TABELIAAUTHENTIC RECIPE
Peposo alla Fornacina
A legendary dish created by 15th-century Florentine brickmakers, the fornacini. Beef shin was simmered for hours with abundant black pepper, garlic and Chianti in the residual heat of brick kilns. Few ingredients, pepper at center stage, and patience until the meat falls apart.
AUTHENTICITY SCORE
Authenticity Score
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Ingredients (4 servings)
- Beef shin or cross-cut shankCut into 5 cm cubes. Bone adds extra savor.1000 g
- Chianti Classico wineEnough to almost cover the meat; adjust to the pot size.750 ml
- GarlicAdd unpeeled. It may seem excessive, but this is the correct amount.10 cloves
- Whole black peppercornsAbout 2 tbsp. Use whole, not ground.20 g
- Canned whole peeled tomatoesCrush coarsely by hand. The traditional quantity is small.200 g
Method
Build the braise
- 1 Cut 1000 g beef shin into 5 cm cubes.
- 2 Place the beef in a heavy pot.
- 3 Add 10 unpeeled garlic cloves, 20 g whole black peppercorns, salt and 200 g whole tomatoes crushed by hand.
Caution
Do not use oil; this is the traditional recipe.
Add the wine
- 1 Pour in all 750 ml Chianti.
- 2 The meat should be almost submerged. Add a little water if needed.
Ready when
Continue when the meat is almost covered by wine.
Braise slowly
- 1 Cover, place over high heat and bring to a boil.
- 2 Once boiling, reduce to very low heat, or transfer to a 120°C oven, and braise for at least 3 hours.
Ready when
Continue when the meat is tender enough to fall apart under a fork.
Caution
Never stir during braising.
Reduce the sauce
- 1 Add a little water if there is insufficient liquid.
- 2 If there is little sauce, uncover and reduce it slightly.
Ready when
The dish is ready when the meat falls apart under a fork.
Serve with bread
- 1 Accompany with thick slices of Tuscan bread or focaccia.
About this dish
In the 1420s, bricks for the dome of Florence's Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore were fired in Impruneta. The brickmakers, or fornacini, worked around the kilns all day and used their residual heat to cook. They put chunks of beef in a pot, filled it with generous black pepper and Chianti, set it beside the kiln and returned to work: this is the origin of peposo.
The amount of black pepper is several times that of an ordinary stew. Yet hours of cooking soften its bite, leaving complex aroma and gentle warmth. Adding unpeeled garlic is another characteristic: the skin protects it from turning bitter during long cooking. By mealtime it is meltingly soft and can be eaten as it is.
There are 5 ingredients: beef, red wine, garlic, black pepper and salt. Impruneta's brickmakers are unlikely to have practiced elaborate cookery; putting what was available in a pot and waiting became the dish itself.
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