We sometimes get people asking us about sweetbreads, so much so we wrote a blog about them about a year ago, in which we basically described them, threw in a pretty gross picture of them uncooked and didn’t show what the finished product could become. I doubt too many readers were inspired to try them out, and we wanted to change that.

Sweetbreads are a star performer of the foodie community. People that know them, love them. It’s like knowing an indie band before they make it big. You can say you were around in the beginning, then accuse the sweetbreads of going mainstream and selling out when they show up on menus all over the place like they are starting to. Or just eat them more often.

This dish combines 2 unusual (for lack of a better word) cuts of meat, and makes them into one enormously satisfying dish. Let’s get started.

Here’s the money shot, now let’s see how we got there:

Start with the sweetbreads in their humble raw form. I purchased them along with the veal cheeks at Cioffi’s Meat Market and Deli in North Burnaby.

Now, you’ve got to soak them in some cold water with a bit of salt for at least a few hours to draw out some blood and other impurities, it really does improve the final product. Do this overnight if convenient but for at least 3 hours.

Now, get out a couple big ugly celery roots:

Preheat the oven to 350F, and slice off the outer layers of the celery root, like this:

Chop them up a put them in a pot of salted water to boil:

Now throw in a couple sprigs of rosemary to the pot, the smell will be fantastic!

Now on to the veal cheeks, let’s have a look:

As you can see, they’ve got quite a bit of fat/silverskin that we need to trim off using a sharp knife. Go for it.

Now, preheat a heavy bottomed pot with some vegetable oil, season the cheeks with salt and pepper and dust lightly with flour.

Brown the cheeks on all sides over high heat:

Next, remove the cheeks from the pot and add in some aromatics and some figs. I’m using dried figs but if you can get fresh in your area, absolutely go for it.

Now, add half a bottle of cabernet, some veal stock and bring it to a boil.

Throw it in the oven and let it braise for about 1.5 hours at 350F.

Drain the celery root when tender and mash with a little butter and cream. Season and add in some fresh parsley to finish and set aside:

Next, scoop out the underrib of a small portobello mushroom cap, coat it lightly with oil, and fill it with the celery root. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes.

After 1.5 hours the cheeks should look like this, pull it out and remove the cheeks, they should be very tender but not completely falling apart:

Next, puree the figs and aromatics into the sauce. Put back on low heat and let it reduce for 10 minutes.

Next we’re on to the sweetbreads. Drain and pat them dry, cut them into chunks:

Heat a heavy bottom pan and fill it up about half way with canola oil. If you’ve got a home deep fryer, fire that bad boy up! Always use caution when working with hot oil! Set up a breading station with eggs and milk, as well as seasoned flour. Lightly and evenly bread the sweetbreads:

Test a sweetbread by placing it in the oil, it should bubble immediately which will indicate the oil is hot enough. If you’ve got a good thermometer the oil temp should be around 350F.

Fry them up until they are a golden brown. Words cannot describe how delicious these are. I like to dust them with a touch of smoked paprika right out of the fryer. Use this opportunity to sneak a chef’s snack. Or two.

Once the sweetbreads are fried, it’s time to plate! Start with your beautifully reduced cabernet fig sauce:

Now place the celery root stuffed mushroom cap in the center:

Thinly slice the veal cheeks, and arrange on top:

Followed by those beautiful crispy sweetbreads:

Experiment a bit with garnishes, a simple sprig of rosemary or parsley works, maybe some caramelized shallots.

And there we have it! Sure, it’s not for everybody, but if you’re feeling adventurous and are up for adding something to your culinary repertoire, why not head to your butcher and try at least one of the elements of this dish out for yourself? I promise, you’ll soon be a fan too.