Florence is the florentine steak as the florentine steak is Florence
Always a binding relationship. Already from the Etruscan period the massive Chianina cow, tall, white and powerful, was used as a working breed, to pull the plow in the fields. We still find it today, as it was then, in the processions of medieval historical reenactment. The most famous is the one that runs every year in June in the “sabbione” of Piazza Santa Croce during the historic Florentine football event. But since when Florentines often ask themselves, has the Florentine steak become the recipe symbol of the city? Historians seem to identify the birth of this dish as early as the fifteenth century, during the city celebrations in honor of San Lorenzo. The Medici family offered the people grilled beef, thus honoring the legend in which it is said that when Lorenzo was burning in the fire he screamed to the people: “Now turn me on the other side because I’m already cooked on this one”.
Florentine steak in Florence is Braciere Malatesta! We care about our history and with it the history of our Florentine steak, unique in the world and inimitable. Even today there is no Florentine or tourist in Florence that does not yearn or desire it. Our kitchens have been designed to preserved the flavors of tradition even in lighter or more creative reinterpretations. Our guests are welcomed in an exclusive but familiar environment in which the Tuscan master chef is related to a cognitive approach to offer the dish selected from our menu closer to the personality of the individual palates. We founded the selection of every dish on attention to each ingredient and the Florentine steak is our flagship. You can not come to Florence and not taste the Florentine steak without which one could not understand the origins, tastes, passions and daily life of our beloved city.
Regarding the needs of today’s palates, it must be said that these have changed a lot in the times. In ancient times cows and oxen were roasted, the palates, at the time were not very pretentious, instead they were the bellies, more or less empty to speak; today instead the tenderness of the meats is required as a primary and indispensable characteristic. The flavor often goes into the background. Braciere Malatesta has chosen the most difficult way, not giving up either one or the other characteristic. The Chianina breed has a strong, unmistakable taste, but already from its origins has been selected as a “working” breed, thus providing more consistent meat on the plate, and this is why today Chianina is used in the preparation of the Florentine steak only as a “scottona”, that is a female which has never calved. This results in a reduction in availability and an increase in costs.
For this reason, the Florentine DOC are wary of tourist restaurants offering Chianina IGP to euro75/kg in the loin part. Actually, the part of the steaks sold in the city are loins of excellent limousine races, which meet pleasant feedback from citizens and tourists for quality and price. What really matters is cooking strictly to the blood not to alter its flavor and above all consistency. According to Artusi the Florentine steak had to be cooked on charcoal grills, so as to absorb the unmistakable aroma of the woods used; initially held vertically on the bone for a few minutes so as to heat the meat inside and then grilled for a few minutes per side ( the minutes vary depending on the weight and thickness of the Florentine steak), salted and peppered at the end of cooking and served to the blood as tradition requires.
