour.

When the meat is tender, remove from the soup and keep warm.

Add the seasoning and pass the soup through a fine sieve.

Cut the meat into finger-thick slices (cutting across the grain), arrange on plates, pour over a little of the soup and sprinkle with sea salt and chives.
Serve with chive sauce and apple horseradish.

Cold chive sauce

100 g white bread, crusts removed
¼ l milk
2 hard-boiled egg yolks
2 raw egg yolks
Salt
Freshly ground white pepper
1 dash of vinegar
½ teaspoon tarragon mustard
1 pinch of sugar
400 ml vegetable oil
2-3 tablespoons finely chopped chives

Soak the bread in the milk, then squeeze thoroughly.
Pass through a fine sieve with the hard-boiled egg yolks.

Add the raw egg yolks and seasoning and stir to a mayonnaise consistency in the mixer.
Add the oil, drop by drop at first, then in a thin stream, stirring at the same time until a creamy sauce is obtained.

Stir in the chives just before serving.

Apple horseradish

2 apples (approx. 350 g)
2 heaped tablespoons freshly grated horseradish
Salt
Lemon juice

Peel apples, quarter, remove pips and stew until soft.
Purée in the mixer.

Add the horseradish and season to taste with salt and lemon juice.

Accompaniments

The chopped root vegetables from the soup,
sauté or parsley potatoes.

Also suitable:
Viennese-style pickled savoy cabbage
Creamed spinach
Green beans

Suitable wines

A crisp, dry white wine such as a Grüner Veltliner or Grünsylvaner is ideal.