Braciole alla Barese

Braciole alla Barese

Ingredients

2 servings

  • 2 slices of beef sirloin, pounded thin (about 300 grams)
  • 1 can peeled tomatoes (400 grams/14 oz)
  • 1 tbsp fresh oregano leaves or 1/2 tsp dried oregano
  • salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 tbsp chopped fresh flatleaf parsley
  • 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
  • 6 tbsp freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano DOP
  • Colline di Romagna DOP olive oil
  • 80 ml (1/3 cup) dry white wine

Instructions

Combine parsley, garlic, and cheese in a small bowl. Stir until homogeneous.

Season the beef slices with salt and freshly ground black pepper on both sides.

Spread out the parlsey-garlic-cheese mixture on the beef slices.

Roll them up tightly and secure with toothpicks.

Heat olive oil and add the beef bundles.   Brown them on all sides.

Take the beef bundles out of the pan. Discard any excess olive oil. Deglaze the pan with the white wine.

Cook over medium heat until reduced to less than half. Use a wooden spatula to scrape the browned bits off the bottom.

Puree the tomatoes in the food processor and add them to the pan. Stir and bring to a boil. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Lower the heat and add the beef bundles.

Cover with the lid slightly askew and cook over very low heat for 1 hour. The sauce should become thicker and darker.

Add the oregano, stir and cook for a few minutes longer.

If the sauce is not thick enough, remove the beef bundles and simmer it down, uncovered, over medium heat. Return the beef bundles and let them reheat over low heat.

Serve the beef with the sauce and a green salad (dressed simply with good extra virgin olive oil, salt, and good wine vinegar). Do not forget to remove the toothpicks.

This is good with a red wine from indigenous grapes from the province of Bari with good acidity: Castel del Monte, or another red made from Uva di Troia grapes.

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