Veal ragout with pistachios

Ingredients for 6 servings:

• 800 g veal, preferably from the shank
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 50 g butter
• 200 g pistachios, shelled
• 4 shallots
• 4 tomatoes
• 4 bell peppers, red
• 200 g mushrooms
• 1 tbsp flour
• 1 tbsp paprika paste
• 4 g mastic, special dried tree resin
• 1 tsp thyme
• salt and pepper

Instructions

Working time approx. 40 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 1 hour; Total time approx. 1 hour 40 minutes

A dish from Gaziantep, Turkey

Cut the veal into approximately 1 cm cubes. Peel and dice the tomatoes, shallots, and bell peppers. Slice the mushrooms and cut them into eighths. If you can’t get shelled pistachios, briefly blanch the unshelled nuts; this makes the skin easier to remove. First, brown the veal in olive oil and butter for ten minutes on all sides, stirring constantly. Then add the shallots and sauté for another ten minutes. Add the mushrooms, tomatoes, and bell peppers and sauté for five minutes. Dust with flour, mix in the paprika paste, stir, and fry briefly. Pour in enough water to just cover the ragout. Bring to a boil. Add the crushed mastic and thyme and simmer for ten minutes. The meat should be tender by now. If not, increase the cooking time accordingly. Finally, add the pistachios to the ragout. Cover and simmer for ten minutes, seasoning with salt and pepper. Serve best with rice.