Egidianas Bollito Misto Recipes

BOLLITO MISTO (ITALIAN BOILED MEATS WITH RED AND GREEN SAUCES)

Steps:

• Prepare the meats: Season chuck roast and beef shank generously with salt and pepper and let sit for 1 hour at room temperature or refrigerate overnight, if time permits. Transfer meats to a 12-quart pot. Use the whole cloves to stick the bay leaves onto the whole onions, and add to the pot along with peppercorns, celery stalks and large carrots.
• Cover with 4 quarts water (or a little more to cover) and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover with lid ajar and cook at a bare simmer for 2 to 3 hours, until meats are fork tender.
• Make the salsa verde: Purée parsley, basil and capers in food processor with about 1 cup olive oil to make a rough, loose paste. Transfer to a bowl, and stir in red-pepper flakes, salt and pepper, scallions, horseradish and vinegar. Thin with more oil to desired consistency. You should have 1 1/2 cups. (Both sauces can be made well ahead of time. The salsa verde will keep for 2 to 3 days in the refrigerator and is great on grilled fish, chicken or vegetables.)
• Make the salsa rossa: Soak bread cubes with red wine vinegar until soft. Transfer to a blender or food processor, along with roasted peppers, garlic, tomato paste, paprika and cayenne. Blend until smooth, thick and creamy. Transfer to a bowl, stir in olive oil until it's the consistency of a milkshake. (Don't worry if it's a little thin.) Season with salt and pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning - it should be spicy, and you should have 1 1/2 cups. (The sauce will keep in the refrigerator for 1 week.)
• Once meats are tender, remove them from the pot and set aside. Strain broth through a fine mesh sieve and discard aromatics. Ladle off any surface fat. (If time permits, refrigerate meat and broth overnight.) Reheat meat in a small amount of broth. Bring remaining broth to a simmer and reduce for 10 to 15 minutes to concentrate flavors. Season to taste.
• Bring a separate pot of water to a light simmer over medium heat, and cook the precooked cotechino sausage for 30 minutes. Add the Italian sausages and simmer for 12 minutes, until firm and cooked through. Turn off heat and keep sausages warm in their cooking liquid.
• As sausages cook, prepare the vegetables: Bring a pot of well-salted water to a boil. Cook each type of vegetable separately until soft but not mushy, about 10 minutes each, a bit longer for the potatoes. Blot on a kitchen towel, then arrange on a platter and keep warm.
• To serve, cut chuck roast into 3/4-inch-thick slices, and chop shank meat into rough chunks. Cut cotechino crosswise into 1/2-inch slices. Leave Italian sausages whole. Arrange all meats on a platter, moisten with a little hot broth and garnish with parsley sprigs. This meal works well as a buffet, or you may prepare individual plates. Pass salsa verde and salsa rossa at the table. Serve broth in small cups alongside, if desired.

EGIDIANA'S BOLLITO MISTO

Steps:

• Place the chicken, beef shank, short ribs, red and white onions, celery, tomato, bay leaves, parsley, salt and peppercorns in a large pot. Add the chicken broth and the cold water, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 45 minutes.
• While the broth is simmering, make the sausage. Place the chicken breasts and the nutmeg in a food processor and use the pulse button to coarsely chop the mixture. Do not overprocess: this will yield a weird, spongy, bolognalike creation. When coarsely chopped, add the Parmesan, mortadella, parsley, garlic, eggs, salt and pepper and pulse briefly to combine. Shape this mixture into a log about 3 to 4 inches in diameter, wrap securely in cheesecloth and, after the broth has cooked for 45 minutes, add the sausage to the broth.
• Peel and cut the carrots into 2-inch chunks. Peel and cut the potatoes into 2-inch chunks. Forty-five minutes after the sausage has been added to the pot, add the carrots, potatoes and leeks and cook for 30 minutes.
• While the vegetables are cooking, make the minestra di semolina. Place the lightly beaten eggs in a bowl, add the Cream of Wheat and stir to combine. Add the Parmesan, 1 tablespoon of milk, the butter, the salt and pepper and whisk. The mixture should resemble a thick pancake batter. Add more milk, if necessary, to achieve this texture. Heat a nonstick skillet over medium heat. When hot, add the batter, smoothing to make one even layer. Cook for 1 minute, reduce the heat to low and continue cooking for 4 more minutes. Gently turn the pancake, cook for 3 minutes on the second side, turn out onto a plate and cool.
• Use a slotted spoon to gently remove the carrots, potatoes and leeks from the broth. Arrange on a warm platter, cover lightly with broth to avoid drying and keep warm. Remove the sausage, unwrap it, cut it into 1/2-inch slices and arrange them on a platter along with the beef shank, ribs and chicken, hacked into serving-size pieces.
• Strain the broth and return it to medium heat. Skim off any visible fat. Boil until the broth has reduced to 8 cups, about 7 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• While the broth is simmering, use a sharp knife to cut the minestra di semolina into 1/4-inch chunks. Serve the broth liberally garnished with minestra di semolina as a first course, followed by the boiled meat and vegetables with the green and the red sauces below.