This is a recipe for a very simple cold dish made on a large scale, sufficient for one of the dishes of a buffet for about 20 people. (Or as applied by me it is a very good way of using up leftover cold beef.)
4 lb. stewing beef (ox muzzle or cheek if possible: if not shin or top rump)
3 lb. knuckle of veal, including bone
4 carrots
2 onions
Bouquet of herbs
Seasoning
If possible have the meat cut in one large piece and tied into a good shape so that it will be easy to cut when cooked
For the sauce to cover the cold meat:
8-10 shallots
2 oz. capers
3 or 4 medium-sized pickled cucumbers
A little mustard
A very large bunch of parsley
½ pint of olive oil
Tarragon vinegar
2 tomatoes
Put the beef and veal into a deep pan with the onions, carrots and the bouquet. Add 1 tablespoon of salt, cover with 7-8 pints of water, cook with lid on pan either in a very low oven or on top of the stove over a very gentle heat for 3-5 hours (depending on cut of the meat) until meat is tender. Remove both beef and veal, sprinkle them with salt and olive oil and leave until next day. Keep the stock for soup. To make the salad, cut the meat when quite cold into thin slices, narrow and neat. Mix the veal and beef together.
The sauce takes time to prepare. The shallots are chopped exceedingly fine with the parsley, which must be first washed in cold water and squeezed dry; when both shallots and parsley are chopped almost to a pulp stir in a little French mustard, salt, pepper, the chopped pickled cucumber and the capers. Add the olive oil gradually, and a very little tarragon vinegar. Mix the sauce very thoroughly with the meat. Lastly add the roughly chopped tomatoes as a garnish. Leave for several hours before serving.
This recipe can be applied to almost any kind of boiled meat or to fish and chicken, the quantities for the sauce being reduced in proportion to the amount of meat.