Orecchiette with Meatball and Braciole Ragu
Traditionally, Sunday dinner in Italy is eaten around 1:00 p.m., considered lunch in the United States. This recipe serves 6, but you can adjust it based on the number of servings or desired leftovers.
Traditionally, Sunday dinner in Italy is eaten around 1:00 p.m., considered lunch in the United States. This recipe serves 6, but you can adjust it based on the number of servings or desired leftovers.
- 3 eggs
- 2 leaves
- pepper (to taste)
- 1 lb ground veal
- salt (to taste)
- 1 lb ground pork
- 1/2 cup freshly grated romano cheese
- 1 tbsp olive oil (ok to use extra virgin olive oil)
- 1 large chopped onion (you can use white or yellow onion)
- 2 cloves garlic (you can use chopped or in camicia (whole
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley (please do not use curly par make sure you use the flat leaves)
- 1 stalk
- 1 glass red wine (please do not use cooking wine (you can not sweet))
- 1 - 1 1/2 lb flank steak beef rump, top round, or bottom round
- 3 large garlic cloves (minced)
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
- 1/2 cup fresh grated romano cheese
- 1 lb ground sirloin
- 2 large garlic clove minced
- 2 tbsp fresh chopped parsley
- 1 tbsp chopped onions
- 1/2 cup bread crumbs (i prefer to use day old italian bre
- 1/4 cup milk (note: if using italian bread use milk to soa then squeeze dry and add to meat mixture)
- 1/2 tbsp salt (or to taste)
- 1/4 tsp pepper (or to taste)
- Carbohydrate 3.51942208323875 g
- Cholesterol 188.77367825 mg
- Fat 28.1615680663323 g
- Fiber 0.108381249346009 g
- Protein 47.0046266031555 g
- Saturated Fat 11.7850099243496 g
- Serving Size 1 1 people (304g)
- Sodium 1309.36948029613 mg
- Sugar 3.41104083389274 g
- Trans Fat 3.86204014449972 g
- Calories 468 calories
Step-by-step
- Lay the meat out on a board, pound with a mallet to thin the meat.
- Season the meat in the center of each piece evenly with parsley, cheese, garlic, salt and pepper to taste. Cut the meat into 5-6â€
- Fold over and roll each slice and secure with toothpicks on each side of the braciole, use one more if need be, but no more then 3 to 4 toothpicks depending on the size of the braciole.
- In a large pot heat 2 tbsp olive oil and add the braciole one by one. Once browned on one side, turn them and let them continue to brown. Note: in this step you can add additional meat, example: inexpensive pieces of lamb, pork, beef, preferably all on the bone.
- at this point add the onions, garlic, parsley and saute' all till the garlic is golden and the onions are translucent.
- Deglaze with the wine and cook until it almost fully evaporates, about 3 minutes, scraping the bottom of the pan to release any bits and pieces that have stuck.
- Add the sauce and stir, add celery stalk, bay leafs and salt to taste. Bring to a gentle boil. Cover and simmer for about 2 hours, or until the braciole feel tender when poked with a fork.
- While the ragu is cooking, make your polpette mixture. In a large bowl add the meat and rest of ingredients. Mix until well blended, if you feel the meat is too dry to the touch, add another egg, if too wet, add more breadcrumbs.
- Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in a large frying pan and start rolling the polpette, add them one by one, remove when browned on all sides.
- At this point, you can add them to the ragu and let them cook with the bracioles.
- Put a large pot of salted water to boil, add a 1 1/2lb of Orecchiette and cook till al dente. Retain some of the pasta water on the side and drain the rest. In a large pasta bowl, add the Orecchiette and a few laddle of ragu and a few handful of grated Romano cheese, mix all and start plating your pasta, add more cheese on top and finish off with another large spoonful of ragu. !
- Serve hot with a nice glass of vino! Buon Appettito!
- Pair this meal with a nice bottle of Chianti. Known for being a dry red that goes very well with food, Chianti can range in price from $10 a bottle to upwards of $50 dollars for high-end versions.
That long ingredient list omits the crucial hardware required to execute this multi-layered dish without descending into chaos. You will need a wide, heavy-bottomed Dutch oven capable of holding both the rolling braciole and the simmering liquids without crowding, alongside a sturdy meat mallet and plenty of toothpicks. While scaling this recipe down for fewer eaters is straightforward, cutting quantities in half requires reducing your pot size so the reduced volume of sauce does not scorch against the hot sides of the pan.
Pounding the flank steak or top round requires a flat, stable cutting board and enough force to thin the protein evenly without tearing holes through the center. Secure each rolled piece tightly with three to four wooden toothpicks, which prevents the seasoned filling of parsley, cheese, and garlic from escaping into the hot oil during the initial sear. Browning these heavy rolls takes patience, and rushing the process leaves the interior fibers tough rather than breaking them down into melting tenderness.
Deglazing the pan with dry red wine demands aggressive scraping of the bottom surface to lift every caramelized brown bit into the liquid. Let that alcohol simmer down for precisely three minutes until the harsh raw aroma dissipates, leaving behind an intensely savory base that will fortify the two-hour tomato braise. When the ragu finally finishes, reserve a full cup of starchy pasta water before draining the orecchiette so you can emulsify the sauce directly into the wheat cups of the pasta.
Adjusting proportions for larger crowds or smaller households is simply a matter of multiplying or dividing the meat and cheese weights proportionally while keeping the cooking vessel appropriately sized. Too large a pot for a halved batch leads to rapid evaporation, whereas packing too much meat into a cramped saucepan stops the proteins from browning properly. Pay attention to how the mixture feels in your hands when rolling the meatballs, adding a splash more milk or another egg until the mass holds its spherical shape without crumbling.
