Coda alla vaccinara

Name: Coda alla vaccinara (Oxtail Ragout with Celery)
Yield: Serves 6
Cuisine: Italy
Ingredients: Salt and freshly ground black pepper; Salt and freshly ground black pepper; ½ cup olive oil; 4 pounds oxtails, in 2-inch-thick pieces; ¼ cup tomato paste diluted in 2 cups meat stock, or 2 pounds plum tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and cut into strips, plus meat stock as needed; ¼ cup tomato paste diluted in 2 cups meat stock, or 2 pounds plum tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and cut into strips, plus meat stock as needed; 1 cup dry white wine; ½ pound pancetta, diced (optional); 2 or 3 cloves garlic, chopped; ¼ pound fatty prosciutto, diced; 2 carrots, peeled and chopped; 2 yellow onions, chopped; 1 large head celery; about 1½ pounds, cut into 2-inch pieces, blanched, and drained; ½ cup pine nuts, toasted (optional); 2 fresh thyme sprigs, 2 bay leaves, and 2 whole cloves, tied in a cheesecloth sachet; 2 fresh thyme sprigs, 2 bay leaves, and 2 whole cloves, tied in a cheesecloth sachet; 2 fresh thyme sprigs, 2 bay leaves, and 2 whole cloves, tied in a cheesecloth sachet; 2 fresh thyme sprigs, 2 bay leaves, and 2 whole cloves, tied in a cheesecloth sachet; ¼ cup tomato paste diluted in 2 cups meat stock, or 2 pounds plum tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and cut into strips, plus meat stock as needed; ¼ cup tomato paste diluted in 2 cups meat stock, or 2 pounds plum tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and cut into strips, plus meat stock as needed; Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg (optional); 2 tablespoons grated bitter chocolate (optional); Pinch of ground cinnamon (optional); ½ cup raisins, plumped in hot water and drained (optional); ½ cup raisins, plumped in hot water and drained (optional)

Oxtail Ragout with Celery

Preparation info

Serves
6

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

Italian Slow and Savory

By Joyce Goldstein

Published 2004

About

Many great dishes have evolved from using lesser cuts of meat, and coda alia vaccinara is a jewel of Roman cooking. It is an example of the cuisine of the quinto quarto, the “fifth quarter,” the parts of the animal—heart, spleen, liver, tongue, sweetbreads, brains, intestines, tails— never sold to the rich. I first ate this dish at Ristorante Checchino dal 1887 in Testaccio, a neighborhood known for its slaughterhouses and vaccinari, the latter Roman dialect for “butche

Ingredients

Europe
Italy
Main course
Mediterranean
Gluten-free

Ingredients

Method