Short Ribs “Braciole”
Sunday, December 21, 2008 at 10:12PM 
I don’t even know what braciole is and I don’t mind admitting that since I’m in good company…neither did Chef Andrew Carmellini (and his last name sounds a lot more Italian than mine) He has a new cookbook out “Urban Italian.” I’m hoping a little kitchen elf puts a copy under the tree, for ME. I came across his recipe in “The Week” magazine and thought I’d give it a go for dinner this evening. It’s a wintery dish and the temperature dropped below 60°F today…. so I guess that’s winter in the south...crazy weather. Oh and whatever braciole is...it's really good.
Ingredients
Serves 6-8
1 cup diced pancetta, about ½ lb
8 boneless short ribs, about 4 lbs
2 tablespoons kosher salt
1-teaspoon pepper
2 teaspoons garlic powder
4 tablespoons oregano
2 onions, roughly chopped
1 head of garlic, cloves smashed and roughly chopped
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
3 28oz cans of whole tomatoes, crushed slightly
½ cup red wine
For the topping
½ cup pine nuts, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
½ cup panko breadcrumbs
4 teaspoons dried oregano
4 tablespoons fresh Italian parsley, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
4 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, grated
For the short ribs
Preheat oven to 375°F. Cook pancetta over medium heat in a large Dutch oven. Cook until pancetta renders fat about 4 minutes, stir to keep from sticking. Season ribs all over with salt, pepper, oregano and garlic powder. Working in batches brown meat on all sides. Using a slotted spoon remove ribs and set aside. Add onion to pan and cook until softens, about 1 minute. Add garlic and red pepper flakes, mix well. Return ribs to pan and any accumulated juices. Add tomatoes, juice and red wine. Braise in oven for 2 ½ hours until the meat is very tender (a fork should pass through the meat with no problem). Check ribs every 15 minutes and if they are boiling too rapidly, lower the heat.
For the topping
Toast pine nuts over low heat in a frying pan shaking to prevent burning or sticking, about 10 minutes. Add love oil and panko, mix well and continue cooking over low heat, stirring until everything is a toasty brown color. Add oregano and parsley, season with a little salt and pepper. Cook for a few more minutes until the parsley is warm, not wilted. Remove from heat, let cool slightly then add Parmesan cheese.
To serve and finish
Serve in large open bowls; place 4-5 pieces of meat in each dish. Ladle sauce from pot over ribs and sprinkle generously with topping over each portion. Serve immediately.
Adapted from Andrew Carmellini’s Urban Italian Cookbook and The Week magazine
Reader Comments (3)
It's actually pronounced "brah-jole" soft "j", and the normal italian recipe involves flattening and tenderizing beef steaks, spreading with the same filling you put on top, then rolling them up and slow cooking them in tomato sauce.
I only know this because there was an entire Everybody Loves Raymond episode about it that I saw on a re-run one night when I couldn't sleep. Raymond's mother didn't think he wife could make it -- but the wife's ended up being fantastic and everyone kept sneaking over to their house to eat it.
Thanks for sharing!!
Braciole can also be filled with other 'stuffings,' such as a cheese-and-veg stuffing, but the idea is that it's rolled in a steak. It's quite good.
Clever adaptation, however. I love short ribs.
Hey Amanda and Cindy - Thanks for that! I did have a basic idea but thought the comments from Chef Carmellini were funny!