Easy Veal Saltimbocca

Veal saltimbocca is an Italian dish consisting of thinly-pounded veal scallopine sandwiched with sage leaves and proscuitto, sauteed in a pan with a white wine sauce.  Classic veal saltimbocca can be a bit of a challenge to prepare at home, as it involves whole pieces of veal layered with the other ingredients and cooked very gently so it doesn’t fall apart in the pan.  We came across a much simpler version and liked it so much that we may never do it the old-fashioned way again! 

12 thoughts on “Easy Veal Saltimbocca

  1. This was wonderful and easy to fix. I will have to do this one again. Thank you for your pictures. They really help, in many ways. Good work.

  2. I tried the veal tonight and see it’s potential despite my mistakes. As I frequently do, I overcooked the veal. I also thought I would try to make it more “earthy” by buying shitake mushrooms. I wanted Chanterrelles, but they were out at CM. I also used my own stock which I made from a Greenberg Smoked Turkey carcass. These were three big mistakes. The dish was still above par and when I make it next time, hopefully I will avoid my errors. Because I overcooked the veal, it was a bit tough. The mushrooms wound up having an “off putting” texture and the stock was kind of overwhelming. It was definitely easy to prepare and the portions were perfect for two.

    1. Mark – thanks for sharing your experience w/ the veal. I’ll find out if Dan has any tips about cooking time. How good is the Greenberg Smoked Turkey?!? We received one as a gift a couple of years ago and used the carcass to make amazing lentil soup.

      1. I love the Greenberg Turkey. It has a wonderful flavor(usually lacking in turkey) and the stock is also delicious, but should not be used in delicate sauces because the flavor can be overwhelming. I like to use it in Dean Fearing’s Cheddar cheese soup recipe in which I substitute green chilis for the poblanos. It is really decadent, but I have to have it every once in a while.

    1. Hi Mark, Dan here. This soup sounded so amazing that we had to make it for lunch today, and you are correct — it is super easy and absolutely delicious. We used Hatch green chiles, as well as some roasted poblanos and a jalapeno from our own garden. Thanks for the great new recipe!

  3. I have been looking for a good veal saltimboca recipe to try, and I really like a lot about this one and think that I will give it a try. I have one question though- I have had saltimboca quite a few times, and if I remember correctly the dishes that I had also had some sort of mild cheese in the dish. Am I completely wrong, or do some people use provolone, fontina, etc. in their veal saltimboca recipes?

    1. Hi Aimee. Thanks for your comment! Most of the classic veal saltimbocca recipes we have found do not include cheese, but we are firm believers that a little bit of cheese makes almost anything better. A little grated parmesan or fontina on top of this veal would probably be really good. Just not too much, since the dish is already pretty rich on its own.

  4. Brilliant idea. Just had inedibly tough VS in a local restaurant. Couple of thoughts:
    – I’d quickly sauté & remove the prosciutto before doing the veal, just to get a little cooking of it, then add back at the end.
    – olive oil doesn’t really keep butter from burning, but it does add a little margin of safety.
    – I’ve completely switched to using limes instead of lemons, purely to avoid having to fool with the seeds. My wife & I did a blind taste test and couldn’t tell any difference between lime & lemon juice.
    Thanks for this! Will try soon.

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