🇮🇹 Italian · Main Dish
🍖 Bollito Misto
Bollito Misto
A grand Piedmontese platter of several cuts of meat, gently simmered together for hours until tender, traditionally carved tableside and served with a trio of piquant sauces.
Bollito misto is as much a ceremony as a meal, a mix of beef, veal, and sometimes tongue or sausage all simmered together in one large pot, the resulting broth nearly as prized as the meats themselves, and the whole production usually reserved for special gatherings.
Ingredients
Equipment: Very large pot, Separate pot for the cotechino
- 1 kg (2.2 lb) beef brisket or shoulder
- 800 g (1.75 lb) veal shoulder or breast
- 1 beef tongue (optional)
- 4 cotechino sausages
- 2 onions, halved
- 2 carrots, halved
- 2 celery stalks, halved
- 2 bay leaves
- Whole black peppercorns
- Salt, to taste
- Salsa verde and mostarda, for serving
Method
- Place the beef and veal in a very large pot with the onions, carrots, celery, bay leaves, and peppercorns, and cover generously with water.
- Bring to a boil, skimming off any foam that rises to the surface, then reduce to a gentle simmer.
- If using tongue, add it to the pot as well.
- Simmer gently, partially covered, for 2.5–3 hours, until all the meats are very tender, adding salt partway through cooking.
- Meanwhile, cook the cotechino sausages separately according to package instructions, as they release fat that would cloud the main broth.
- If using tongue, remove it once tender and peel off the outer skin while still warm.
- Once everything is tender, remove the meats from the broth and let rest briefly.
- Slice the various meats and arrange together on a large platter.
- Serve with a ladle of the hot broth spooned over, alongside salsa verde and mostarda for dipping.
Chef Tips
- Skimming the broth carefully in the early stages of cooking results in a much cleaner, clearer final broth.
- Cooking the cotechino separately keeps its rendered fat from clouding the main pot.
- The cooking broth itself is excellent and traditionally served as a starter or saved for soups.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Boiling too vigorously rather than maintaining a gentle simmer, which can toughen the meats.
- Skipping the skimming step, resulting in a cloudy, less appealing broth.
- Rushing the cooking time, when patience is what tenderizes the tougher cuts properly.
Nutrition (per serving)
Health Benefits
- An excellent source of protein, iron, and B vitamins from the varied cuts of meat.
Cultural Note
Bollito misto is a celebratory dish across Piedmont and Lombardy, historically a way to make the most of tougher cuts of meat, now considered a special-occasion classic served with ceremony.
Storage & Serving
Storage: Refrigerate meats and broth separately for up to 3 days.
Reheating: Reheat the meats gently in the broth to keep them moist.
Serve with: Salsa verde, Mostarda (candied fruit mustard), Coarse salt, A robust Piedmontese red wine