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Federico's Pork Braciole - from Sugo Restaurant and Tapas
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From the Menu of . . . Sugo Restaurant & Tapas
Clocktower Place, 408 S. Atlanta St., Roswell
770-641-9131, and one other location (www.sugorestaurant.com)
Q: We had a pork dish at Sugo that was stuffed with sausage and had mushrooms and artichokes. It was without a doubt the best meal we ever tasted. Could you possibly persuade Sugo to share this recipe?
--- Elaine Lehman, Sandy Springs
A: If you want to re-create the best meal you've ever tasted, you'd better be prepared to work for it. This recipe will take a home chef at least two evenings to prepare, but the work could actually be spread over three or four days - especially if you opt to make your own tomato-basil sauce (the recipe below uses a good-quality store-bought sauce).
"We do the things that, frankly, no one has the time to do any longer, and to me that's why I think they come to Sugo, " said Federico Castellucci II, the restaurateur who describes himself as "the guy that's in charge of the lamb shanks." "In both the Greek and Italian sides of my family, everything took hours and hours and hours. That's how the food was then, and that's our goal, to do it that way now."
Hands on time: 1 hour Total time: 8 hours Serves: 6
Ingredients:
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1 head garlic
3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon olive oil, divided
2 Spanish onions, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cracked black malabar pepper
1/2 teaspoon chicken stock base
1/4 teaspoon smoked Spanish paprika
1 pound loose Italian sausage (casing removed)
3 dates, chopped
1/3 cup canned, diced roasted tomatoes, drained
2 eggs, beaten, divided
3 ounces grated Pecorino Romano cheese (about 3/4 cup), divided
2 (1-pound) pork tenderloins
2 (1-ounce) slices prosciutto di Parma
6 fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon milk
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1 cup good-quality prepared tomato-basil sauce
4 ounces grated mozzarella cheese (about 1 cup)
1/4 cup vin cotto or balsamic vinegar reduction
Instructions:
To roast the garlic: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut the top off a head of garlic. Place in a garlic roaster, clay pot or baking dish and drizzle with 1 teaspoon olive oil. Cover tightly and roast until the garlic cloves are soft but still white, about 30 to 45 minutes. (Set aside half the head for the caramelized onions. Reserve remaining half for another use.)
To caramelize the onions: Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Pour the remaining olive oil into a baking pan and top with the onions. Drizzle with balsamic vinegar and honey. Squeeze the roasted garlic cloves from 1/2 head over the onions and stir to combine. Sprinkle with the salt, pepper, chicken stock base and paprika. Cover with heavy aluminum foil and roast for 4 to 6 hours until onions are very soft and gently caramelized (medium brown). Chop and set aside.
To prepare the stuffing: In a bowl, combine the sausage, dates, roasted tomatoes, 1 egg, 1/2 cup Pecorino Romano cheese and all but 1/3 cup of the chopped caramelized onions. Set aside.
To prepare the tenderloins: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Remove all the fat and silver tissue from the pork tenderloins. Butterfly and gently tenderize them each into a flat piece 1/2 inch thick. Place a slice of prosciutto in the center of each tenderloin and then top each with 3 basil leaves. Place half the stuffing lengthwise down the center of each tenderloin. Roll the tenderloins lengthwise to create a log shape.
Place the flour on a small platter. Beat the remaining egg with the milk and pour it onto a second platter. Spread the bread crumbs on a third platter.
Dredge the tenderloins in the flour, carefully roll them in the egg wash and then dredge them in the bread crumbs. Place them side by side, seam side down, in a baking dish or roasting pan. Roast for 20 to 30 minutes until the sausage filling is just cooked --- the outside will feel firm to the touch and a fork inserted into the center for 15 seconds will feel hot when touched against the inside of one's wrist. Remove from the oven and slice the braciole crosswise into rounds. Pour the fat out of the roasting pan and fan open the sliced braciole in the pan. Top each round with a spoonful of the tomato-basil sauce, a sprinkle of the 1/4 cup reserved Pecorino Romano cheese, some reserved caramelized onions and, finally, a sprinkle of the mozzarella cheese. Return to the oven to melt the cheese. Drizzle with vin cotto or reduced balsamic vinegar before serving.
