Traditional Braciole Recipes

MY MAMA'S BRACIOLE

Steps:

• Season meat with salt and pepper. Top each slice of meat with a slice of prosciutto. In a medium bowl, moisten bread crumbs with milk. Add grated cheese, onion, parsley, arugula, salt and pepper to the crumbs and combine well. Spread a thin layer of stuffing down the center of each beef slice and roll tightly. Fasten rolled meat with plain toothpicks.
• Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add oil to a hot pan along with garlic. Set meat into pan and brown on all sides, 6 minutes. Remove the meat from the pan. Add butter to the pan. Add mushrooms to the melted butter. Saute mushrooms 5 minutes. Add flour to the pan and cook 2 minutes. Whisk wine into the flour and mushrooms and scrape up pan drippings. Reduce wine 1 minute, then whisk in beef broth and tomato paste. Set meat back into sauce and reduce heat to medium low. Partially cover pan with a cover left ajar an inch. Simmer meat in sauce 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer beef rolls to a platter, removing toothpicks. Pour pan gravy down over the beef rolls and serve.

AUTHENTIC BRACIOLE RECIPE

Steps:

• Make your butcher (or do it yourself, if you have the meat mallet) beat the meat to flatten the slices.
• Sprinkle them with a pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper.
• Peel and finely chop the garlic clove, 1 tablespoon of parsley, the raisins, and pine nuts.
• Divide the result between the meat slices and spread it evenly on one side, leaving borders clean.
• Dice the caciocavallo cheese in small pieces and place them in the center of each slice.
• Roll up the slices and fix them with a few toothpicks (seal all sides as best as you can to not let the filling come out).
• Peel and finely chop the onion, the carrot, and the celery stalk.
• Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a medium pan, add the meat rolls and pan-fry them a few seconds on every side, making sure you are sealing the entire surface.
• Remove the meat and set it aside.
• If necessary, add a tablespoon of olive oil. Add the onion, carrot and celery stalk trite, and cook, medium heat, for about 5 minutes.
• Return the meat rolls to the pan, cook them a few minutes, and add the tomato passata and the tomato paste.
• Add a pinch of salt and pepper. Mix and taste for salt.
• Cover, lower heat to the minimum (the lowest heat available on your stovetop), and cook braciole two hours (check and add water if needed).
• Serve braciole hot with a few tablespoons of the sauce and sprinkled with the remaining, chopped, parsley.
• Cook pasta according to package directions and season it with the remaining tomato sauce.

BRACIOLE

Steps:

• Stir the first 5 ingredients in a medium bowl to blend. Stir in 2 tablespoons of the oil. Season mixture with salt and pepper and set aside.
• Lay the flank steak flat on the work surface. Sprinkle the bread crumb mixture evenly over the steak to cover the top evenly. Starting at 1 short end, roll up the steak as for a jelly roll to enclose the filling completely. Using butcher's twine, tie the steak roll to secure. Sprinkle the braciole with salt and pepper.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil in a heavy large ovenproof skillet over medium heat. Add the braciole and cook until browned on all sides, about 8 minutes. Add the wine to the pan and bring to a boil. Stir in the marinara sauce. Cover partially with foil and bake until the meat is almost tender, turning the braciole and basting with the sauce every 30 minutes. After 1 hour, uncover and continue baking until the meat is tender, about 30 minutes longer. The total cooking time should be about 1 1/2 hours.
• Remove the braciole from the sauce. Using a large sharp knife, cut the braciole crosswise and diagonally into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Transfer the slices to plates. Spoon the sauce over and serve.
• In a large casserole pot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and saute until soft and translucent, about 2 minutes. Add celery and carrot and season with salt and pepper. Saute until all the vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes. Add tomatoes, basil, and bay leaves and reduce the heat to low. Cover the pot and simmer for 1 hour or until thick. Remove bay leaves and taste for seasoning. If sauce tastes too acidic, add unsalted butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, to round out the flavor.
• Pour half the tomato sauce into the bowl of a food processor. Process until smooth. Continue with remaining tomato sauce.
• If not using all the sauce, allow it to cool completely and then pour 1 to 2 cup portions into plastic freezer bags. Freeze for up to 6 months.

