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1
Bring a wide pot of well-salted water to a rolling boil. Add the reserved parsley stems. Working in batches if necessary, drop in the frog legs and blanch for 90 seconds only. Remove with a slotted spoon and transfer immediately to a tray to cool. The flesh should appear just opaque at the surface but remain soft to the press at the thickest part of the thigh — this is the limit of blanching, not the finish.
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2
Melt the butter in a wide, shallow sauté pan over a low-medium flame. Add the garlic and allow it to soften without colouring, stirring frequently. When the garlic is translucent and fragrant — 2 to 3 minutes — add half the chopped parsley and stir briefly to combine. The pan should carry the scent of warm garlic and green herb without any sharp or bitter top-note.
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3
Raise the heat to medium-high. Pour in the white wine and let it reduce by half, approximately 2 minutes. Add the tomato concassé and stir to incorporate. The liquid in the pan should be scant — just enough to coat the base in a light, saucy film rather than form a pool. This is where the dish lives or dies: too much liquid boils the legs and destroys their texture; too little burns the soffritto. Adjust by adding a splash of the blanching water if the pan is dry, or raising the heat briefly if it is slack.
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4
Lay the blanched frog legs in a single layer in the braising liquid. Cover with a tight lid, reduce heat to low and braise for 4 to 5 minutes. The legs are done when the meat at the thickest point of the thigh yields cleanly under thumb pressure but does not slide from the bone. Remove the lid and check: the sauce should have thickened slightly around the legs, clinging to the bone.
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5
Remove from the heat. Scatter the remaining chopped parsley over the pan. Taste the sauce and correct for salt. Serve immediately over hot polenta or alongside crusty bread — the sauce is integral to the dish and must be carried with it.