P
Italian · Lombardia
Cassoeula Milanese con Verza e Costine
The quintessential Milanese winter dish — a long-braised stew of pork cuts (costine, cotenne, musetti, piedino) with Savoy cabbage (verza). The cabbage is added after the first frost, which makes it sweeter. The pork releases collagen that thickens the sauce to a glossy, sticky consistency. Served over polenta or with crusty bread to soak the sauce.
‹Swipe for the next dish›
I
The Market List
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600 g
costine di maiale
pork spare ribs, cut into individual ribs
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
300 g
cotenne di maiale
pork rinds, cut into strips
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1
piedino di maiale
pig's trotter, halved by the butcher
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1 small
musetto
cotechino-type sausage, left whole
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1 kg
verza
Savoy cabbage, outer leaves removed, cut into wide strips
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1
cipolla gialla
yellow onion, finely chopped
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
2
carote
carrots, finely chopped
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
2 stalks
sedano
celery, finely chopped
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
30 g
burro
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
30 ml
olio di oliva
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
150 ml
Barbera o Bonarda
dry Lombard red wine, for deglazing
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
500 ml
brodo di carne
light meat stock, warm
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
to taste
sale e pepe nero
season sparingly; cotenne and musetto provide natural salt
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
To serve
800 g
polenta
cooked to a soft, pourable consistency; or crusty bread
Your own market
To finish
30 g
burro
a knob, to refresh the sauce on reheating
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
II
The Method
1
Place the cotenne and the trotter in a large pot of cold, unsalted water, bring to the boil and blanch for 10 minutes, so that the excess fat and any bitter, muddy flavour drawn from the rind surface are expelled into water you will discard rather than into your sauce. Drain, rinse under cold running water and pat dry. The rinds should be firm, pale and odour-neutral when ready.
2
In a wide, heavy braising pot set over medium heat, melt the butter with the oil, then brown the costine in batches without crowding, turning each piece until every surface is a deep mahogany — crowding the pan traps steam and stews the meat grey rather than colouring it. In the same fat, brown the blanched cotenne and trotter. The sound of active sizzling will fade to a quieter crackle when the water has driven off and true browning begins — that quieter crackle is the signal to turn each piece.
3
Reduce the heat to medium-low and, in the residual fat, sweat the onion, carrot and celery together for about 12 minutes, keeping the heat gentle enough that they soften and turn faintly golden without scorching, so their sweetness dissolves into the fat and builds the base flavour of the braise rather than adding bitterness. The vegetables should yield entirely to pressure and smell sweet and caramelised rather than raw.
4
Return all browned pork to the pot, pour in the wine and deglaze thoroughly, scraping every dark deposit from the base, because those fond solids carry concentrated roasted flavour that is the backbone of the finished sauce. Let the wine reduce by half; it should smell of fruit and roasted meat together, with the sharp edge of raw alcohol entirely gone.
5
Add enough warm stock to come two-thirds of the way up the meat — cold stock would seize the fat and slow the braise unevenly — then bring to a gentle simmer and reduce the heat to the lowest setting at which the surface moves, a lazy, occasional bubble at the centre. Cover and braise for a minimum of 2 hours; at the correct moment a probe or skewer passes through the trotter meat without resistance and the broth already coats a spoon in a thin, sticky film.
6
After 1 hour of braising, nestle the musetto whole into the pot without puncturing the casing, so the fat and juices inside the sausage stay sealed and baste the meat from within rather than bleeding out into the braise. Continue braising covered for the remainder of the 2-hour minimum. The sausage is ready when it feels uniformly firm along its length with no soft, cold pocket at its core.
7
With 30 minutes of cooking time remaining, add the verza strips, pressing them down into the liquid and replacing the lid so the steam finishes the cabbage as much as the braise does, which keeps its colour and prevents it turning to an anonymous grey mush. Taste a strip before the time is up: it should be tender yet hold its shape, and its sweetness should be fully developed.
8
Remove the lid for the final 15 minutes and increase the heat to a moderate simmer, allowing the sauce to reduce and concentrate so that the gelatine released from the trotter and cotenne tightens the liquid into something glossy and coating rather than thin and watery. It is ready when the sauce coats the back of a spoon in a glossy, sticky layer and does not run off immediately when the spoon is tilted. Adjust seasoning with restraint.
9
Remove the musetto, slice it into rounds and return the slices to the pot. Serve directly from the pot over soft polenta or with crusty bread. If serving the following day — the superior option — reheat over low heat and stir in a knob of butter to restore the sauce's gloss and binding consistency, since the chilled fat will have separated and needs the butter to bring it back together.
From the canon — Polenta is the principal cooked grain preparation of northern Italy — from the Veneto through Lombardy, Piedmont, Trentino, and Friuli-Venezia Giulia. Polenta — The Correct Technique and Regional Variations →
III
Quality Hierarchy
01
Reserve — Pork from a heritage breed — Cinta Senese or Mora Romagnola — with visible marbling in the ribs; cotenne thick enough to carry abundant collagen; a musetto hand-stuffed with whole spices from a Lombard norcino; Savoy cabbage harvested after the first hard frost, when sugars have concentrated.
02
Estate — Free-range pork from a known local producer; a commercial musetto of declared Lombard origin; cabbage bought in mid-winter when field temperatures have naturally sweetened it; a Barbera d'Oltrepò Pavese for deglazing.
03
Market — Supermarket spare ribs and pork rinds, with a commercial cotechino as the musetto substitute; Savoy cabbage from standard supply; a drinkable Bonarda for the deglaze.
04
House — Any available fatty pork rib cut with whatever pork skin the butcher will sell; the trotter may be omitted if unavailable, though the sauce will be thinner; a light, dry red wine for deglazing; Savoy or green cabbage.
IV
Sensory Tests
◇Smell. After blanching, cotenne and trotter are odour-neutral and clean — any residual off-smell means they need further rinsing.
◇Sound. Active sizzling during browning quietens to a steady, dry crackle when surface moisture has evaporated and true Maillard colour is developing.
◇Smell. After deglazing, the wine smells of fruit and roasted meat together with no trace of sharp raw alcohol.
◇Touch. After the long braise, a skewer passes through the trotter meat without resistance; the musetto feels uniformly firm with no cold core.
◇Sight. In the final reduction, the sauce coats the back of a spoon in a glossy, sticky layer and does not run off when the spoon is tilted.
◇Where it lives or dies. The dish lives or dies in the long, covered braise: without a minimum of two hours at a lazy simmer, the collagen does not release, the sauce stays thin and broken, and the pork remains resistant rather than yielding.
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VI
What to Pour
The pairing
Fortified wine
From British Columbia
2023 seven stars VEGA
Township 7 Vineyards & Winery · Naramata Bench
Township 7 Vineyards & Winery · Penticton →Sparkling wine
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