Name: Bruscitt con polenta (Chopped Meat Sauce for Polenta)
Cuisine: Italy
Ingredients: 2 cups polenta, cooked in salted water with 2 cloves garlic, smashed (see Basic Polenta); Salt and freshly ground black pepper; 2 cups dry red wine, or as needed; A few juniper berries, crushed (optional); 20 fennel seeds, tied in a cheesecloth sachet; ½ cup unsalted butter, plus more for serving; 6 pancetta slices, chopped or diced; 1½ pounds boneless beef brisket or chuck, cut into pieces ⅓ to ½ inch square; Grated Parmesan cheese

Preparation info

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

Italian Slow and Savory

By Joyce Goldstein

Published 2004

About

When I first read a recipe for this Lombardian sauce, I wondered about it. Would the fennel flavor penetrate the meat? What holds the sauce together? When I cooked it, I discovered that it is more of a stew than a sauce, with tiny pieces of meat that become tender, but do not break down. The fennel truly does perfume the meat, and the additional butter rounds out the pan juices.