The serious foodies among those who book villas in Tuscany will likely be arming themselves with a list of the must-try foods and drinks and restaurants that they want to ensure they make time for throughout their stay. A cuisine steeped in peasant cooking traditions, it boasts lots of hearty dishes full of vegetables, legumes, bread, and cheese that are full of flavour and will leave you full and satisfied. Meat, of course, also features in Tuscan cuisine but often dishes were traditionally made making the most of smaller amounts of meat. Today, this is less of a concern for many and delicious dishes that will keep the carnivores among your party very happy are also on offer. Perhaps the most famous of all of Tuscany’s meat dishes is the Bistecca alla fiorentina, or Florentine steak.
Certainly widely available if you book a luxury villa in Florence itself but also now found all over the region of Tuscany, the Bistecca all Fiorentina is a loin beef steak that is served on the bone and cooked on a grill until rare.
It is cooked over a generous amount of charcoal and ideally over oak, holm oak, or olive, and very close to the coals at first so that a Maillard reaction can take place and an aromatic crust can form quickly. Once the steak has been cooked for a minute over this higher heat and this reaction has take place, it is raised and the cooking is finished over a gentler heat. The finished product should be browned on the outside and red, juicy, tender, and warm on the inside but not cooked. Traditionally, the steak is then served with cannellini beans or a salad and enjoyed with a nice local red, such as a Chianti.
Meat-lovers and foodies, take note, and be sure to add this to your culinary bucket list on your next stay in one of our amazing holiday rentals in Tuscany.
