Grandpa Joe's
Braciole

Another traditional family recipe.

About this recipe

Braciole is another family favorite.  This was actually one of my father's specialties.  It is traditionally made with flank steak and then the rolled meat is added to a tomato sauce for the last 90 minutes.  As with the meatballs, the sauce cooks the meat and the meat adds incredible flavor to the sauce!

Ingredients

  • flank steak
  • pecorino Romano cheese, grated
  • unseasoned bread crumbs
  • dried parsley
  • dried oregano
  • 2 garlic cloves, very finely chopped
  • kosher salt
  • freshly ground black pepper
  • extra virgin olive oil

Directions

  1. Place the meat on a cutting board and trim the steak to a roughly rectangular shape.  Save any meat cut off.  Using a very sharp (e.g., boning) knife, slice the meat in half horizontally.
  2. Place the meat pieces on the cutting board, and sprinkle each piece with each ingredient, starting with the garlic.  Use a generous amount of bread crumbs, freshly grated pecorino Romano cheese, parsley, and oregano.  Add the steak trimmings at random on the meat slices.  Then lightly drizzle each piece with olive oil.
  3. Roll each piece and tie with heavy thread in 2 or 3 places.
  4. Brown each piece over high heat in a generously (olive) oiled pan.  Do not attempt to cook the braciole through.
  5. Finish cooking by adding the meat rolls to a tomato sauce (preferably my Italian Tomato Sauce) for about 90 minutes, or until a sharp knife easily pierces the meat roll to its center.
Flank steaks ready to be rolled.
Rolled and tied and about to be sautéed!
Braciole with homemade manicotti.
Posted: January 2014.