Dina's Recipe
Peposo
For those of you who haven’t yet visited Borgo di Vagli and for those who had the enjoyment of experiencing Dina’s mouth-watering casalinga cuisine in the Hamlet’s trattoria I’ cche c’é c’é, in each newsletter we continue to highlight one of Dina's popular recipes for you to try at home, this month we however we highlight Lee’s Peposo.
The recipe is so easy and dates back to when the Imprunetani made terracotta centuries before Brunelleschi came looking for roof tiles for Florence's Cathedral in the 1400s and although there are many published versions, purists are quick to point out that true Peposo is made without olive oil or soffritto (a mixture of sautéed vegetables) generally used in Italian sauces and stews. The terracotta tile workers would prepare the raw ingredients in a pot and put it into their kiln as it slowly cooled after the firing.
Like so many soups, sauces and stews Peposo improves with time, so I generally make this dish a couple of days in advance, let it cool and store it in the fridge and then heat it up to boiling point and serve it with a bruschetta, cannellini beans or chick peas and an abundance of good dark beer.
INGREDIENTS
| - | 1 kg of chopped (an inch or more) top quality stewing beef, including some gristle |
| - | 6 cloves of peeled garlic (not chopped) |
| - | 75 gr freshly ground pepper |
| - | ¾ litre of thick tomato sauce |
| - | Coarse sea salt |
| - | 1 bottle of Chianti |
Method
| 1 | In a cast iron or terracotta pot add the garlic, the meat, the pepper and tomato sauce and slowly bring to a simmer. |
| 2 | Stir in your red wine and bring back to a simmer. |
| 3 | As soon as the pot begins to bubble, cover it, turn down the heat and let is simmer gently for 3-4 hours stirring regularly. |
| 4 | Leave overnight to cool. |
| 5 | Serve with stewed cannellini beans drizzled with olive oil and beer on the side! |
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