Braised Beef Rolls in Tomato Sauce

A traditional Apulian dish, beef rolls in tomato sauce. Although beef is used, veal is a great alternative.

These beef rolls are also called ‘braciole’, usually accompanied by a side of baked potatoes or any veggie of your liking.
The tomato sauce in which the meat is cooked is also used to garnish pasta as a first course.

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Serves: 4 | Preparation time: 25 mins | Cooking time: 45 mins

• Beef or Veal meat: 8 slices
• Tomato Passata: 150 ml
• Whole plum peeled tomatoes: 250 g
• Half white onion
• Fresh basil leaves : 5-6
• Garlic, peeled and chopped: 2 cloves
• Parsley, minced: 1 sprig
• Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO): 2 tablespoons
• Grated Pecorino cheese, to taste
• Salt and black ground pepper: to taste

Method

In a bowl, combine the chopped garlic and parsley with a drizzle of EVOO and a pinch of salt, mix and set aside.

Place the beef slices on a plate or clean work surface, beat them a little with a meat tenderizer to flatten them slightly, season with salt and pepper, rubbing them in with your fingers. Spread a couple of spoonfuls of the garlic/parsley mixture over each slice and press the mixture gently to adhere it to the meat.

Sprinkle with a handful of grated Pecorino cheese and start to close each roll by folding it up from the sides inwards to prevent the filling from escaping, then roll the slice up starting from one end and working towards the other. Use kitchen string or toothpicks to seal each roll.

Slice the onion. Heat 2 tablespoons of EVOO in a saucepan and brown the onion over a low heat.

Brown the rolls over medium-high heat, turning them often to ensure even browning. This will take about 10 minutes.

Now add the peeled tomatoes, basil leaves, a pinch of salt and black pepper, stir, add some tomato puree and cook over a low heat for 25-30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Serve.

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