Trippa alla Napoletana belongs to an honest old Naples tradition of cucina di recupero. A tradition of wasting not one part of an animal. Tripe came from the local butcher, already cleaned and cut, wrapped in paper. It cost little but fed many.
Ask anyone who grew up in Naples before the 1990s, and they will remember Trippa alla Napoletana clearly. Some remember it on Sunday mornings, already simmering while the house still slept. Others remember it as a weekday lunch, eaten after school, with bread ready to catch the sauce.
Many remember the smell first, and not always fondly. Strong, tomato-rich, unmistakable – drifting through the stairwell of an apartment building.
In Naples, tripe found its natural partners. Tomatoes, herbs and chilli thrived because of the warm climate and the volcanic soil of Campania.
Trippa alla Napoletana Today
These days Trippa all Napoletana is quite an old fashioned dish. But you will still see it eaten at home. Or in old trattoria, in neighbourhood kitchens, and sometimes at street stalls during festivals. But it is still recognised as an important regional dish in Naples. One which spirits the people of Naples back to their grandparents, and simpler times.
Buon appetito! 🇮🇹
Also Read
Looking for more classic regional Italian tripe dishes? Then here are some of my favourite recipes:
- Trippa in Umido – a Friuli stew with beans and potatoes.
- Trippa alla Ragusana – a Sicilian tripe dish flavoured with Middle Eastern flavours.
- Trippa alla Romano – Rome’s classic tripe dish.
- Trippa all’ Aretina – a little known Tuscan tripe recipe with lemon and bolognese sauce.
- Tripe (Trippa) – a guide to tripe in Italian cooking
Trippa alla Napoletana
Ingredients
Tripe Ingredients
- 1 kg tripe (cut into thin slices)
- 100 ml white wine (or enough to cover the tripe in the pan)
- salt
Sauce
- extra virgin olive oil
- 1 medium onion (finely chopped)
- carrot (finely chopped)
- chili pepper (finely chopped)
- 100 m l white wine
- bay leaves
- sage (finely chopped)
- rosemary (finely chopped)
- peppercorns (finely chopped)
- basil (finely chopped)
- juniper berries (finely chopped)
- 700 grams passata
- vegetable stock
Instructions
Prepare the Tripe
- First, cut it into strips.
- Then blanch it in salted water for about 15 minutes.
- Then drain it (until it’s dry). Discard the marinade
- Place it in a bowl, cover it with white wine, and let it marinate for a few hours (or overnight in the refrigerator).
Prepare the Sauce
- Separately, prepare the sauce:
- Base: extra virgin olive oil, a thinly sliced white onion and carrot, and chili pepper (to taste).
- Sauté everything with a splash of white wine. Once the wine has evaporated, add all the tripe and the herbs (a mix of bay leaves, sage, rosemary, peppercorns, juniper berries, and basil).
- Finally, cover completely with tomato puree and add a vegetable stock cube for flavour. Cook initially over high heat.
- Then cook slowly over medium-low heat for at least two hours (I used a slow cooker for longer low heat).
- Finally, reduce the sauce if necessary.
- Serve with crusty bread, croutons, polenta or just on its own.
