Notably up to now (though that is typically nonetheless the case right now), when an Italian household killed a valuable pig it was essential to not waste even the smallest scrap of meat. The prime cuts have been used to make sausages, salami, prosciutto, and different preserved charcuterie to final the yr. However there have been loads of “poorer” meat accessible, corresponding to ears, ft, pores and skin and snouts.
Cassoeula Recipe | The Porkiest Italian Pork Dish
In Lombardy, a dish was invented to make use of these unique cuts and rework them right into a delicacy: cassoeula. The meat is stewed for a lot of hours with savoy cabbage, and often served over a steaming plate of polenta. It’s undoubtedly a recipe for courageous, adventurous eaters however the curious will likely be rewarded with a implausible dish!
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Prepare dinner Time: 3 ½ to 4 hours
For this recipe, you will have:
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1 pork trotter, minimize into 3-4 items
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One piece of pork pores and skin, about 10 inches sq. (25 cm)
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2 tablespoons (12 g) complete black peppercorns
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4 cups (945 ml) beef broth (you possible received’t want all of it, however higher to have further readily available)
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2 tablespoons (30 g) unsalted butter
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1 cup (240 ml) white wine
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2 tablespoons (30 g) tomato paste
Totally clear the pig ears, trotter and pores and skin earlier than inserting them in a big pot of water. Add the peppercorns, bay leaves, cloves and a small handful of salt. Carry the water as much as a boil. As soon as the water begins to bubble, boil the meat for 45 minutes.
In the meantime, place the ribs and sausages right into a non-stick pan over medium warmth (you are able to do this in batches). With out including any further fats, cook dinner the meat till frivolously browned on all sides. Put aside for later, discarding any extra fats from the pan.
When the ears, trotter and pores and skin are cooked, drain them. Minimize the ears into skinny strips (about 5 inches lengthy and 1 inch extensive, or 12.5 x 2.5 cm) and minimize the pores and skin into strips as properly (about 5 inches lengthy and a couple of inches extensive, or 12.5 x 5 cm). No have to be exact, right here!
Warmth the broth in a small saucepan—it doesn’t have to boil, it ought to simply be heat. In the meantime, soften the butter in a big, heavy pot and sauté the sliced onion till tender and barely clear.
Add the ears, trotter, pores and skin and ribs into the pot, together with the diced celery and carrot. Stir all collectively. Add the white wine, carry the liquid to a simmer, and let the wine scale back till the odor of alcohol has dissipated—about 5 minutes.
Add about 1 cup (240 ml) of heat broth—or sufficient to maintain a wholesome simmer going within the backside of the pot. Scale back the warmth, partially cowl the pot, and let the broth simmer for five minutes. In the meantime, prep the cabbage by eradicating the leafs from the core (which may be discarded) and tearing them into smaller items.
Add the cabbage leaves into the pot in order that they cowl the meat and sprinkle them with a number of large pinches of salt. Cowl the pot fully and let the cabbage cook dinner for five to 10 minutes, or till it has wilted. In the meantime, dissolve the tomato paste in ½ cup (120 ml) of the nice and cozy broth.
When the cabbage has wilted, stir the leaves to combine them into the meat. Add the tomato paste/broth combination. You need sufficient broth within the pot to maintain a simmer going however not sufficient to make the dish too soupy. Because the cassoeula cooks, add extra as needed.
Cowl the pot and cook dinner the meat over medium/low warmth for 1 hour and 45 minutes, stirring sometimes. Minimize every of the sausages into 3 items and stir these into the pot (together with extra broth, if needed). Cowl the pot once more and cook dinner the meat for an extra hour, or till the ribs are very tender, virtually fall-off-the-bone. Because the dish nears completion, style the brothy “sauce” and salt it to style, if needed.
Serve heat and, if you happen to like, over polenta. Buon appetito!
