The Amazing Tonnato

I know what you’re thinking.  “What in the heck is tonnato?”  Simply, it’s a tuna sauce.  I first had it in NY and it was served over fresh picked tomatoes and some romaine, but it’s also commonly served with cold vegetables, which can be raw or roasted.  It’s a very sophisticated replacement for ranch dressing on a vegetable platter.  Whenever I serve it, I get lots of compliments and questions about what’s in it so I’m putting it here.

The recipe dates back to Piedmont in the 1800s.  It was first recorded in a cookbook by Pellegrino Artusi who served it over cold thinly sliced boiled veal and didn’t include mayonnaise, which I suspect was a French influence that happened later.  I’ve served it with crispy pork belly and cold thinly sliced roasted pork tenderloin.  Both are fantastic.

If you’re like me, veal isn’t an option.  I know, I know….veal is supposed to be delicious, but I just can’t do it.  And I love meat.  Anyway, if you get a chance, check out Artusi’s cookbook “Science In The Kitchen And The Art Of Eating Well”.  It was published just after the unification of Italy and was the first cookbook to include recipes from regions all over the country.  Be prepared to experiment, though, because the recipes are notoriously vague.

If you’re serving this sauce as an appetizer platter for friends like me, do the vegetables a little more justice than serving them plain and raw.  I like to roast some of the vegetables in different seasonings.  I mix it up.  I might do the carrots in herbs d’provence and the green beans in garlic salt.  You get the idea.  Fingerling potatoes are a nice addition, too.

On the platter in the picture, I used arthichoke hearts, carrots, and green beans for the roasted vegetables.  I tossed them all in olive oil and seasoned them separately with their own blends and chilled them before serving.  I left the radishes raw and tossed some large olives on the plate.  And voila!