The New York restaurants Frankies Spuntino are owned by Frank Castronovo and Frank Falcinelli. They like to keep things calm. “I cooked on the line for 18 years,” Mr. Falcinelli told The Times. Mr. Castronovo, equally low-key, said, “We like to take the easy approach. That means that a lot of their food, like their antipasti, grilled meats, and wine-stewed prunes, is cooked ahead of time and then put together while you order it or served at room temperature. In this version of braciola, canned tomatoes are put on top of the meat rolls, and as the meat cooks, the tomatoes turn into sauce. “My grandfather calls it gravy,” Mr. Falcinelli said. “For the Sunday sauce, you do spareribs, sausage, meatballs, braciola. ” The Franks’ version is lighter, meant to be eaten with salad and bread, not steaming pasta. Leftovers are good for sandwiches the following day. —Dana Bowen.
Pork braciole is a savory Italian stuffed pork dish that looks impressive but is surprisingly easy to make at home, The key is properly braising the stuffed pork rolls in the oven to perfection, So how long should you bake pork braciole for ideal texture and flavor? Let’s find out
For those new to this hearty Italian specialty, braciole refers to thin slices of meat rolled around a flavorful stuffing mixture. While it can be made with beef or veal, pork braciole is especially tender and juicy.
To make it, simply pound pork cutlets to an even thickness, spread on your favorite stuffing, then roll up and tie the pork with kitchen twine. Typical stuffings include combinations of breadcrumbs, Parmesan, garlic, parsley, eggs and cured meats. Once assembled, the braciole are seared and then braised in a flavorful liquid until fall-apart tender.
Choosing the Right Pork for Braciole
Opt for pork loin or boneless pork chops for the best texture and shape for rolling. Cutlets should be pounded to around 1⁄4 inch thickness before filling and rolling. This thinness allows the stuffing flavors to permeate the meat and also enables even cooking.
For the juiciest results, choose higher fat heritage breed pork if you can find it rather than lean commercial pork. The extra marbling provides more moisture and flavor. Shoulder or butt cuts have the ideal fat content.
Step-By-Step Guide for Oven Braising
Preparing perfect oven-braised pork braciole is simple when you follow these easy steps:
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Prep the filling – Make your favorite stuffing up to 2 days in advance and store chilled. Classic combos include breadcrumbs, eggs, garlic, herbs and cheeses.
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Pound the meat – Use a meat mallet or rolling pin to gently pound the pork cutlets to an even 1⁄4 inch thickness. Be careful not to tear the meat.
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Fill and roll – Spread the filling over the cutlets. Roll up each piece from short end to long end and tie at 2-inch intervals with kitchen twine.
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Sear the rolls – Heat 1 Tbsp oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Brown the rolled braciole on all sides, about 2 minutes per side.
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Braise in the oven – Add braising liquid like broth or wine to the pot. Bring to a boil then cover and transfer to a 275°F oven. Braise for 1 1⁄2 – 2 hours.
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Rest and serve – Allow the braciole to rest for 10 minutes before removing twine and slicing to serve.
How Long to Cook Pork Braciole in the Oven
The oven braising time can vary based on the size and thickness of your pork rolls, as well as your desired level of doneness. Some guidelines:
- 1-inch thick rolls – braise for 1 1⁄2 hours
- 1 1⁄2-inch thick rolls – braise for 1 3⁄4 – 2 hours
- 2-inch thick rolls – braise for 2 – 2 1⁄2 hours
To test for doneness, use an instant read thermometer to check the center of the thickest roll. Pork should reach 145°F. If not quite done, return to oven and continue braising in 15 minute increments until ready.
For ultimate fall-apart tender braciole, braise for the longer end of the time range. The extended low and slow braising ensures seriously succulent pork.
Braising Liquid Options
The braising liquid provides moisture and adds flavor as the pork braciole cooks. Typical options include:
- Chicken or beef broth
- Marinara sauce
- White wine or red wine
- Tomatoes or tomato sauce
For best results, use enough braising liquid to come about 1-inch up the sides of the rolls. Turn the rolls halfway through cooking to ensure even moistness.
