Sunday Gravy Recipe
This is it, the sauce that won the 2010 Super Sunday Gravy Throwdown (you can watch it made in Episode 4)
Meatballs
- ½ lbs ground beef
- ½ lbs ground pork
- ½ lbs ground veal
- ½ cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
- ½ cup water (but I want to try milk or buttermilk instead)
- 6 tbsp grated cheese (I use a half and half blend of Parmigiano Reggiano and Pecorino Romano. Use the fresh stuff if possible. If I see a green can around, your fingers get added to the gravy!)
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk
- ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
In a small bowl combine panko and liquid (water, milk or buttermilk) until softened.
In a large bowl, mix everything (including panko paste) by hand until well combined, but work the meat as little as possible. Roll into inch and half size balls and place onto baking sheet.
Bake for 20-30 minutes at 350 degrees, which should be just enough to render some fat.
Bracciole:
- 2 lbs top round steak cut and pounded into 3-4 thin sheets
- 6 cloves garlic, minced or put through garlic press
- 1 cup chopped parsley
- 6 tbl grated cheese
- 3 tbl olive oil
- 3 tbl bread crumbs
Pound out meat into 4 inch wide strips. Mix all other ingredients to form paste and spread along meat.
Roll tightly and tie using butcher’s twine. Panfry braccioles, until browned on all sides.
Other meat:
- 6 pork ribs, cut into single ribs
- 6 hot italian sausage
- 1 lb skirt steak (optional), sliced into strips
Panfry all meat until browned on all sides.
Sauce (aka gravy):
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 chopped onion
- 6 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1½ tsp fennel seeds (this is the winning ingredient)
- A shake or three of peperoncino (crushed red pepper for you Jews out there)
- 2 28-ounce can whole peeled tomatoes
- 1 6 oz can of tomato paste
- 1 cup beef broth
Deglaze the frying pan you used for all the meats with beef broth, and reserve liquid.
In a large dutch oven over medium heat saute onions in oil. When translucent, add garlic and tomato paste continuing to cook until the paste has turned a nice brown color. This takes a little bit, and burns easily so remember to stir often.
Add reserved beef broth and all tomatoes.
Bring mix to a low boil, and using an immersion blender, blend contents to break up tomatoes and have a fairly smooth consistency. If you don’t have an immersion blender, transfer to a big blender and blend away. Just be careful to do it in small batches, that stuff’l stain!
Add fennel, red pepper, and all the meat (including the meatballs). There should be just enough gravy to barely cover the meat, if there isn’t enough add a few more blended tomatoes, or plain tomato sauce. Eventually the meat will exude some additional liquid, so don’t worry if you have a bone or sausage sticking out (hey buddy, your sausage is sticking out!?)
Simmer on low for several hours until the ribs are falling off the bone.
When you are close to done, if the gravy is too watery and broth like, add a few tablespoons of italian breadcrumbs. It will help absorb the water not mess up the taste. Don’t go too crazy with them, you don’t want bread pudding here.
Remove all the meats into a large serving dish, and ladle gravy over any pasta with ridges (rigatoni works well).
The gravy is even better the second day once everything has melded together.
6 Comments
Once again Andy – GREAT JOB!!!
You have succeeded in making me TOTALLY HUNGRY after watching episode 4 – OMG!! BOTH versions looked SO GOOD!!
It also looks like you y’all had a great time cookin & filmin!!!
Keep up the good work – what is going to be your next recipe?
Send me a head’s up when you post episode 5 – I will want to
see what your working on next. BTW – Your Jewish Wedding Soups
turned out GREAT when I made it here in AZ!!!
Your Friend
kevin
Thanks Kevin, we did have a blast — but given we started at 9PM after dinner, it took all night. Finally crashed at 3AM, and woke up every 2 hours to stir the gravy!
Glad you liked the Jewsish wedding soup, that was one of those recipes that Nikki claims I pull out of my *ss 🙂 If you have any pics of it, send it in for the You vs. Jew pages 🙂
Still planning episode 5, will probably be something a little less time consuming!
Take care,
Andy
This is what I have been waiting for! OK… I am going to make these within the next 10 days – TRY to do a brief video (probably won’t post it – I hate the time they take to edit) but am glad you took the time. Watching the Olympic Canada VS US hockey game so didn’t watch your video yet…. but this recipe looks TO DIE FOR!
(I just posted my foie gras au torchon experience… have you done this? If so, tell me how yours was different!!! Give me feedback!!)
I will send you my photos – at the VERY least – when I do these meatballs… I love my gravy – but may make yours once I watch the video!
🙂
Valerie
Thanks Val, good luck with the gravy! Hope you enjoy the video, it was harder to edit than it was to cook! Looking forward to your pics (the next You vs Jew?).
I’ve never made fois gras, maybe your article will inspire me…diet be damned!
Andy
No self-respecting Italian would make a sauce without basilico! Even an honorary one.
Mario,
I usually do for my marinara but abstain from meat sauces (but I use fennel seeds in those). I’ll give it a shot next time though (I haven’t made a bonafide gravy since last year!)