Oxtail Braised With Tomato and Celery (Coda Alla Vaccinara)

With respect, the ideas that are being marked as helpful in other comments are exactly wrong. This dish is about subtlety. The meat is browned in the softened vegetables for a reason; the wine is white rather than red on purpose; elements like garlic and anchovies that are wonderful in other dishes are omitted because they would destroy the layers of flavor. Just be sure you have good ingredients and make this exactly as written.

-Used bacon instead of pancetta
-Used dried marjoram
-Added all celery diced at the beginning
-Added salt and pepper throughout rather than at the end
-Only two lbs of oxtails, but more then enough for two people, and the quantities of other ingredients didn't need to be adjusted
-Cooked at 350 for 2:15 flipping every :45
Will make again when my grocery store happens to have oxtails. Would probably brown the meat first and then do the vegetables and bacon b/c they started to burn. 5 stars

Used an Instant Pot. Followed general recipe except instead of braising in the oven I cooked at high pressure for 45 min, followed by a natural pressure release which took about 40 min. After releasing pressure, added celery and simmered uncovered another 30 min.

Served over rigatoni. Used red wine instead of white. Will make again; might consider using some of the other ingredients mentioned in the Wikipedia entry on Coda alla Vaccinara (even more celery, other spices, etc.)

Great platform recipe: Have made it with short ribs as well as oxtails. Just made it again with unsmoked bacon instead of pancetta and was super. Generally prefer crushed tomatoes. This time also added sauteed mushrooms. To cut down on fat I use Cooks Illustrated method of oven browning for all short rib and oxtail recipes (season generously with salt & pepper, place into roasting pan bone side down, roast uncovered at 450 for 30 minutes, drain fat and return to oven for another 30 minutes.)

Added 4 cloves garlic chopped together with 4 anchovy fillets To initial celery carrot mix. It never hurts to add more umami.
Floured and browned the meat separately. Deglazed the pan with the wine. Reduced wine to half volume before adding to rest of ingredients.

I do think the cinnamon and cloves make a difference - albeit subtly. I think thyme and bay would be good, or rosemary, but it's interesting to know what such a 'classic' recipe originally intended. It's interesting to google 'coda alla vaccinara' recipes and see how consistent the ingredients list is. But I realize that's a geeky interest in culinary anthropology as opposed to getting a delicious dinner made.

Excellent. As with most braises though this is even better gently reheated the following day. I also dusted the meat with flour and browned prior to sautéing the veggies and pancetta to develop a nice crust. Left the cover off for the final hour to promote browning and to cook off a bit of the extra liquid. This is a keeper.

I cooked this tonight, pretty much as written. My wife, 18 year old son, and his two friends devoured it, asking, “When are you making this again?!” It truly is one of the best beef dishes I’ve ever tasted, let alone cooked myself. I used 25 oz tomato passatta instead of canned tomatoes, and used a parchment paper lid instead of tight fitting lid. Finally skimmed almost 1 cup of fat before serving. Make this!!!

I also would have browned the oxtail first, then cooked the veggies. Threw in cinnamon sticks instead of powdered, and five-star anise instead of powdered cloves. Skimmed the oil off the top when I stirred. The dish was delicious.

This was outstanding. I did not change any of the ingredients, but did change the method of cooking. I browned the oxtails first, then placed into dutch oven. Browned the rest of the veg and added to the oxtails, deglazed the pan. It took almost 4 hours to cook.

red wine, provençal herbs, no paste,

Lovely. As recommended elsewhere, I roasted the oxtails first. Used Herbes de Provence in place of the marjoram, tossed in a couple of cloves of minced garlic and two star anise pods. After it was done braising, I took the oxtails out and removed the meat from the bones, then added the meat back to the pot. I think this is wiser than leaving guests to try to man-handle the oxtails at the table. Needs to be served over something stout: polenta would be good. I will make this again.

This was so delicious. I liked it better than boeuf bourguignon. Per other reviewers' recommendations, I used more celery, red wine, and other spices mentioned in Wikipedia like nutmeg and bayleaf. Made this in an instant pot and came out perfect!!

Possibly the best stew I've ever made, and I've been cooking a long time. I used the Instant Pot technique suggested below: pressure cook oxtails, chopped vegetables, wine and tomatoes 45 minutes, natural release, then add the larger pieces of celery and "saute" on low. Refrigerate and remove fat. Even better the next day, and the day after that. Great with mashed potatoes.

I made this last night. Exactly to the recipe. My only note, I had to cook it more to 3-3.5 hours in oven. Came out perfect, and the sauce was thick and scrumptious. The flavor is amazing! Cannot wait to make it again. My guests all raved.