Agnolotti Filling
Historically there is not a strict rule when it comes to agnolotti of course there gonna be meat, but amounts of what and whatnot are strictly related to what you're using, so the meat you're using, the kind of meat used very lean or a lil' fatty...how it was cooked, etc.
Let's start saying that agnolotti are a staple New Year's dish, that is because they were made as a way to recycle leftover meats from Christmas, the typicsl Christmas stews.
What goes into agnolotti is related to the area customs and historical meat availability for example in Alessandria Tortona and plains Agnolotti are filled with beef or veal only, that is because in that area there used to be a very big availability of cows and beef in farms and Christmas stews were typically made of beef and veal. Stracotti dí manzo or vitello.
In the Monferrato hills instead farms also used to keep pigs so agnolotti in Monferrato typically includes also pork meats, so pork stews.
They anyways typically goes with the stew-steacotto sauce-gravy of the meats they were filled with.
But let's get to how i make them.
As I told you depends, they are never the very same, it is up to maker's discretion and experience to determine what is gonna make them better or worse, but I typically make a beef stew the same way I always do so they gonna be mostly beef but what I put in them actually varies from time to time.
How good your agnolotti gonna be is strictly related to how good you make your stew.
If I'm using a very lean beef cut I may want to use some pork stew meat also, which is typically fattier.
As I grind the meats and combine I also determine if it's the case to cook some pork sausages grind them and put those also which are gonna make it less stiff and hard and give more flavour and juice.
Some people also gonna boil cows brain and put some in it I don't like it very much but from time to time I also used to put it when I had it available.
And the rest of ingredients like spices it's up to you and your tongue only.
For 1.6 lb of meat you also add one egg, some parmigiano, nutmeg and OLD BAY!!
Garlic, rosemary, pepper.
I also put some more things that I will not disclose and old bay is already a secret weapon of mine that let people wonder but anyways whatever you think may go well with it as you taste it just put it.
Just Remember it has got to be soft and the egg in it is gonna harden a bit as they cook, so if you think it's too much stiff moist it with some stock, add more sausage and fat, and or some gravy.
That is the beautiful thing of agnolotti You can Season them as you please and if you think something is gonna be great in them just put it and rock asses with your Agnolotti!!!
