A REGIONAL ITALIAN-AMERICAN BEEF PARMIGIANA
Let me take you on a culinary journey to America's Hearland, Omaha Nebraska. Pretty much as
central to the United States as you can get, this land of corn fields, hogs and cattle is also home to
one of the country's oldest Little Italy sections. That's right all you East Coasters who think everything
Italian-American pretty much lies with that region, I said Omaha, Nebraska...for those who remember,
the city many of got to know as children watching Marlin Perkin's old show, MUTUAL OF OMAHA'S WILD
KINGDOM, or the more contemporary home of America's most famous rich person, Warren Buffet.
In the downtown serction of the city of Omaha, over by the old Union Pacific Railroad yards ( read that
as tons of employment opportunities for Immigrant in the 1890's) a small enclave of the city was the
settling spot for numerous Sicilian immigrants, a majority from the town of Carlentini, Sicily. Here
they picked up the American dream and transplanted not only themselves, but their foods and their
customs. Litle Italy Omaha is much different today, like so many other Urban stories, people move
away and the character changes with the new inhabitants. Once the area was full of such Italian-
American restaurants as Cascio's, Caniglia's, Angie's, and many others. Most are gone, just memories
and this blog post is my way of keeping the memory of one of them alive, Angie's. By the way,
every year, the descendants of the immigrants of Carlentini , at the Church of St.Frances Cabrini (
originally named St.Philomena's) a Feast is held every year in July/August to honor the patron saint
of Carlentini, Santa Lucia. There is a shrine to her in this church originally built by and for the Italian
immigrants.
Here's a picture from the Santa Lucia Festival website of the statue in the procession coming out of the
church in the streets of "Little Italy" Omaha. Amazing how at one time I thought NY/NJ and Pa. were
the only really Italian-American places and traveling and an open mind have shown me that Little
Italies exist in Boston, Connecticut, San Antonio Tx, Kansas City, Chicago, Los Angeles, Seattle,
Arkansas, Baltimore, Cincinnati, Northern Kentucky, Toronto, Vancouver, San Diego, New Orleans,
St.Louis, Milwaukee, Pittsburgh, Detroit, Windsor, Ontario., Montreal...need I go on? So many, and
I'll bet I'm still missing plenty. The foodie tie in here is that each place transformed a dish or memory
that the immigrants brought with them into something new using regional twists. Such as this
BEEF PARMIGIANA, I'm sure you are saying...what??? Well, think chicken fried steak and veal
parmigiana got married...this is what you get.
I had my first taste of this regional Italian-American dish at ANGIE'S, on Pacific Street in Omaha's
Little Italy many years ago. It was a comfortable very 60's-70's looking place, obviously a family
owned spot..the lobby had this fountain with all 60's kitsch around it and I'm remember fish and/or
turtles in the pond.
Besides all the things Omaha is known to the rest of us for, Omaha Steaks comes immediately
to mind, and yes, Omaha is all about it's steaks. The huge Omaha Stockyards, which I was very
lucky to have seen before they closed in 1999 was once the largest livestock market in the
country...cattle was king. Many of the Italian restauranteurs created dishes with the steaks and
also opened many steakhouses. As the waitress in Angie's told me...(paraphrasing here, it
was a while ago)...when I asked why no Veal Parmigiana, why and what is Beef Parmigiana...
she explained that because of the Stockyards and the love of steak and beef in Omaha, the
Italian-American chefs started using beef, thinly cut, trimmed and pounded into cutlets and
continued the dish in it's traditional preparation. I was hooked...not only with the dish but by
Angie's signature Vinegar peppers antipasto. Thin strips of green peppers pickled in a sweet
and sour vinegar, amazing and very old fashioned and homey. If any of you kind blog readers out
there remember then or know the recipe, please hit me up!
To make this dish, find a pack of sliced eye round, usually cut in the butcher section of the
supermarket, 4 to a pack, about 1/2 inch thick. Eye round clearly turns into a nasty chewy disaster
when fried so you are probably saying, seriously? really? fried breaded round steak??? Yes
because you will , just as with a Chicken Fried Steak slice this thin, then pound it till it begs you to
stop.
This will be enough for 4-6people as an entree. The breading and cheese combined with the sauce bulk it all up. It's best to
freeze these until they are somewhat firm yet not frozen through. With a SHARP (please, the
sharper the knife, the less chance you have of an accident.) Slice each slice in half. When you are
done, between two sheets of plastc wrap, pound each slice till only about 1/8 inch thick. Any thicker,
the meat will not be as tender as it should be in the finshed dish.
