How to Make Braciole - An Easy Braciole Recipe for a Special Dinner (2024)

Braciole is a recipe that is perfect for a special occasion that only requires 20 minutes of active preparation time. Flank Steak is topped with cheese, herbs, and breadcrumbs, seared, and then roasted in tomato sauce. Let this recipe for Braciole with tomato sauce be your secret weapon for hosting a dinnerparty.

How to Make Braciole - An Easy Braciole Recipe for a Special Dinner (1)

This scalable Braciole recipe requires very little active preparation time, and is a perfect dinner to serve for a special occasion.

How to Make Braciole - An Easy Braciole Recipe for a Special Dinner (2)

Braciole is an Italian meat dish that consists of thin flank steak rolled up with cheese, herbs, and breadcrumbs. The first step to prepare braciole with a tomato sauce is to pound the meat out until it is very thin.

How to Make Braciole - An Easy Braciole Recipe for a Special Dinner (3)

Next you create a mixture of cheese, garlic, and breadcrumbs. I like to use a blend of Parmesan and provolone.

How to Make Braciole - An Easy Braciole Recipe for a Special Dinner (4)

The cheese and breadcrumb mixture gets spread over the steak.

How to Make Braciole - An Easy Braciole Recipe for a Special Dinner (5)

Then you roll up the steak and tie it up with butcher’s twine.

How to Make Braciole - An Easy Braciole Recipe for a Special Dinner (6)

The meat is quickly browned before being cooked low and slow in a pool of tomato sauce.

How to Make Braciole - An Easy Braciole Recipe for a Special Dinner (7)

The result is slices of tender beef with swirls of cheese, herbs, and breadcrumbs. It’s easy and elegant, and sure to impress your dinner guests.

How to Make Braciole - An Easy Braciole Recipe for a Special Dinner (8)

The active preparation time for this recipe is just 20 minutes, and you can easily increase the number of portions by purchasing a larger steak. I love recipes that can be scaled without any extra effort.

How to Make Braciole - An Easy Braciole Recipe for a Special Dinner (9)

If you have a large dutch oven you could even cook two bracioles together.

How to Make Braciole - An Easy Braciole Recipe for a Special Dinner (10)

I like to use my roasted tomato sauce in this recipe. It is my go-to tomato sauce recipe. It is made my pureeing roasted cherry tomatoes and has a really fresh taste.

How to Make Braciole - An Easy Braciole Recipe for a Special Dinner (11)

Sometimes I serve Braciole with roasted potatoes and asparagus.

How to Make Braciole - An Easy Braciole Recipe for a Special Dinner (12)

Most recently I served it with baked penne in tomato sauce and creamy spinach.

How to Make Braciole - An Easy Braciole Recipe for a Special Dinner (13)

And for dessert… I made an angel food cake with a light whipped chocolate frosting – it one of my all-time favorite desserts!

How to Make Braciole - An Easy Braciole Recipe for a Special Dinner (14)

This is one of my favorite meals to serve at a dinner party – the prep work can all be done in advance before guests arrive.

Before we get to the recipe – want some more recipes for a special dinner? Here are some options:

How to Make Braciole - An Easy Braciole Recipe for a Special Dinner (15)

This is my Mom’s recipe for Braciole – it is made with a red wine sauce instead of being cooked in tomato sauce.

How to Make Braciole - An Easy Braciole Recipe for a Special Dinner (16)

I love this Classic Chicken Marsala recipe and it tastes even better then it is made a day ahead of time.

How to make Braciole with Tomato Sauce:

How to Make Braciole - An Easy Braciole Recipe for a Special Dinner (17)

Braciole with Tomato Sauce

Yield: 2-3 servings

Active Time: 20 minutes

Additional Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 50 minutes

Braciole is a recipe that is perfect for a special occasion that only requires 20 minutes of active preparation time. Flank Steak is topped with cheese, herbs, and breadcrumbs, seared, and then roasted in tomato sauce. Let this recipe be your secret weapon for hosting a dinner party.

Ingredients

  • 1 lb - 1.25lb Flank Steak
  • Salt and Pepper
  • 1/3 cup grated Parmesan
  • 1/3 cup grated Provolone
  • 1/3 cup Italian Breadcrumbs
  • 2 tablespoons finely chopped Italian Parsley
  • 2 cloves pressed or finely chopped garlic
  • 2 tablespoons Butter
  • 1 cup White Wine
  • 3 cups Tomato Sauce
  • *Butchers Twine

Instructions

First heat your oven to 300 degrees.

Then get started by pounding the flank steak to make it thinner. Pound it for about a minute getting it as thin as possible. Then dust both sides with salt and pepper.

Mix the Parmesan, Provolone, breadcrumbs, parsley, and garlic together in a bowl. Then spread them out evenly on the top of the flank steak.

Next roll up the steak, and tie it closed with 3-4 pieces of butcher's twine. Tie the twine tightly so that the filling won't fall out of the steak as it cooks.

Then melt the butter in a dutch oven over medium high heat, and brown the steak on all sides. This will take about 8 minutes total, turning the steak every 2 minutes.

Once the steak has been browned, add the white wine, and bring to a bubble. Then pour the tomato sauce over the steak, and cover it with a lid, and place it in the oven.

Roast the steak at 300 degrees for 1 1/2 hours, basting the steak every 30 minutes, by spooning the tomato sauce over it.

