Sweetbreads? Technique and recipe?

I have never made sweetbreads before but I finally got up the nerve to buy some. After reviewing about a dozen recipes, I have been soaking them overnight in milk, but I can’t decide what is going to be the best way to prepare them. This is the large single piece gland that is about 7 inches long and 4 inches wide, not the single pieces the size of a small egg that are held together by some kind of sinew. I can go anywhere from sous vide to saute to grill to griddle to BGE smoker. I am leaning towards light dredging followed by frying followed by a lemon butter garlic sauce with capers, but I would be happy to go with other recommendations. Any thoughts about recipe or cooking technique?

And what’s your vote on the best wine pairing. I’m thinking Rhone white blend.

Hi Jay, some of my favorite sweetbread preparations have been by Susan Spicer at Bayona in New Orleans. She does both a lemon caper and a sherry mustard version. Both are excellent. I haven’t tried to make them at home but you can probably find some info about them by searching.

Traditional it’s a 3 step process.

1. Soak them to remove any impurities/blood.
2. Poach them for about 15 minutes. Remove membrane and cut into smaller pieces.
3. Dredge in flour and pan fry.

Usually served in restaurants with a stock reduction but a salad works well. Haricots verts salad with red onion.

Soak, dredge and fry. Sweetbreads are all about texture, not so much flavor in and of themselves. So your wine pairing should be based on the sauce or prep. That said, I can’t recall a time when white Rhone blends were the best pairing for anything at all.

I had the lemon caper at Bayona and then Susan Spicer walked over to our table (she was not cooking that lunch service) and we talked about Scholium wines because she also knew Abe. I did not replicate hers tonight. I “invented” had a lime shallot version with a light dredge and a splash of red wine. Her version was better.

Rose Champagne works beautifully with sea urchin. Also a good Kabinett.

But what does that have to do with sweetbreads?

God knows why I wrote urchin; I was thinking sweetbreads. Sea urchin with rose champagne has a metallic bi-product.

But it is killer with sweetbreads.

That makes a lot more sense.