Braciola recipe

Braciola.Italian Americans call it “bragiol,” (brah – jole). The correct Italian word is “braciola,” (brah-tchoh-lah). But, finding the correct word and its pronunciation is just the beginning of learning the definition of this dish. The word “braciola” derives from the Italian “brace” (brah-chay)which means “embers” or “hot coals.” It is related to the English word “brasier.” This definition suggests that the original “braciola” was not what we know in this country but was instead a grilled meat.And in Northern Italy, that’s exactly what you will find.If you are an Italian American visitor to Italy and you find yourself in a restaurant in Rome or Florence or anywhere in the North, chances are that you will find “braciola di vitello” (veal braciola) on the menu. If you order this dish, you will be surprised when what they bring you is a grilled veal chop. (I know it surprised me.) But, from a language point of view, that is precisely what a “braciola” is: a cut of meat prepared on hot coals.

Braciola

This image is taken from the online menu of Ristorante
Il Braciere. Clearly, the braciola is a grilled meat.
Most curious and adding to the complex history of this recipe, this restaurant is not in the North but in Sicily.

So, where, you ask, is the stuffed rolled beef cooked in tomato sauce? For that dish you have to go south:south to Naples and beyond. In southern Italy, the homeland of most Italian Americans, the tomato influences much cooking.Here, braciola took on a completly different appearance. In the southern part of Italy, in Campania, Basilicata, Puglia, the braciola was not a grilled cutlet as in the North, but a boneless thin cut of meat that was pounded out into flat strips.The strips were then rolled, called "involtini"with a stuffing of various fillings.Once rolled, the “involtini” were tied to hold their shape. The “involtini,” “meat rolls,” were then simmered in a tomato sauce. Clearly, these meat rolls were not grilled cutlets. So, it would seem that by some quirk of language and culinary evolution, the braciola of the South, as a stewed meat completely contradicts the original meaning of braciola as a method of grilled meat. How this happened I have not been able to discover. But because so many of Italian Americans have ancestors from Southern Italy, it is the Southern Italian braciola simmered in sauce that we know.

Involtini

"voltare" in Italian, means "to turn." "involtare" suggests turning in on oneself.
The ending "-ini" means "small." So, "involtini" are little rounds turned in on themselves.

In America, and in most of Southern Italy, the braciole are made from beef, veal and even pork.But there is also a somewhat disturbing element in the history of Southern braciola. A recent episode of The Cooking Channel’s “Extra Virgin” talked about braciola made from donkey meat. I was repulsed by the idea. How could this be? I knew that in Europe horse meat was not uncommon, but donkey meat? Immediately I went online at Italian Google to investigate the use of donkey meat in the recipe for braciola. Much to my dismay, I found that it was true, and not only for braciola but as the base of pasta sauce.But I also found that there are sites that call for an end to such animal cruelty.Then I realized that I had to reset my perspective. I have no idea what it was like for an Italian peasant in earlier centuries. After all, most of us still are willing to kill and eat any number of other animals. Why would a donkey be any different?

Saving donkeys in Italy

Visit this site: the use of donkeys in Italy. Click on the image.

It seems that these animals are imported from Albania.
But do not judge too quickly. We can be guilty of a similar crime. The US, which does not eat horse meat, exports horse meat around the world at a great rate.
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But, back to the braciola that we know.In Naples, braciola had a double purpose.The tough cuts of beef, thinly sliced, pounded and simmered for hours in a tomato sauce was an inexpensive and flavorful use of meat. Then, too, the addition of the rolled braciole (plural of braciola) to the tomato sauce was the foundation of the special “ragú” prepared specifically for the most important family dinner of the week: the afternoon dinner after Sunday mass.