After 90 minutes, pull the dutch oven out of the oven, and let the braciole rest for 10 minutes before slicing it. Remove the butcher's twine as you slice. Serve immediately after slicing, spooning some of the tomato sauce on top.

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Instagram

Inspired by Giada de Laurentiis

How to Make Braciole - An Easy Braciole Recipe for a Special Dinner (18)
How to Make Braciole - An Easy Braciole Recipe for a Special Dinner (19)
How to Make Braciole - An Easy Braciole Recipe for a Special Dinner (2024)

FAQs

What cut of meat is used for braciole? ›

One of the biggest divides in the Italian-American braciole world centers around which cut of beef to use. The two main camps are those that favor flank steak and those that prefer top round.

Can I prep braciole the night before? ›

Make ahead: The uncooked braciole can be wrapped in plastic wrap and refrigerated overnight. This dish gets better with time. If you can, make it in the morning or the night before, refrigerate, and reheat when you're ready to serve.

What is the difference between braciole and involtini? ›

Reserve the term "braciole" for pork loins, large cuts of flank steak or turkey breasts - essentially, big cuts and roasts that get sliced up and served to many people. Involtini, however, is the name used for thin cutlets of meat that are most often served in individual portions.

What does braciola mean in Italian? ›

Braciole is an Italian-style roulade, a rolled and stuffed meat. It's also called involtini, or bruciuluni in Sicilian. The etymology of the word translates to a slice of meat rolled over coals. The meat — typically beef, veal, or pork — is pounded thin and stuffed with prosciutto, breadcrumbs, cheese, and herbs.

What is the most tender cut of meat called? ›

Tenderloin Steak

The most tender of all cuts of beef, tenderloin steaks are lean and known for their delicate, butter-like texture and thick cut.

Why is my braciole so tough? ›

Further, if you haven't pounded the meat thin enough, it can still be tough after cooking, so make sure to pound it to an even, thin slice. Lastly, the cooking time matters, as if you cook it too short it can be tough, so make sure to cook it slow and prolonged to get a more tender result.

What is the slang braciole? ›

braciole (n.) —1. a piece of Italian beef pan fried in its own juices. 2. a euphemism for male genitalia.

How do you butterfly flank steak for braciole? ›

Season with salt and pepper. Butterfly the steak horizontally (the striations and grain should run horizontal at the end), opening the top flap like a book until it is one flat piece. Gently pound out with a meat mallet to even the thickness. Season both sides with salt and pepper.

How to reheat braciole? ›

How to Reheat: Add the sauce and steaks to a saucepan and cook covered over low heat for 8-10 minutes or until warm. Being incredibly classic, I've also seen horse meat being used in classic braciole, but I'll stay clear of that for now.

What is the string called to tie meat? ›

Butcher's twine, also known as cooking twine or kitchen twine, is a versatile tool in commercial kitchens. It can be made from 100% cotton, polyester/cotton blend, or linen.

What meat do you tie? ›

Tying a piece of meat helps it keep its shape and cook more uniformly. You can tie evenly-shaped cuts like pork loin or prime rib. This makes for a nice presentation. Irregular cuts, like roulades, pork shoulder or boneless leg of lamb should always be tied in order to cook properly.

What nationality is braciole? ›

While it has deep roots in Italian cuisine, the Braciole most familiar to American palates is largely an Italian-American invention, molded by the hands of immigrants adapting to a new land while longing for their native flavors. In Italy, "braciole" often refers to simple grilled slices of meat, usually pork.

What is pig skin braciole in Italian? ›

Braciole (singular for braciola) can be found on Italian menus worldwide, but contenne, or pork skin, braciole is a rarity indeed.

What cut of beef is used for salami? ›

If you want a slightly leaner salami you can use the chuck roast (which should have an 80/20 lean/fat ratio). Beef fat isn't a fat of choice for making salami as it's more firm than pork fat (higher melting point), it has a slight yellowish tint (unlike pork fat which is snow white), and it's flavor is rather strong.

What cut of meat is Italian beef made from? ›

The cut of beef used for Italian beef is typically chuck roast. However, top sirloin, top round, or bottom round would also work well.

What cut of meat is Prego steak? ›

Our Rump Prego is hand trimmed to Chalmar Beef specification and vacuum packed to remove extra oxygen to ensure product shelf life is met. This is a random mass product, the average mass is displayed above.

What cut of meat do Italians choose? ›

beef is the king of red meat, and the most Italian cut is the bistecca alla Fiorentina, a very nice version of the T-bone steak! But you'll find stews as well. veal is also commonly seen, used quite like beef. lamb is rare (no pun intended) in the pl.

References

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Article information

Author: Rev. Porsche Oberbrunner

Last Updated:

Views: 5966

Rating: 4.2 / 5 (73 voted)

Reviews: 88% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Rev. Porsche Oberbrunner

Birthday: 1994-06-25

Address: Suite 153 582 Lubowitz Walks, Port Alfredoborough, IN 72879-2838

Phone: +128413562823324

Job: IT Strategist

Hobby: Video gaming, Basketball, Web surfing, Book restoration, Jogging, Shooting, Fishing

Introduction: My name is Rev. Porsche Oberbrunner, I am a zany, graceful, talented, witty, determined, shiny, enchanting person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.