Bistecca alla fiorentina
Florence's T-bone: a steak three fingers thick, grilled over hot embers, rare inside, seasoned with salt and pepper only after cooking.
Recipe by I Want Some Food · Reviewed by the editorial kitchen.
- Prep
- 5 min
- Cook
- 20 min
- Rest
- 2 hr
- Total
- 2 hr 25 min
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Spice
- No chilli
- Cost
- Treat yourself$28+ USD · indicative, not a store price
About
Bistecca alla fiorentina is a T-bone steak at least 4 cm thick, cut from the loin with the fillet on one side of the bone and the sirloin on the other, grilled over hot embers and served rare. Nothing else goes on it while it cooks: no marinade, no oil, no rub. Take it out of the fridge a couple of hours ahead so it is at room temperature right through. Grill it about 5 minutes a side over a fierce fire without moving it, then stand it upright on its bone for several minutes so the heat reaches the meat beside it. Salt and pepper go on after cooking, with a thread of olive oil if you like; many Florentines skip the oil. Done is a steak with a dark, crusty outside and a red, juicy centre, carved off the bone and shared.
What you'll need
4 ingredients. Tap each one once it's out on the bench.
Ingredients
- T-bone steak, one steak, 4–5 cm thick, dry-aged if possible1.2 kg
- Salt, coarse sea salt4.9 ml
- Black pepper, freshly ground4.9 ml
- Olive oil, extra virgin, to finish (optional)15 ml
Scaling multiplies the written quantities. Baking still prefers a scale.
Steps
Step 1
Take the steak out of the fridge 2 hours before cooking. Build a hardwood or charcoal fire and let it burn down to a bed of glowing embers, or heat a heavy cast-iron grill until smoking.
5 min
Step 2
Grill the steak 5 minutes without moving it, until a dark crust forms. Turn once and grill another 5 minutes. Then stand it upright on its bone for 5–7 minutes.
17 min
Tip: Turn it with tongs, never a fork: piercing it lets the juice run out.
Step 3
Rest 5 minutes. Cut the fillet and sirloin away from the bone, slice them thickly and set them back around the bone. Season with salt, pepper and a little oil, if using.
3 min
Nutrition
Per serving · estimate
- Calories
- 877 kcal
- Protein
- 78.9 g
- Carbs
- 0.4 g
- Fat
- 61.6 g
- Saturated fat
- 23.8 g
- Fibre
- 0.2 g
- Sugar
- 0 g
- Sodium
- 878 mg
Calculated from canonical ingredient data (USDA FoodData Central averages and equivalent published tables). Estimates only.
Allergens
Informational only. Not a medical guarantee. Cross-contamination happens in real kitchens.
- No major allergens flagged in the structured ingredients.
- Gluten-free
- Dairy-free
Adapt this recipe
The original recipe stays as it is. Personal versions are labelled. Serving changes are simple maths.
Adaptations · 0 / 15 used. Resets 13 November.
Substitutions
Chianina T-bone → Grass-fed, dry-aged T-bone or porterhouse
What most butchers can cut to order at 4–5 cm.
Tips
- Ask the butcher to cut it to order: supermarket T-bones are far too thin.
- It is meant to be rare: a thin red centre and a warm, not cold, middle.
History & culture
In Florence it is ordered by weight, rarely under a kilo, and brought to the table for everyone to share; many trattorie will politely refuse to cook it well done. The Chianina cattle of the Val di Chiana are the prized breed. It comes with white beans dressed in oil or a green salad, and a bottle of Chianti.
The name is said to date from the feast of San Lorenzo in Medici Florence, when great fires were lit and grilled beef handed out to the crowd; English visitors called for 'beef steak', and Florentines turned the word into 'bistecca'. When an EU rule against mad cow disease outlawed bone-in loin cuts from 2001 to 2006, the city staged a mock funeral for its steak.
Traditional — A thick T-bone, grilled over embers, rare, with salt, pepper and optional olive oil after cooking. Nothing else.
Provenance: Editorial adaptation.
Questions about this recipe
Answers taken from this dish's times, amounts, swaps and tips.
How long does Bistecca alla fiorentina take?
2 hr 25 min all in — 5 min prep, 20 min cook, 2 hr rest. Cook and rest follow the method. Leftover storage and optional extra waits are not included.
How many does it serve?
The recipe is written for 3 plates. Scale the ingredient list on the page if you are cooking for a different number.
How hard is it?
Medium.
How spicy is it?
No chilli.
Does it fit a diet?
The published recipe is labelled Gluten-free, Dairy-free.
What does it cost to cook?
Treat yourself — about $28+ USD, as a grocery budget for this recipe, not a restaurant price.
5 more questionsFewer questions
What equipment do I need?
Tongs, Chef's knife, Cutting board.
How much salt do I put in?
The recipe lists Salt at 1 tsp (coarse sea salt).
What can I use instead?
Chianina T-bone → Grass-fed, dry-aged T-bone or porterhouse. What most butchers can cut to order at 4–5 cm.
Any tips from this recipe?
Ask the butcher to cut it to order: supermarket T-bones are far too thin. It is meant to be rare: a thin red centre and a warm, not cold, middle.
Can I use an air fryer?
This method is not written for an air fryer. The core technique on the page still applies.
Similar dishes
Abbacchio al forno con patate
Rome's Easter roast: young lamb on the bone rubbed with garlic, rosemary and olive oil, roasted with potatoes and a splash of white wine.
Easy
Cotoletta alla milanese
Milan's bone-in veal chop, dipped in egg and breadcrumbs and fried in clarified butter until golden. Lemon, and nothing else.
Medium
Ossobuco alla milanese
Milan's braised veal shank: browned in butter, cooked slowly with white wine and broth, finished with gremolata of lemon, garlic and parsley.
Medium