Sunday dinner, the best meal of the week. While it isn’t the same as when I was growing up when all of my family (when aunts, uncles and cousins would all go to my grandmother’s), it still is a tradition I hold dear to my heart. It’s smaller these days, not only because of COVID-19, but just because of life in general. Everyone has different schedules, who’s working, who’s kid has soccer practice….it’s hard to get everyone on the same page.
That being said, I still try every Sunday to make a comforting, Sunday dinner. Whether it’s just me and my boyfriend, or we invite our immediate family or some friends over, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t decide mid-week what I want to make.
About six months ago I wrote down a braciole recipe that I had made and loved. For whatever reason, I never published it or took any pictures. I decided it was time to make it again and perfect the recipe. I’ve seen it made two ways, in individual pieces and also in one large piece, and then cut after. Beef top or bottom round or flank steak is the cut of beef to use here. A lot of grocery stores now actually have beef round thinly sliced, and cut into pieces specifically for braciole. If you can’t find that, the butcher will be able to do it for you. The flank steak is good if you’re making one large piece and cutting it after. Either way, I like to still pound it thin to ensure it tenderizes and starts to almosttttt fall apart in the sauce, so you get bit and pieces throughout every bite.
A secret ingredient…
for just another added level of flavor! I like to add a slice of prosciutto before the filling goes down. The saltiness from the pork just gives it that extra umami punch. The filling itself is simple: breadcrumbs, cheese (I like to use Pecorino), an egg, fresh parsley, salt and pepper. I’ve seen a lot of variations of add-ins to the filling over the years, ranging from pine nuts to raisins. But I like to keep it how I remember my grandmother made it, with that delicious cheesy filling.
When you’re rolling the beef up, you can use pieces of kitchen twine or toothpicks. Right before serving, you want to make sure you take out the toothpicks and cut the twine. A good way to check – make sure you count all of the toothpicks, the same that go in should be the same that come out.
The longer it cooks, the more tender the meat
You can certainly get away with cooking this in the sauce for 4 hours, but I recommend the full 6. It helps to ensure the meat is fully broken down, it almost falls apart in the sauce. You want the meat to stay in tact, but little pieces of meat throughout the sauce are what make this dish so hearty. You traditionally serve this with pasta. I usually like to add another meat in there to really pump it up, like pork ribs. Enjoy a nice glass of red wine (or soda) and buon appetito!
Braciola
Equipment
- Meat mallet
- Kitchen twine**
Ingredients
- 2 lbs of beef top round thinly sliced**
- 1 cup of Pecorino
- 1 clove of garlic finely minced or through a garlic press
- ¾ cup Italian style breadcrumbs
- ¼ lb of Prosciutto
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil
- 1 egg
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp pepper
- Handful of fresh parsley diced
- 2 32 oz. jars of Tomato Sauce
Instructions
- Mix the Pecorino, garlic, breadcrumbs, egg, olive oil, parsley, salt and pepper in a bowl, it should resemble wet sand. Keep to the side. Place each piece of meat between two pieces of siren wrap. Using a meat mallet, pound each piece of meat thin, about 1/8-1/4” thick. Once they’re all pounded, you may have to cut them in half – you’ll want each piece about 4-6” long.
- Lay your ingredients in an assembly line: meat, prosciutto, filling, pieces of kitchen twine. Lay a piece of prosciutto on the beef, then take 1-2 tablespoons of filling, depending how big the piece is, and roll up, making sure to keep all the filling inside. Tie each with two strings of twine, and set aside.
- At this point, the braciole can be put in the fridge to be cooked the next day if needed.
- Using a heavy bottom pot, coat the bottom with olive oil and turn on to medium heat. In batches, sear the braciola so it gets browned on all sides, placing it on a plate when it’s done. You’ll want to make your sauce and braise the meat in the same pot, to get all that meat essence. But if there are some burnt bits, transfer the left over oil into a small bowl. Using a few tablespoons of water and a wooden spoon, loosen the burnt pieces, and discard the water.
- Once the pot is wiped and ready to go, add the reserved oil and more fresh if needed. Cook the tomato sauce as you normally would. (I like to add 1/4 cup of red wine after I sauté my garlic and tomato paste, and before I add the sauce.) Once the sauce comes to a boil, reduce to low and add all of the meat back in. The longer it cooks, the better the sauce and the more tender the meat will be. I recommend at least an additional four hours, but six is best. Right before serving, remove the meat and cut the twine off or remove the toothpicks (make sure you get them all!). Buon Appetito!
