One of the things I’ve decided to focus on with these new cooking videos are dishes that I make at home all the time. Why? I figure that this whole video making thing is a giant learning curve. Between the filming, lighting, editing and writing, the one thing I don’t want to have to worry about is the recipe and cooking end of things. I’ve got these babies down. These are all dishes I’ve been making regularly for about 20 years or so.
Involtini is high up on this list. But I wasn’t always an involtini master. In fact, I’d never really even heard of them until Domenico’s mother made them for me on one of our first trips to Bari. If you’re an Italian American you probably grew up eating these (and probably called them braciole). Not me. I’d never really had them in Rome, since they are definitely from the more southern end of the Italian cooking spectrum.
Everyone has their own favorite recipe. They often include prosciutto and other types of cheeses. Some people make then big, some small. My mother-in-law’s version – which I’ve never veered from – is pure and simple. The only ‘stuffing’ is a bit of salt, pepper, parsley , olive oil and grated cheese. While she tends to stick to parmigiano, I sometimes substitute whatever hunk of pecorino I have at hand.
The trickiest part of the whole thing is the rolling-it-up bit. And remembering to put in all five ingredients (I always forget the olive oil!). After that, it’s just a matter of browning them, and then cooking them in tomato sauce. It’s that easy.
Much easier than making a film about it.
Involtini
Prep
Cook
Total
Yield 4
Have your butcher slice the meat very thinly. Although most of the recipes I see in English call for veal, in Italy more mature beef is always used. If you’d like to have leftover sauce, to dress your pasta, double the amount of tomatoes.
Ingredients
- 1/2 kilo / 1 pnd thinly sliced beef top round
- salt
- pepper
- parsley
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
- olive oil
- 4 cups tomato puree
Instructions
- Make each involtini by laying one slice of beef on a flat surface. Season it with salt and pepper, sprinkle some grated chese (about a tablespoon), a few leaves of parsley and a drizzle of olive oil. Roll it up and secure with a toothpick. Repeat until finished.
- Heat about 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a pan big enough to hold all of the involtini in a single layer. When hot, add the involtini and brown well on all sides. This browning is important since it will flavor the sauce. Season with salt and add the tomatoes, scraping up the browned bits with a spoon.
- Bring to a simmer and let cook for about 40 minutes or so. Add a bit of water if it’s getting too dried out. These are even better the following day.
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Love your videos, simple yet very instructive. Thanks.
cute , Ms VIdeo!!
You made me laugh out loud the second time you forgot the olive oil…..
Bellissimo Video
Happy Thanksgiving
So hard to remember 5 things in a row. 🙂
This one made me giggle. Can’t wait to make the Involtini ALL the different ways – Salt, Pepper, Cheese, Parsley, Oil; Salt, Cheese, Pepper, Oil, Parsley; Pepper, Cheese, Salt, Parsley, Oil; Oil, Salt, Pepper…. 🙂
Exactly!!! Never the same way twice, otherwise it would get too boring.
I love your videos. They always make me so happy. HAppy Thanksgiving.
Hooray! I know that your videos are a lot of work but they are SO appreciated by lazy cooks like myself. And they are charming to boot. 🙂
I think that, like me, you are going low profile for Thanksgiving this year but I am still sending my best wishes to you and your family…
have you ever posted your tomato sauce recipe?
You mean just pasta with simple tomato sauce? I guess not. I’ve done lots of versions of it: puttanesca, amatriciana, using fresh tomatoes, etc. but never straight forward spaghetti al pomodoro. Maybe I should?!
Cooking is easier than making a film. This I know as I am married to a film editor! I enjoyed your video,and your involtini look terrific. And indeed, in our home, we do know this dish as braciole and make it using one large cut of beef.
One thing I will say with absolute certainty. My husband Bart suggested I storyboard my work, whether it be stills or video, and it was excellent advice. Once you start storyboarding you discover the entire process is streamlined. One thing though, it is a real heartbreak to end up on the cutting room floor!
I love the video and the involtini. in my view they are the best accompaniment to homemade gnocchi.