1. Place the
meat in a heavy, deep pot.
2. Surround and cover the meat
with the onions, carrot, celery, salt, parsley, and 8 cups of
water. Bring to a simmer and cook uncovered over medium-low heat,
simmering gently but steadily, and stirring every so often.
3.
As the liquid reduces in the pot and the meat becomes exposed,
make sure to turn the meat regularly -- every 20 minutes or so --
so that it cooks evenly.
4. After about three hours, most of
the liquid should have evaporated, the onions should be almost
creamy, and the meat should be tender. Even if the meat is not as
tender as you would like, remove it and set it aside. It can be
further tenderized when reheated.
5. Raise the heat under the
onions and add the wine. Boil, stirring frequently, until the
wine has evaporated, about 10 minutes.
6. Continue to boil,
stirring frequently, even constantly, until the sauce has reduced
and thickened so much that when it is stirred you can see the
bottom of the pot for a second. This can take as long as 20
minutes. (If, when reheating, the sauce seems too tight, stir in
a little water to loosen it.)
7. Season with plenty of freshly
ground pepper. Correct the salt, if necessary.
8. Save about
1/2 cup of sauce for the meat. Serve the remaining sauce very hot
on ziti and pass the pepper mill and Parmigian Cheese.
9. The meat can be served as a separate, second course, with a
little onion sauce, or refrigerated and eaten at another meal.
10. If the meat did not become entirely tender during its
cooking with the onions, slice it and layer it with spoons of the
sauce in a baking casserole. Cover (with foil if necessary) and
reheat in a 325-degree oven until heated through and almost
fall-apart tender.