In the South and subsequently in America, the meats for the Sunday ragú are often numerous.The meats may include inexpensive cuts of veal, beef, pork and even chicken: all in the same pot. (Unlike the North, where meats for sauce tend to be ground, such as in a Bolognese sauce.) The Neapolitan ragú, with its many meats called for all the meats to be browned and then added to the large pot of tomato sauce where they simmered quietly from early morning and all through Sunday mass. It was this ragú that became the Italian American “Sunday gravy.” This wonderful “gravy” perfumed the house and woke me from my sleep. Its deep sweet savor called us to the kitchen and begged to be eaten. But, in the old days which called for fasting before Sunday communion, you dared not touch that gravy until you got back from church.Then, after church, as soon as you were in the door, you ran to the kitchen, grabbed a slice of bread, spooned over it the slowly bubbling gravy and sprinkled on some grated parmesan. No other taste has had such a long life in my culinary memory. It was, without question, the best thing I ever ate.In an old Neapolitan song a new husband tells his new wife:

‘O rraù, ‘ O rraù ca me piace a me

m’ o ffaceva sulo mamma.

The ragú, the ragú that I like (so much, )
only my mamma could make it.

I offer two versions of braciola here.One is the traditional sauce simmered version. The other is a far more simplified recipe where the braciola is broiled and not simmered. While I have not found any other reference to my broiler version, I would propose that the broiled version is closer to the actual meaning of the word.Strip steak is something like squid or octopus. When you cook it you have two methods.You either do it quickly for just a minute or two, or you cook it for hours. Any time between and you are eating shoe leather. If you do the quick version, it is best to make small braciole which are then “braciolette.

Stuffing the braciole.

How you stuff the braciole is up to you. I have often made them with the simplest stuffing of sautéed mushrooms and onions. Many Italian sites suggest pignoli nuts and raisins as the stuffing, The version I offer here uses sliced meats, olives, peppers and other condiments. For some of my relatives, chopped hard boiled eggs were an essential component.
Cooking the braciole.
Traditional method.
The traditional braciola is simmered for hours in a tomato sauce with or without other meats.
Broiler Method.
For my kids, I put the braciole under the broiler very briefly.This method renders a tender and tasteful meat course. I would serve these braciole with rice or with pasta.Since they are small, these braciolette are perfect for children.They may also need some left over tomato sauce as a condiment.

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The mise en place
what you need

Equipment
Fry pan
Cooking string or toothpicks
Sharp knife

Ingredients

Strip steak, (or) sandwich

Stuffing - variable.
This stuffing uses:
Stale bread
Milk
Olives
Roasted peppers
Grated Parmesan
Capers
Mozarella
Scamorza
Salami (thin sliced)
Tomatoes: Cento San Marzano

(all are optional and variable)

Soak the stale bread

if you use stale bread, soak it for at least 15 minutes in milk, You can also use commercial bread crumbs.

Scamorza

Grate the scamorza and/or any other Italian cheese.
Set the grated cheese aside.

Peppers, olives and capers

Remove the pits from the olives,
Chop the olives and roasted peppers. Chop in the garlic (or onion.) Set them aside with the capers.

Blend

Blend this stuffing or whatever you would like to us. Set the suffing aside.

Pounding

Cover the strip steak with plastic wrap.
Pound the steaks with an outward motion until they are thin but do not fall apart.

Bracioletti

If you want small brociolleti. cut them down. For large size, leave them whole.

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Stuffing and rolling

First Method
The oven broiler

Stuffing: Bracioletti: this version

Lay out the strips.
Lay on a slice of salami
Lay on a slice of sopresatta or other cured meat
Lay on the bread crumb mix
Lay on slices of cheese
(note: this is a full stuffing you can use anything you have at hand.

Roll with toothpicks

Roll the meat and secure with toothpicks.

Broiler

If you use this quick method.
Roll the strips
Fix them with tooth picks.
Put them under the broiler for just a few minutes until they brown.
Serve them as they are or with an added sauce.

For this small method, set the bracioletti on a baking tray. Broil them in the over for about ten minutes or less - until they brown. That's all you need to do.
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Plate and serve with or without sauce

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Second Method
Braciola in regu

Stuffing: large braciole

Pound but do not cut down the slices.
Stuff them as you like.

String

For the large braciole you may want to use kitchen twine to secure them/

Browning

Brown the large braciole in a sauce pan.

Wine

When the braciole havd browned, drizzle on some wine.

Tomato Sauce

Crush the tomatoes by hand and add them to the pan with the braciole.

Simmer

Simmer the braciole in the tomato sauce in a very low flame for about two to three hours.