Serving Suggestions
Pork braciole straight out of the oven is delightfully tender and infused with the flavors of the braising liquid. Here are some tasty ways to complete your meal:
- Serve braciole atop creamy polenta or mashed potatoes to soak up the savory sauce.
- Pair with sauteed broccoli rabe, rapini or spinach.
- Toss hot cooked pasta with the braising sauce for an easy one-pot meal.
- Serve alongside crusty Italian bread for dipping in the sauce.
- Garnish with shaved Parmesan or Pecorino cheese and chopped parsley.
This hearty yet elegant stuffed pork dish is sure to satisfy. Now that you know how long to braise pork braciole in the oven, you can enjoy this Italian classic any night of the week. Buon appetito!
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There is a lot of tough collagen in pork shoulder that won’t break down until it’s cooked for three hours. Pork loin/chop, which you used, is all muscle and will overcook and dry out if cooked that long. So use the shoulder, or shorten the cooking time substantially.
Grandma saved the ends of salami and prosciutto and chopped them for braciole. She crumbled the cheeses and sometimes added hard boiled egg. The chopped filling makes the packets a little lumpy, but we loved the texture.
I sliced up a turkey breast and filled it with raisins, pine nuts, cheese, parsley, lemon zest, and bread crumbs for Christmas Eve. The rolls get tied up and browned. After that, I made a tomato sauce with fresh herbs, onion, garlic, carrots, and tomatoes. I put the turkey braciola in the sauce and cooked it for an hour. When it’s time to serve, take off the twine and cut the rolls into slices. This makes them look nice. Serve with hot tomato sauce. I served mine with creamy polenta – YUM!!!.
This is where veal (which is even harder to shape into a cone) or beef (use round and cut it yourself) come in. I like pork and veal best and do one of two things. To make a few, buy thin-cut chops, cut the meat off the bone in the middle, and pound them. You can freeze the bones with the meat still on them, and they taste great in tomato sauce, “Sunday sauce,” or stock. Or buy a boned shoulder, slice the larger muscles for braciole, and freeze the rest for braising. Worth it!.
When I asked for pork braciola cutlets, the butcher gave me thin-cut port chops. What did I do wrong? After beating them, I added the cheeses, garlic, and parsley. I then browned the rolled and tied logs in the oils and cooked them for three hours at 325 degrees in tomato sauce. My husband pronounced them “dry. “Where is the cheese? Did I cook them for too long? I made sure the sauce covered them.” Maybe I used the wrong brand of tomatoes?.
I used a pork loin cut not a shoulder cut. It takes less time but may not have the same richness of flavor. The dish is wonderfully tasty!.
Read the recipe. It has parsley, garlic AND two types of cheese in it!
I make the Franks braciole from their cookbook all the time. And this is not that recipe. For one thing, theirs calls for all the cooking to be done on the stove top.
This dish is called braciola in Italy. In Naples, it’s a pork steak, but in Rome, it’s always lamb or mutton.
This is a one-pot meal. Brown the pork, take it out, and add garlic to the pot with olive oil if needed. Deglaze the pot with dry vermouth, and then add tomato sauce (I make my own from garden tomatoes and blend it to make it smooth). I cooked this in the oven for about one hour. that was plenty. Next time Ill try stove top. It was great on pasta. Make sufficient quantity for leftovers. and leftover sauce, too.
Janet, me too. About once a month, when I make a pot of Sunday Gravy, I make braciole. I’ve always used beef flank steak, and Pecorino Romano is my favorite cheese. Plan to try pork next month . this looks just about right!.
And have a stern word with your butcher, while youre at it!
I’m so sorry, Shawn! This recipe comes from Frank’s cookbook, but we’ve changed it here to include a range of cooking times because they can be so different.
