Cover and continue cooking over low heat for about three hours.ĭuring this time, occasionally turn the pieces of meat and, if necessary, add a few tablespoons of hot water. Season with salt and pepper and add the chopped tomatoes. When it starts to take on colour, add the tail and the cheek cut into pieces and continue the browning gently, turning the pieces of meat often, until they have taken colour.Īt this point, wet with the wine and let it evaporate slowly. Heat the oil and lard in a large terracotta saucepan and gently fry the chopped vegetables. Prepare a mince with onion, celery, carrot, garlic and parsley. Here is one of the traditional recipes, as it was usually prepared in restaurants and trattorias, suggested by Gambero Rosso:ġ beef cheek (in Rome it is called gaffo) įor the mince: 1 large onion 1 carrot, 1 celery stick 1 clove of garlic parsleyĭivide the tail into pieces, cutting it exactly at the joint of the vertebrae, blanch it for about three-quarters of an hour in boiling salted water and drain it. There are two main versions, which differ in the final part of the preparation, and both have coexisted for decades in the trattorias of the city. It is an appetizing second course, but also an ideal sauce for rigatoni!
The vaccinara tail is made up of oxtail, or veal tail served with vegetables. The offal-based Roman recipes, such as the tail, became a must with the inauguration of the Testaccio Slaughterhouse in 1890: the workers were partially paid with scraps of butchery, which became original dishes thanks to the creativity of the housewives and the cooks of the taverns located in the area. Its name derives from the leather workers of the Rione Regola, on the left of the Tiber river, who had the custom of peeling, cutting and boiling the tail of the animal to eat it. In the past, only a small minority could afford the fine cuts of meat, and the fifth quarter was all that remained for the lower classes: a real art of getting by in the kitchen.Īmong the most famous traditional dishes, there is the succulent Coda alla "vaccinara". One of the absolute protagonists of typical Roman cuisine is " the fifth quarter", the offal of butchered animals, which gave birth to the tastiest recipes of local gastronomy.