Bistecca alla Pizzaiola

1 cup vegetable oil

Four 16-ounce rib-eye steaks, trimmed of all fat

3 bell peppers, cored, seeded and cut, lengthwise, into 1/2-inch slices

2 large white onions, sliced

4 cups sliced white mushrooms

1 tablespoon minced garlic

2 cups dry white wine

4 cups hand-crushed canned, imported San Marzano Italian plum tomatoes

2 pinches fried oregano

2 pinches crushed black pepper

Salt to taste

Heat 1/2 cup oil in each of 2 large sauté pans over medium-high heat. Add two steaks to each pan and fry on one side for 4 minutes or until very brown. Turn and add half of the peppers, onions, mushrooms and garlic to each pan. Fry for an additional 4 minutes.

Drain off excess oil and remove steaks from the pans, leaving the vegetables. Return pans to medium-high heat.

Add 1 cup of wine to each pan and bring to a boil. Into each pan stir 2 cups tomatoes, a pinch each of oregano and black pepper, and salt. Return to a boil. Lower heat and allow sauce to cook for about 5 minutes or until slightly thickened. (If sauce is too thick, thin with a bit of chicken broth, using no more than 1/4 cup.)

Return steak to sauce and allow to cook for 4 minutes. Remove from heat. Cut meat from around the bone and slice steak, on the slight diagonal, discarding the bone. Place steak on a serving platter, pour sauce over the top, and serve.

Serves 6.

Rao's Cookbook: Over One Hundred Years of Italian Home Cooking , by Frank Pellegrino