Venetian Beef & Valpolicella Wine Tortelloni

When Italians speak of ‘’Veneto’’, they are not speaking of the city of Venice, but rather one of Italy’s twenty regions, to which the city of Venice belongs. Indeed, the city of Venice is known in Italian as ‘’Venezia’’, and is merely one of the region’s population centres, alongside Padua, Treviso and Verona. In this respect, it is important to recognise that ‘Venetian’ cuisine refers to more than, say, the famous cicchetti (small bites) enjoyed by locals around the canals of the relatively small city of Venice. Instead, Venetian cuisine is the sum of all the region’s towns, cities and villages. In particular, it is a cuisine enriched by the region’s wines.

In this week’s Venetian-style beef tortelloni, we’ve left behind the masks and gondolas of the capital to head out to Verona province, where you’ll find the beautiful green vineyards and rolling hills of Valpolicella. Famous for its eponymous wine, Valpolicella is the second most-widely produced DOC wine of Italy after Tuscany’s Chianti.

To do justice to the wider gastronomic profile of Venice, then, we’ve selected a Valpolicella Superiore to braise our beef filling for this week’s tortelloni. Simmered for hours with the wine and herbs, the meat becomes incredibly tender and full of flavour. So flavoursome, in fact, that all these tortelloni require is a simple burro e salvia (sage butter) dressing, and smattering of cheese, to serve. Close your eyes and be transported to the vineyards of Valpolicella.

Note: Please consume or freeze our pasta and sauces within 2 days of delivery.

Please note: our photography is for illustrative purposes only & may not necessarily reflect the finished dish.