My nonni used pork or beef to make braciola. Breadcrumbs and parsley were mixed with provolone cheese instead of provolone. This gave the meat something to hold on to. The recipe said to sear the braciola, but she did it in a cast iron Dutch oven. The meat then cooked for hours in a tomato. In her house it was always sauce, never gravy. It was delicious, but the meatballs were even better.
This is worth the slightly fiddling business with rolling up, tying, etc. Delectable.
I’m not sure if the recipe has been changed because it now calls for pork shoulder instead of beef shoulder, which is what it should be. I think the people who said it was dry were the ones who tried the recipe and used pork loin. NEVER use pork loin for a long-cooking dish. If you want a quick dish, you could use a pork tenderloin that has been butterflyed. It won’t dry out from the braise.
Can we use pork tenderloin and shorten the cooking time?
To make braciole, my mom would pound beef very thinly and then fill them with Romano cheese, fresh parsley, and thin slices of garlic. Since they were smaller she used toothpicks instead of tying. After browning them she added them to the already cooking tomato sauce pot on Sunday morning. We’d eat lunch about four hours later. Always delicious!.
Says use shoulder cut. Is that the same cut as the port butt or the ham? Also, how big of a chunk should be taken off when the part is cut off to pound into the 6″x8″ piece?
We didnt think the provolone plus parmigiano was the best choice. Other fillers have worked better for us in the past.
I don’t follow the tying process. I need better instructions before I feel confident enough to try making this recipe. I have visions of everything unrolling disastrously.
Would pork tenderloin work? It could be sliced in half, filled, rolled, tied, and cooked in a hot oven for about 30 minutes?
Made this today with a few modifications (I know. Once the pork rolls were browned, I used vermouth to clear the pan and cook it down. Then I added chopped garlic and small diced tomatoes. Added the pork rolls to the sauce and cooked at 325° for about 1 hr. Perfectly done, not dry at all. One pot meal. Dont expect to see cheese in the middle; it melts into the sauce, which is the whole point. There are plenty of recipes out there with bread crumbs if you want to see stuffing.
When I was growing up in the New York City area, I could buy thinly sliced beef for braciole at the grocery store. In Southern California, I couldn’t find anything like that, and the only place I could find meatball mix was at Eataly, which was way too expensive. The braciole she made was stuffed with Parmesan cheese, parsley, and I’ve messed up trying to recreate the braciole, cooking into obliteration. Keep an eye on them: tender but not dry is the goal!.
Do you know if I can freeze the cooked bracioles?
Does anyone know how to keep the cheese from melting into the sauce, or is that just what happens? I had nice roll-ups with nothing in the middle.
My butcher didnt seem to know what pork braciola cutlets were (and I didnt either). He ended up cutting me 1/4 inch pork chops, which I wrapped. Does everyone else use a pork tenderloin and then cut it into pieces for the cutlets? It turned out okay, but I thought the tomato sauce tasted stronger than the stuffing inside, so it was bland. Sauce was also very runny, maybe because it only got 1hr in the oven?.
This recipe calls for pork shoulder, so I don’t understand why the butcher would cut you chops or why anyone would use tenderloin.
The ones my grandmothers made were beef stuffed with Swiss chard, bread crumbs, sultanas, and Parmesan. They were braised with canned tomatoes but not nearly as much tomato sauce.
I do pecorino instead of provolone and it’s molto bene!!
I created my version of this recipe~ stuffing: bread crumbs sauteed in garlic, lemon, and olive oil. Moved to a large bowl and added, pecorino romano cheese, pine nuts, raisins, flat leaf Italian parsley, salt/pepper. Used tenderized pork shoulder cutlets and tenderized beef top sirloin cutlets for the meat. Layered a thin slice of prosciutto then added the filling, rolled large side to small and tied. Put in roasting pan with sauce on 300, 5 hours later DELICIOUS!Private notes are only visible to you.
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The Ultimate Pork Braciole Recipe: So Juicy and Flavorful!
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