“Bistecca alla fiorentina (400gr)” di Number55 – Opera propria. Con licenza CC BY-SA 3.0 tramite Wikimedia Commons
If you hear someone talking about la Fiorentina in Tuscany and they are not describing the football/soccer team, then they are surely talking about one of the quintessential dishes of Florentine cuisine: the thickly cut and very large Tuscan T-bone steak.
The name bistecca comes from the British term “beef-steak” and according to writer Maria Luisa Incontri, its history in Florence goes back to 1565, specifically March 23 in San Lorenzo square. To celebrate the wedding of Paolo Orsino and Isabella, daughter of the Duke of Florence, a whole ox was roasted in Piazza San Lorenzo and distributed to the people. beef-steak!”. Florentines really love to give exotic names to food, so they started to call this grilled cut of meat bistecca.
Here are some facts you should know about “Bistecca alla Fiorentina”:
Fiorentina is a must-try in Florence, but you can also find very good T-bone steaks prepared Florentine style outside the city and from different cattle breeds. It’s normally 3-4 cm high (7.62″-10.16″) and 1.5–2 kg (3.31-4.41 lb) heavy and for this very special cut, the big Chianina is one of the favorite cattle breeds.
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