Trippa alla romana — Rome, Italy

Trippa alla romana is a tomato-braised tripe dish from Rome, built on honeycomb beef tripe cut into strips and simmered until tender. It belongs to the city's quinto quarto repertoire, the set of dishes built from offal and other less prized cuts, alongside coda alla vaccinara and pajata. The dish is reported from the Testaccio district, historically home to Rome's slaughterhouse, where trattorie serving offal grew up around the workers. It is often listed as a Saturday dish, served alongside gnocchi al sugo in the same weekly rhythm many Roman households still follow. Preparation begins with a long blanching of the tripe to soften it, followed by a simmer in a soffritto of onion, celery and carrot with tomato and a splash of white wine. Mentuccia, a wild mint related to pennyroyal, is stirred in near the end, and the finished stew is plated with a generous dusting of grated pecorino romano. This version is set apart by its reliance on mentuccia rather than plain mint, and on pecorino rather than parmesan, giving it a sharper, more herbal profile than tripe recipes cooked further north. Guanciale is sometimes added to the soffritto for extra body, and a pinch of chili is common in home kitchens, though restaurant versions tend to stay milder.