Brasato al Barolo

How to make it

1. Tie the beef chuck roast with kitchen twine into an even, compact piece so it holds its shape through the long braise. Place the meat in a deep bowl with the onion, carrot, celery, garlic, bay leaves, rosemary, cloves, cinnamon stick, peppercorns, and the freshly grated nutmeg. Pour the whole bottle of Barolo over it so the meat is completely covered. Cover the bowl and refrigerate (see advance prep). ⏱ 10 min
2. Remove the meat from the marinade and pat it completely dry with paper towels, since a wet piece of meat will steam instead of browning. Strain the marinade, keeping the wine and vegetables separate. The bay leaves, rosemary, cloves, cinnamon stick, and peppercorns should stay in the wine, not with the vegetables. ⏱ 10 min
3. Season the patted-dry meat all over with salt and freshly ground pepper. Melt the butter for the meat in a heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat and brown the meat for 8 minutes total. Turn it as you go, until all sides have a dark, golden-brown crust.
   Chef's tip Butter alone browns fast at this heat; if the milk solids go past nut-brown to black and acrid, they'll bitter the whole sauce. Watch the foam subside, then the colour, and pull the heat back if it darkens before the meat does.
4. Remove the meat to a plate. Sauté the strained vegetables in the butter left from browning for 8 minutes. They're ready when they're soft and the bottom of the pot is brown and sticky.
   Chef's tip The moisture the vegetables give off is what lifts the brown fond off the bottom — scrape with the wooden spoon as they sweat. If the bottom looks like it's drying out and going almost black, add a splash of the wine right away.
5. Return the browned meat to the pot and add the strained Barolo and the beef stock. Bring it to a boil and let it boil hard, uncovered, for 10 minutes. The liquid is ready when the sharp alcohol smell is gone and the aroma has become round and winey. ⏱ 10 min
6. Cover with a lid and turn the heat down until the liquid just barely simmers. Braise the meat for 3 hours, turning it once partway through. It's done when a meat fork slides into the center without resistance. ⏱ 3 h · passive
   Chef's tip The signal is a lazy bubble breaking every few seconds, no more. A rolling braise squeezes the muscle fibres tight and leaves the meat dry and shredded even when the fork slides in easily.
7. Start the polenta when the meat has about an hour left in the pot. Bring the water to a boil in another heavy-bottomed pot and stir in the salt, so the polenta is seasoned from the start.
8. Sprinkle the polenta in a thin stream into the boiling water while whisking constantly. Keep going for 3 minutes, until the mixture is smooth and completely free of lumps.
   Chef's tip The thin stream and constant whisking keep each grain separated as it hits the water; dumped in at once, the outer starch gels instantly and glues dry cornmeal inside the lumps, which no amount of stirring will smooth out later.
9. Turn the heat down to low and cook the polenta for 40 minutes. Stir it through with a wooden spoon every couple of minutes so it doesn't scorch on the bottom. It's done when it pulls away from the pot and bubbles thick and lazy. ⏱ 40 min
   Chef's tip The coarse polenta needs the full time to absorb enough water; cook it for less and it feels sandy on the palate. If it stiffens up along the way, loosen it with boiling water, never cold.
10. Stir the butter into the polenta until it's glossy and smooth. Season to taste with salt.
11. Transfer the meat to a cutting board and cover it loosely with foil so it rests while the sauce finishes. Fish the cinnamon stick, cloves, bay leaves, and rosemary sprig out of the pot and discard them. They turn bitter if they're blended into the sauce.
12. Blend the braising liquid and the soft vegetables for 5 minutes with an immersion blender, or press them through a fine sieve. The sauce should be velvety smooth and even, without any fibers.
13. Reduce the sauce over high heat for 10 minutes, until it coats the back of a spoon. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper. ⏱ 10 min
    Chef's tip The braising vegetables are already puréed into the sauce, so it thickens fast at the end — check the spoon every couple of minutes. Reduced too far it turns pasty and oversalted, and salt is best adjusted only once you've stopped.
14. Cut the kitchen twine off the rested meat and slice it into pieces about 1 cm thick, against the grain. Cut with a sharp knife in one long stroke so the tender slices hold together.
15. Spread the hot polenta over the bottom of deep plates and lay three slices of brasato on top. Pour some of the reduced Barolo sauce over the meat and polenta. Put the rest of the sauce on the table in a pitcher so everyone can spoon more over the polenta left under the meat.