Ingredients
Beef
- 800 gbeef brisket or shin
- or 600 g leftover boiled beef
- 2carrots
- 2celery sticks
- 1onion, halved
- 2bay leaves
- a few peppercorns
- 1 tablespoonsalt
Dressing
- 2onions, very thinly sliced
- 5 tablespoonswhite wine vinegar
- 6 tablespoonsoil
- 2 tablespoonsstrong mustard
- a large handful of parsley, chopped
- salt and black pepper
Sometimes added
- 2hard-boiled eggs, quartered
- 2 tablespoonscapers
- gherkins, sliced
- a little beef stock
To serve
- bread and butter
- or boiled potatoes
- a green salad
Directions
- Put the beef into a large pot. Cover it with plenty of cold water. Starting from cold draws flavour into the broth. Bring it slowly up to a simmer. Skim it off carefully with a spoon. Keep skimming until no more rises. Add the carrots, celery and onion.
- Add the bay leaves and peppercorns. Add the salt to the pot as well. Let it cook for about two and a half hours. Never let it boil hard at any point.
- Take the pot off the heat entirely. Let the beef cool in its own broth. That keeps it moist as it cools. Lift the cold beef out of the broth. Trim off any large pieces of fat. Slice it as thinly as you can. Cut across the grain of the muscle. That shortens the fibres and keeps it tender. Keep the broth for soup another day.
- Slice the onions as thinly as you possibly can. Some cooks rinse the onion in cold water. Whisk the mustard with the vinegar. Add the oil in a thin stream, whisking. It should emulsify into a thick dressing.
- Season it with salt and black pepper. Add a spoonful of the beef broth if you like. It should be sharp and mustardy. Add more mustard if it seems flat. Add more vinegar if it seems oily. Put the beef strips in a bowl.
- Add all of the thinly sliced onions. Pour the dressing over everything. Toss it thoroughly with your hands. Add most of the chopped parsley.
- Add capers or gherkins if you want them. Cover it and refrigerate it now. Give it at least two full hours. Spoon it out onto cold plates. Scatter the rest of the parsley over. Lay hard-boiled egg quarters around it. Serve bread and butter alongside. It keeps three days refrigerated.
Technique
- The name means hearthstone salad in Luxembourgish, usually explained by the pot of boiled beef sitting on the hearth stone, an account that is traditional rather than documented.
- The dish exists to use up boiled beef left from making bouillon, which is how it works in a household, though a cafe simply boils beef for the purpose.
- The beef should cool in its own broth rather than being lifted out hot, since that keeps it moist, and cold beef slices far more cleanly.
Substitutions
- Any leftover boiled or pot-roasted beef works and saves the long simmer entirely.
- A spoonful of the beef broth thins the dressing and adds savour.
Variations
- Some cooks add capers, gherkins or hard-boiled egg.
- A version with more mustard is made in some cafes.
- Similar cold boiled beef salads are eaten across Germany and Austria.
History
Made from leftover boiled beef, its name means hearthstone salad; it is a standard dish of Luxembourg cafés and brasseries.
Frequently asked questions
What is Feierstengszalot?
Feierstengszalot is a salad & side from Luxembourg: cold boiled beef salad with onion, vinegar, mustard and parsley. Made from leftover boiled beef, its name means hearthstone salad; it is a standard dish of Luxembourg cafés and brasseries.
How long does Feierstengszalot take to make?
Feierstengszalot takes 20 minutes plus chilling of preparation and 2 hours 30 minutes, if boiling the beef of cooking. The recipe makes serves 4. It is rated easy to make.
What can I substitute in Feierstengszalot?
Yes, within limits. Any leftover boiled or pot-roasted beef works and saves the long simmer entirely. A spoonful of the beef broth thins the dressing and adds savour.
What is the most important thing to get right in Feierstengszalot?
Add the bay leaves and peppercorns. Add the salt to the pot as well. Let it cook for about two and a half hours. Never let it boil hard at any point.