Not much fat in this cut of beef so, the thinner you pound it, the more tender it will fry up. Beat 2 eggs with 2 tbs fresh chopped parsley, black pepper, and 3 tbs. of grated Pecorino together. Season 1/2 cup of sifted flour with 1/8 tsp of kosher salt, 1/8 tsp of ground black pepper, 1/2 tsp granulated garlic. Have the flour mixture in a plate, then have the egg mix in a bowl next
to it, then a plate of 1 1/2 cup breadcrumbs, 5 tsp. grated Pecorino (not parmigiano, the flavor in parmigiano
isn't sharp enough to hold up to the frying, it will get lost..),1 tsp. rubbed dried oregano, 1 tsp. sweet
paprika, and blend well. Dredge each cutlet in the flour, shake off excess, then into the egg, let excess
run off, then press well into the crumbs on both sides giving it a good coating. Place on a platter and
refrigerate for 15 minutes. This will help in the adhering process since unlike some of the other meats
and poultries, i find more water exudes from beef when it cooks.
Now, have 2 cups of YOUR own homemade Marinara infused with fresh basil heated on the
stove , just to a simmer. Add a tbs. of Extra Virgin Olive oil to it and stir that in.
Dice 1/2 lb. of mozzarella, if you are using fresh, let it sit over night in the fridge. Mozzarella
made on day one should always and only be eaten at room temp...IMHO, the only time is
should be used in cooking is if you have a wood or coal burning or brick oven, there is
so much moisture in it on day one that in a conventional oven it tends to add water to your
dish. Just my opinion... Heat a wide frying pan with 2 tbs of olive oil and when it gets hot
enough to make a bread cube sizzle, start frying the cutlets, making sure you don't over-crowd
the pan (temp of oil drops, more grease is absorbed, meat begins to steam), frying in batches,
about 4 minutes per side draining on paper towels. When you are done with this process
add a thin layer of sauce to a baking pan, like a 13 X 9 one. Pre heat your oven to high then
turn on your broiler. Add a layer of the cutlets, then a sprinkling of grated pecorino (go ahead, don't
be shy with the cheese), shake on a little oregano, then add a layer of sauce, it doesn't have to
cover every spot...then 1/2 the mozzarella. Repeat if you have enough cutlets and add the rest
of the cheese. Now run this under your broiler (DON'T LEAVE THAT OVEN!~!). It should take
about 5 minutes for this to start to brown and bubble. You know your oven, I don't, so keep an
eye on this. I would hate for you to get to this part and burn or overcook it. Also, make sure you are
broiling this on your middle rack, not the top rack in your oven. After the first 5 minutes, rotate the
pan and let it go for only another minute or two, or until you see the browned cheese and bubbling
sauce on the sides. Remove, and serve to those starving people around your table!!
I like to serve this the way I had it at Angie's, over a nest of Spaghetti with a little Marinara mixed
with olive oil and pecorino. Or, with Mostaccioli (just like penne), the most Mid-Western of all
dried pasta.
I hope you enjoyed this Italian-American Mid Western experience with me. If you are ever in Omaha,
and you find an authentic (not Carabba's, not Olive Garden, not Maggiano's) Italian American joint,
see if this Beef Parmigiana is on the menu...Lo Sole Mio was one of the only places I've still seen
it as a menu selection. But, your kitchen is the best place to keep this dish alive in.
Posted by peter battaglia at 4/21/2012 3:54 PM 
Categories: ITALIAN FOOD, TRAVEL, MEAT, PARMIGIANA, ITALIAN-AMERICAN
Tags: BEEF STEAK PARMIGIANA ITALIAN CUISINE ITALIAN-AMERICAN
Categories: ITALIAN FOOD, TRAVEL, MEAT, PARMIGIANA, ITALIAN-AMERICAN
Tags: BEEF STEAK PARMIGIANA ITALIAN CUISINE ITALIAN-AMERICAN
Peter, I have indeed enjoyed this mid-Western food experience with you! You are teaching this gal about places to which she has never been - the recipe is richly interesting too, real comfort food in autumnal Australia!
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Great read..Not a dish I would have thought about,but after reading the details, I am intrigued..
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What a great blog and intriguing recipe. As you say, the immigrant/Little Italy experience all over the country is always overlooked by those of us with a NY or East Coast perspective - like you I've found enclaves and local traditional recipes in highly (!!!) unlikely locations. What a great proposition you've made here to uncover, honor and remember them in this way. Has the makings for prime time or at least a really great book! Keep up the good work.
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