Lombard cuisine is linked to rural traditions, and two of its most wintry dishes include cassoeula and busecca (büsèca, in local dialect).
While cassoeula is a pork and cabbage stew, busecca is tripe stewed with beans. Its name derives from butze, the German word for guts, which was Italianized to buzzo (belly) or busa in Milanese dialect. The Milanesi consumed this dish so often, they were nicknamed mangiatrippa or busecconi.
Once upon a time, merchants fueled up by eating this dish, which was served at Milanese inns, when they attended local fairs and markets. Not only did it hardly cost anything, but it warmed them up and gave them a second wind.
If you want to try it at home, the recipe's below and the above gallery contains some tips.
Busecca
Ingredients:
For this Milanese version, you need 1½ lb. pre-cooked tripe, 7 oz. boiled white Spanish beans, 4 oz bacon, 1 onion, 4 Tbsp. tomato puree, 4 sage leaves, 1 carrot, 1 celery rib, 3 juniper berries, 2 Tbsp. butter, 3 cloves, water, grated Parmigiano Reggiano, black pepper.
Method:
Cut the tripe into 2″ strips. Brown the bacon in butter and add celery, carrots, chopped onions and sauté, then add the aromas (sage, juniper, and cloves). After a few minutes, add the tripe, then the tomato puree, and ground pepper. Cover with water then cook over low heat for at least an hour, taking care that it doesn’t dry out too much. At this point, add the pre-cooked beans and cook for a quarter of an hour until dense. Serve hot, with a generous sprinkling of Parmigiano Reggiano.
Main cover picture by Jacopo Salvi