Steak Pizzaiola

If you walk into a home and you are hit with an incredible mouth watering aroma….you know Grandma is in the kitchen cooking. There are many ways to make this dish – this is the way I make it. For me this is the only way to make it. So good, simple and old school. The sauce is gonna be incredible, and you can freeze any that is left to use for another night with some pasta. I say rigatoni.

You’ll need:

2-3 lb chuck steak

1 cup chopped onion

6 cloves of garlic

4 tbs extra virgin olive oil 

2-28 ounce cans whole Italian plum tomatoes, crushed by hand 

salt 

Cracked black pepper

1/2 cup red wine

2 bay leaves

Directions:

1. In a very heavy skillet add 2 tbs of oil and get that hot.
2. Salt and pepper both sides of the steak and then Brown both sides, about 2 minutes each side.
3. Remove the steak to a dish.
4. Put the other 2 tbs oil in the skillet and lower the heat to medium. Add the onion and garlic and sauté this for 2-3 minutes.
5. Now add the crushed tomatoes and all the juice, wine, bay leaves, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp pepper and allow this to come to a boil.
6. Cook on a slow boil for 10 minutes uncovered, then add the steak back to the skillet and cover with the sauce.
7. Lower the heat to a low simmer, cover and let this braise for 1 hour to 1.5 hours. The longer you let it braise the tastier this will be.
8. After it’s done remove the lid and taste for salt n pepper. Remove the steak to a platter and allow the sauce to simmer uncovered for 15 minutes to thicken.
9. Cut the steak and top with the sauce. You can also make a pasta to go with the sauce.
   

Daniel Mancini