Kitchen Recipe Collection
Italian Coda alla Vaccinara (Roman Oxtail Stew)
The ultimate Roman 'quinto quarto' (offal) dish. Oxtail slowly stewed for hours in tomatoes, celery, and white wine until the meat melts off the bone.
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 240 min
- Total
- 260 min
- Servings
- 4
- Difficulty
- medium
- Cuisine
- italian
Ingredients
Scaled for 4 servings
- oxtail (cut into segments)
- pancetta or guanciale (diced)
- lots of celery (chopped)
- onion, carrot, garlic (for soffritto)
- dry white wine
- canned crushed tomatoes
- tomato paste
- pine nuts and raisins (optional)
- cocoa powder (unsweetened, just a pinch)
- olive oil
- salt and pepper
Equipment
- Large heavy pot or Dutch oven
Instructions
- 1
Render Pork Fat
In a large heavy pot, sauté the diced pancetta or guanciale until the fat renders and it becomes crispy. Remove the meat but leave the fat.
- 2
Brown Oxtail
Season the oxtail pieces and brown them deeply in the pork fat on all sides. Take your time; a good crust is essential.
- 3
Soffritto
Add the onion, carrot, and garlic to the pot. Sauté until soft.
- 4
Deglaze
Pour in the white wine and scrape the bottom of the pot. Let it reduce entirely.
- 5
Add Tomatoes
Stir in a tablespoon of tomato paste, then add the crushed tomatoes and the crisped pancetta back in.
- 6
The Long Braise
Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook on very low heat for 3-4 hours. You want the meat falling off the bone and the cartilage dissolved into gelatin.
- 7
The Celery Addition
An hour before the end of cooking, add a massive amount of chopped celery. Celery is the defining flavor of this dish.
- 8
The Roman Touch
During the last 15 minutes, stir in the pine nuts, raisins, and a tiny pinch of unsweetened cocoa powder (this deepens the color and flavor without making it sweet).
- 9
Serve
Serve hot. The sauce is incredibly rich and gelatinous, perfect for tossing with rigatoni pasta as a first course, eating the meat as the second.
Cooking Tips
- Do not rush the cooking. Oxtail is full of tough connective tissue that requires hours of slow simmering to transform into luscious gelatin.
- The cocoa powder is a secret Roman trick to add depth and a dark, glossy finish to rich meat stews.
Variations
- Rigatoni al Sugo di Coda: Boiling rigatoni and tossing it in the oxtail sauce is mandatory in Rome.
Chef's Notes & Storage
- Born in the Testaccio neighborhood of Rome, where the slaughterhouse workers ('vaccinari') were paid in off-cuts like tails and intestines.
Nutrition Estimate
600 calories · 45g protein · 15g carbs · 38g fat · 4g fiber per serving
