Francesina
Florentine leftover beef with sweet onions
Yesterday's boiled beef is only halfway through its working life. For francesina, it returns to the stove with a frankly unreasonable quantity of onions. Time, olive oil, and a little tomato make the economy feel beside the point.
In Firenze, this is lesso rifatto con le cipolle: meat remade, not disguised. The onions should collapse into a soft, sweet mass that clings to the beef, while the tomato stays in the background and the meat keeps the clear, mineral flavor of the bollito. A Certaldo onion, rosy and sweet, is particularly right when one can be found.
It is best with bread that can chase the last of the sauce around the plate. The broth and the reheated beef make two meals from the same pot.
Ingredients
For the francesina
- 500 gcold leftover boiled beef from a brodo or bollito, cut into 2 cm (¾-inch) pieces (see note)
- 1 kg(2.2 lb)sweet yellow or red onions, preferably Cipolla di Certaldo if available, thinly sliced
- 60 ml(¼ cup)extra-virgin olive oil
- 120 ml(½ cup)dry white wine
- 30 g(2 tbsp)tomato paste
- 250 ml(1 cup)unsalted or lightly salted beef broth, plus more if needed
- fine sea salt, to taste
- freshly ground black pepper
Kitchen notes
- The beef
- Francesina is made from already boiled beef, the leftover meat from broth or bollito, not from raw stew meat browned for this recipe. A mix of cooked chuck, brisket, shank, or similar broth cuts is ideal.
- Cipolla di Certaldo
- The rosy, sweet Certaldo onion is a Slow Food Presidio and has a particularly close connection with the dish. It is rarely practical to source in the United States, so use the sweetest firm yellow or red onions available. Do not use already caramelized onions: this dish needs onions that soften slowly with the beef rather than a dark jam.
- Tomato
- Tomato is a supporting note. Concentrated tomato is loosened with broth to coat the onions. This is not a tomato braise or ragù; use only enough to tint and bind the onions.
Method
Soften the onions without browning them
- Warm the olive oil in a wide, heavy pot over low heat. Add the onions and a generous pinch of salt, stir to coat, and cover. Cook gently, stirring every few minutes, until they have collapsed, released their liquid, and turned glossy and tender without taking on much color, 35–45 minutes. If they begin to catch, add a spoonful of broth and lower the heat. The finished onions should be soft enough to almost melt into the sauce, not crisp-edged or caramelized.
Reheat the lesso
- Add the boiled beef to the onions and turn it through the oil for 3–4 minutes, until the pieces are hot at the edges. Pour in the wine, raise the heat briefly, and let it reduce until its raw alcohol smell is gone, about 2 minutes. Stir the tomato paste into the onion mixture until it darkens slightly and coats the meat.
Cook it slowly into one sauce
- Add the broth and plenty of black pepper. Bring the liquid just to a simmer, then cover partly and cook over the lowest heat for 20 minutes, stirring once or twice. The sauce should become brick-red and thick enough to cloak the beef, while the meat stays moist and recognizably in pieces. Add another splash of broth only if the pan dries before the onions have fully broken down. Taste and adjust salt and pepper.
Serve with bread
- Let the francesina stand off the heat for 5 minutes so the sauce settles around the meat. Spoon it into warm shallow bowls with its onions and sauce. Serve with good Tuscan-style country bread for mopping up; the plate should be saucy, never soupy.