Make Thanksgiving Italian with these Italian Thanksgiving menu ideas from the PIATTO™ kitchen! From satisfying savory main courses to delicious side dishes and special occasion desserts, there’s something to satisfy everyone.
Thanksgiving Main Courses: Meat or Seafood
Italian Whole Roasted Chicken with Crispy Potatoes
Roast a whole chicken or turkey in classic Italian flavors: lemon, rosemary, garlic and olive oil! This recipe makes the juiciest bird we’ve ever tasted, yet the skin remains crispy! This is a classic Thanksgiving main course with an Italian twist. Plus, this recipe gives your family one delicious side as well: Crispy Potatoes!
While tripe isn’t for everyone, this is the definitive Italian Tripe recipe for anyone who likes beef tripe. The sauce—with tomato, mint, white wine and pecorino cheese—is divine.
This recipe uses beef tripe parts from all three edible stomachs of the cow. Preparing tripe is not complicated—the complicated part may be finding it at a local butcher!
Tripe is extremely nutritious! It is low in fat and high in protein. In ancient times, it was a main source of nutrition for poor Italians who couldn’t afford choicer cuts of meat.
Watch the Video Recipe!
Learn how to make Italian Tripe recipe with our video recipe, filmed in Italy:
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How to Make Italian Tripe
For the complete recipe for making Roman Tripe, check out the recipe card below!
What is Tripe?
Tripe is the edible stomachs of the cow. There are three, each with a different texture.
Boil it for 15 minutes.
Even if the tripe you’ve purchased is already clean, we recommend boiling it in salt water with onion, carrot and celery for 15 minutes to remove any lingering odor.
Serve with bread!
Italian Tripe is traditionally served with bread for a fantastic scarpetta (sopping up the sauce).
Best Pasta Cookbook? Ours!
Seductive strands of pasta and sumptuous sauces… Are you ready to indulge in an unforgettable Pasta Affair? This cookbook is a must-have for any serious lover of Italian food, featuring over 50 classic pasta recipes you can make at home!
AVAILABLE AS A PRINT HARDCOVER OR EBOOK
Tomato Products We Recommend
This tripe recipe calls for crushed tomatoes. In Italy, Italians have a secret for crushed tomatoes: they use or buy whole peeled tomatoes, remove the seeds and ‘water’ and then crush them with a blender or by hand. Why not just buy crushed tomatoes?
Italians know that canned crushed tomatoes tend to be less sweet than passata (purée) or whole peeled canned tomatoes. This is because skins and seeds often make their way into crushed tomato products, which produces a less sweet product.
For dishes like Roman Style Tripe (Trippa alla Romana), here in the PIATTO™ kitchen we tend to use:
To find out more about why, check out our guide on best canned tomatoes for sauce!
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Other Italian Tripe Recipes
Check out the traditional recipe for Trippa alla Fiorentina (Florence Style Tripe) on our website!
Discover More Roman Food Recipes!
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Italian Tripe Recipe – Trippa alla Romana
Ingredients
- 2.2 lb beef tripe cleaned
- 1 onion for pre-cooking the tripe
- 1 carrot for pre-cooking the tripe
- 1 rib celery for pre-cooking the tripe
- 1 onion chopped
- ½ carrot chopped
- 1 rib celery chopped
- 28 oz crushed tomatoes
- handful fresh mint minced
- 4 tbsp pecorino romano cheese finely grated
- ½ cup dry white wine
- 4 tbsp olive oil or as needed
- fresh chili peppers to taste
- fine salt to taste
- black pepper to taste
Instructions
Pre-Cook the Tripe
- Boil the tripe for 15 minutes in salted water with a whole onion, carrot and celery to remove the last of the odor. Drain and set aside.
Sauté the Tripe
- Coat the bottom of a skillet generously with olive oil. Sauté the chopped onion, carrot and celery over medium-low heat until the onions start to appear translucent.
- Add the tripe to the vegetables and salt and pepper to taste. Cook for a few minutes over medium heat.
- Add a ½ cup of white wine. Stir, and cook until the wine has evaporated.
Make the Sauce
- Add crushed tomato and a 1 1/2 cups of water to the tripe.
- Bring the sauce to a boil. Add a handful of fresh mint and a pinch of salt.
- Cover and cook the tripe in the sauce over medium-low heat for 2 hours.
Finish with Pecorino Cheese
- After the two hours, turn off the heat and add about 4 Tbs of freshly grated Pecorino Romano cheese. Stir to melt the cheese. Feel free to top with more pecorino when you serve the dish.
Video
Nutrition
Baked Sea Bass with Oven Roasted Potatoe
If you buy a whole branzino or spigola (sea bass) already cleaned, this dish is surprisingly fast and easy! Sea bass is one of the mildest tasting fish and is perfect with these fresh Italian herbs. It will be ready in about an hour.
Thanksgiving: Main Courses: Pasta
Prefer something a bit less traditional for Thanksgiving? Why not try one of these classic Italian pasta dishes that can feed a crowd!
Authentic Ragù Bolognese Pasta
This is the traditional Ragù alla Bolognese of Italy! It’s an easy, slow-cooked sauce that produces a ready-made pasta sauce. Make it a month ahead in a big batch and freeze it for later! Traditionally, this sauce is paired with tagliatelle pasta, but use whatever your family enjoys.
Italian Pasta with Mussels and Tomatoes
Mussels are one of the more economical seafood ingredients you can purchase. Combined with cherry or grape tomatoes, mussels create a seafood pasta to die for!
Thanksgiving: Main Courses: Vegetarian
Butternut Squash Risotto
There are so many ways to make risotto, but this Butternut Squash Risotto recipe is both seasonal and decadent! Finish it with lactose-free Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, gorgonzola or just a knob of butter. Serious comfort food that could also be a Thanksgiving side dish.
Italian Thanksgiving Side Dishes
There are so many delicious side dishes for an Italian Thanksgiving Menu… where do we start?
Authentic Tuscan Beans
In the mood for a twist on the classic Thanksgiving baked beans? These savory Tuscan Beans are just the thing! Steeped in traditional Tuscan herbs, they are rich and satisfying without the sweetness characteristic of American Baked Beans.
Focaccia Bread
There are many types of focaccia recipes in Italy. This recipe is an easy recipe perfect for the stand mixer. You can make it tall or short depending on the baking pan you use. The perfect side or sandwich bread, fresh focaccia is a real treat!
For a more bubbly, no-knead focaccia that requires a longer rise, check out our video recipe:
Italian Sautéed Cabbage and Onions
White wine, a hint of red chili pepper, onions… It’s cabbage—the Italian way!
Italian Thanksgiving Desserts
What would Thanksgiving be without some decadent desserts? Check out our Classic Italian Desserts recipes. From the simple to the elaborate, you are sure to find something for your Thanksgiving.
Italian Tiramisù Cake
Who doesn’t need a ‘Pick Me Up’ on Thanksgiving after all that food? In fact, this is the literal translation of Tiramisù! With espresso, this is probably the ultimate Thanksgiving dessert to prevent the post-meal sleepiness. This cake recipe is actually the traditional form for this Italian dessert and it really makes quite the impression! Alternatively, assemble the Tiramisù in a pyrex dish—even Italians in Italy sometimes do it this way!
Italian Almond Cake (Torta Mantovana)
This traditional Tuscan cake is simple but delicious! With butter, lemon and almonds—it’s a perfectly simple Thanksgiving cake.
Roasted Chestnuts
It’s safe to say that most Italian households are roasting chestnuts for dessert this time of the year! Learn how to roast chestnuts 3 ways (pan, oven, fire) in our guide!
