Scotch Collops of Veal

History

"Scotch Collops of Veal" appears in Mary Randolph's The Virginia House-Wife, first published in 1824 and regarded as the first regional American cookbook. As printed, the recipe directs that the collops "may be made of the nice part of the rack, or cut from the fillet," rubbed with a little salt and pepper and fried a light brown; a rich gravy is seasoned with wine and "any kind of catsup you choose," a few cloves of garlic and some pounded mace, then thickened; the collops are stewed briefly, the gravy strained over them, and the dish garnished with parsley fried crisp and thin slices of bacon middling curled around a skewer and boiled. The name describes the form of the dish rather than a specific proprietor. A "collop" is a slice of meat, and "Scotch collops" combines "Scotch" ('of Scotland') with "collop" ('slice of meat'). Reference sources describe Scotch collops as a traditional Scottish dish, with the term attested from the 17th century; in later usage it denotes pieces of beef or veal cut thin or minced, beaten flat, and stewed. The etymology of "collop" itself is uncertain. Beyond this, the historical record I could source does not document who first prepared this particular version, any specific line of transmission to Virginia, or any social meaning attached to the dish.

Ingredients

• veal collops
• salt
• pepper
• rich gravy
• catsup
• garlic cloves
• mace
• parsley
• bacon middling

Instructions

1. Rub the veal collops lightly with salt and pepper. Fry them to a light brown color.
2. Prepare a rich gravy seasoned with wine, your choice of catsup, a few cloves of garlic, and some pounded mace. Thicken the gravy.
3. Add the collops to the gravy and stew them for a short time. Remove the collops and strain the gravy over them.
4. Garnish with bunches of parsley that have been fried crisp, and thin slices of bacon middling curled around a skewer and boiled.