To caramelize the onions: Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Pour the remaining olive oil into a baking pan and top with the onions. Drizzle with balsamic vinegar and honey. Squeeze the roasted garlic cloves from 1/2 head over the onions and stir to combine. Sprinkle with the salt, pepper, chicken stock base and paprika. Cover with heavy aluminum foil and roast for 4 to 6 hours until onions are very soft and gently caramelized (medium brown). Chop and set aside.
To prepare the stuffing: In a bowl, combine the sausage, dates, roasted tomatoes, 1 egg, 1/2 cup Pecorino Romano cheese and all but 1/3 cup of the chopped caramelized onions. Set aside.
To prepare the tenderloins: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Remove all the fat and silver tissue from the pork tenderloins. Butterfly and gently tenderize them each into a flat piece 1/2 inch thick. Place a slice of prosciutto in the center of each tenderloin and then top each with 3 basil leaves. Place half the stuffing lengthwise down the center of each tenderloin. Roll the tenderloins lengthwise to create a log shape.
Place the flour on a small platter. Beat the remaining egg with the milk and pour it onto a second platter. Spread the bread crumbs on a third platter.
Dredge the tenderloins in the flour, carefully roll them in the egg wash and then dredge them in the bread crumbs. Place them side by side, seam side down, in a baking dish or roasting pan. Roast for 20 to 30 minutes until the sausage filling is just cooked --- the outside will feel firm to the touch and a fork inserted into the center for 15 seconds will feel hot when touched against the inside of one's wrist. Remove from the oven and slice the braciole crosswise into rounds. Pour the fat out of the roasting pan and fan open the sliced braciole in the pan. Top each round with a spoonful of the tomato-basil sauce, a sprinkle of the 1/4 cup reserved Pecorino Romano cheese, some reserved caramelized onions and, finally, a sprinkle of the mozzarella cheese. Return to the oven to melt the cheese. Drizzle with vin cotto or reduced balsamic vinegar before serving.
Notes:
At Sugo, this sausage-stuffed pork tenderloin --- like a stromboli, with tenderloin instead of bread dough on the outside --- is served over sauteed wild mushrooms and roasted artichoke hearts. Please read tester's notes below for added tips.
Tester's notes: Several area groceries sell a brand of "fire-roasted" tomatoes called Muir Glen. Look in the organic foods section if you don't see them with the other canned tomatoes. If you can't find vin cotto (reduced wine) or reduced balsamic vinegar in a specialty store, make your own by boiling some balsamic vinegar in a small saucepan until it is reduced in volume by half.
If you attempt this braciole at home, plan to roast the garlic and caramelize the onions one day, and then stuff and roast the tenderloins the next. And if you get stuck, Castellucci invites you to call him for advice (phone number above). "Sincerely, anybody that puts in the effort to re-create a complex dish like this, I want them to know that if I have six calls at once, I'll take theirs first."
Tester's notes: Several area groceries sell a brand of "fire-roasted" tomatoes called Muir Glen. Look in the organic foods section if you don't see them with the other canned tomatoes. If you can't find vin cotto (reduced wine) or reduced balsamic vinegar in a specialty store, make your own by boiling some balsamic vinegar in a small saucepan until it is reduced in volume by half.
If you attempt this braciole at home, plan to roast the garlic and caramelize the onions one day, and then stuff and roast the tenderloins the next. And if you get stuck, Castellucci invites you to call him for advice (phone number above). "Sincerely, anybody that puts in the effort to re-create a complex dish like this, I want them to know that if I have six calls at once, I'll take theirs first."
Nutrition:
Per serving: 789 calories (percent of calories from fat, 55), 59 grams protein, 30 grams carbohydrates, 3 grams fiber, 48 grams fat (18 grams saturated), 257 milligrams cholesterol, 1,573 milligrams sodium.
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Recipes in the same category:ATL restaurant recipes
Recipes from: Sugo Restaurant & Tapas