THE BEST BRACIOLE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• Stir the cheeses, bread crumbs, parsley, garlic and 2 tablespoons of the olive oil together.
• Lay the flank steak out flat on work surface and sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon each of salt and pepper.
• Pat the bread crumb mixture over the steak.
• Starting at one short end, roll up the steak (like a jelly roll) and tie with butcher's twine. Season the outside with the remaining salt and pepper.
• Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil in a heavy large ovenproof skillet over medium heat and add the flank steak.
• Cook, turning until browned on all sides, about 8 minutes.
• Add the wine to the pan and bring to a boil, and stir in the tomato sauce.
• Cover partially with foil and bake until the meat is almost tender, turning the braciole and basting with the sauce every 30 minutes. After about 1 1/2 hours, uncover and continue baking until the meat is tender, about 30 minutes longer.
• Remove the braciole from the sauce. Cut the twine off, and slice into 1/2 inch thick slices.
• Transfer the slices to a platter, and spoon some sauce over the slices.

BRACIOLE

Steps:

• Flatten steak to 1/2-in. thickness. Rub with 1 tablespoon oil. Combine the bread crumbs, parsley, cheese, garlic, oregano, 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Spoon over beef to within 1 in. of edges; press down. Roll up jelly-roll style, starting with a long side; tie with kitchen string. , In a Dutch oven, brown meat in remaining oil on all sides. Add onion and cook until tender. Stir in the tomato sauce, water, Italian seasoning, sugar and remaining salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 70-80 minutes or until meat is tender. , Remove meat from sauce and discard string. Cut into thin slices; serve with sauce and If desired, spaghetti and additional grated Parmesan cheese and minced fresh parsley.

BOB'S SLOW COOKER BRACIOLE

Steps:

• Pour the marinara sauce into the slow cooker and set on High to warm.
• Combine the eggs and the breadcrumbs in a small bowl. Sprinkle both sides of the meat with salt and pepper. Pat the breadcrumb mixture over one side of the flank steak, leaving about a one inch border around edges. Top breadcrumbs with the bacon slices; sprinkle with shredded cheese. Starting from one long side, tightly roll flank steak into a log. Use string or toothpicks to secure the log in 4 or 5 places.
• Heat oil in a heavy skillet. Sear the stuffed flank steak in the hot oil until well browned on all sides, about 10 minutes. Transfer the meat to the warm sauce in the slow cooker. Spoon sauce over meat to cover.
• Turn slow cooker to Low; cook meat until very tender, 6 to 8 hours. Remove string/toothpicks before slicing. Serve with marinara.

CHEF JOHN'S BEEF BRACIOLE

Steps:

• Place steaks between 2 pieces of heavy plastic; pound meat about 1/4-inch thick using a meat pounder. If a piece of meat breaks off, use it to patch a thinner area.
• Place bread crumbs into a mixing bowl and stir in garlic, 2 tablespoons olive oil, raisins, Parmesan cheese, salt, black pepper, oregano, and egg until thoroughly combined.
• Season steak with salt and pepper; place half the bread crumb stuffing onto the bottom 2/3 of a steak, leaving the top third of the steak without stuffing. Lightly press the stuffing onto the meat and roll the steak up into a tight roll, starting from the stuffed end. Tie 3 to 4 pieces of kitchen string around the roll to hold it together. Trim ends of string. Repeat with remaining steak and stuffing.
• Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Pan-fry the steak rolls in the hot oil until well browned on all sides, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Pour in water and dissolve pan juices and browned bits of food in the water.
• Season steak rolls with salt and pepper; add red pepper flakes and bay leaf to the water. Spread tomato sauce onto rolls. Pan liquid should cover the rolls about halfway up.
• Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer, covered, for 10 minutes; turn rolls over and cook covered about 10 more minutes. An instant-read meat thermometer inserted into the center of the stuffing should read at least 145 degrees F (65 degrees C). Remove from pan, transfer to a platter, and let them rest for 10 minutes.
• Raise heat to medium, bring sauce to a boil, and cook, stirring often, until sauce has reduced by half, about 10 minutes. Slice the rolls crosswise. Serve arranged on a little sauce and drizzle more sauce on top.

BEEF BRACIOLE

Steps:

• In a 5- or 6-qt. oval slow cooker, combine pasta sauce and pepper flakes. Pound steak with a meat mallet to 1/2-in. thickness; sprinkle with salt and pepper., In a small bowl, combine eggs and bread crumbs. Spoon over beef to within 1 in. of edges; press onto meat. Layer with prosciutto and cheese. Roll up jelly-roll style, starting with a long side; tie at 2-in. intervals with kitchen string., In a Dutch oven, brown meat in oil on all sides. Transfer to slow cooker; spoon sauce over meat. Cover and cook on low until beef is tender, 6-8 hours., Remove meat from sauce and discard string. Cut into slices; serve with sauce.