Bombette Pugliesi are one of the most popular meat dishes from Puglia, especially in the beautiful Valle d’Itria area of Southern Italy. These small pork rolls are stuffed with pancetta, caciocavallo cheese, garlic, and parsley — a true explosion of flavor that perfectly explains their name, which means “little bombs”!
Originally born as a humble dish, Bombette Pugliesi have become an icon of Puglian street food. You’ll find them sizzling on grills at local festivals, fairs, and butcher shops, often served on skewers and bursting with their irresistible aroma.
Traditionally, they’re made with thin slices of capocollo (pork neck or shoulder), wrapped around a rich and savory filling, then grilled until crispy on the outside and perfectly melted inside. Variations abound across Puglia, with different fillings and cooking methods, but the result is always mouthwatering.
These Italian meat rolls are perfect for a family dinner, a summer barbecue, or a party with friends. Serve them with some crunchy taralli and a glass of red wine for an authentic taste of Puglia at home.
Ingredients
Prep Time: 15 Min | Cook Time: 20 Min | Servings: 4
- 8 thin slices pork butt (capocollo)
- 8 thin slices pancetta
- 80 g (3 oz) caciocavallo cheese
- 1 garlic clove
- A small bunch fresh parsley
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- Salt, to taste
- Black pepper, to taste
Instructions
Prepare the Meat
Step 1) - First you need to buy the right kind of meat. That is, an excellent "capocollo" (pork butt), cut into thin slices.
Cover the pork butt slice with a sheet of baking paper. Then pound the slices with a meat pounder to make them even thinner.
Step 2) - Pugliese bombette are small, 3 to 5 cm (1 to 2 inches), so the slices should not be very large. From one slice you usually make two rolls by cutting it in half.
Season the pork slices with a little salt and pepper.
The Stuffing
Step 3) - Now move on to the stuffing. Lay a slice of pancetta on top of the meat. Meanwhile, thinly slice the caciocavallo cheese and set aside.
Step 4) - With a small chopper, chop the garlic and parsley.
Step 5) - Now place the caciocavallo slices on the pancetta. Then add the chopped parsley and garlic.
Finally fold the stuffed pork slices in two.
PLEASE NOTE: If you do not want to eat the garlic, rub the pork slice with the garlic clove, just to give it some flavor, and then stuff them.
Close the Bombette
Step 6) - Close the slice of meat tightly to form small round pork balls. Secure the ends with wooden toothpicks.
Sprinkle the bombetta with a little salt and pepper to taste.
PLEASE NOTE: To make authentic bombette pugliesi, you should not roll the slice of meat completely, rather create small balls by folding the sides, as if it were a package, and close it with toothpicks.
The Cooking: Three Methods
Step 7A) - FRY PAN: Heat the oil in a nonstick frying pan. Place the bombette and let them brown over medium heat for 10 minutes. Turn the meat over and continue cooking for another 10 minutes or so, until the Pugliese bombette are well cooked on the inside and golden brown on the outside.
Step 7B) - BAKE: Alternatively, you can bake the pugliese bombette in a preheated oven at 200°C (392°F) for 20 minutes and finish roasting under the grill for a few minutes.
Step 7C) - BARBEQUE: Of course, the best cooking is still on the barbecue, if you have it available. For barbecue, it is best to skewer 3 or 4 bowlers on a single skewer so that they can be more conveniently arranged on the grill.
Pugliese Bombette are ready! Try them with our roasted potatoes recipe! Buon appetito!
YOU MUST ALSO TRY:
- Parmesan pork cutlets
- Pork Loin Braised in Milk
- Breaded Eggplant Cutlets Recipe
- Baked Chicken with BreadCrumbs and Caciocavallo Cheese
- Italian Stuffed Chicken Rolls (Involtini di Pollo)
Storage
Bombette Pugliesi are great eaten hot with a stringy interior.
If they are left over, you can keep them in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to two days.
It is possible to prepare them in advance. You can make them the day before and refrigerate until ready to cook.
Or you can freeze them. Store in the freezer, sealed in freezer bags, for up to 1 month. It is best to defrost them in the refrigerator before cooking.
Variations
The traditional recipe of these tasty Bombette Pugliesi is made with pork meat stuffed with pancetta and caciocavallo cheese. But let's see other variations that are popular in Italy:
- BREADED BOMBETTE: This is the most popular variation, so much so that we can consider it a classic recipe. The slices of meat are breaded on both sides and then stuffed. The breading makes the meat rolls crispier.
- THE CHEESE: For the filling, you can use mozzarella instead of caciocavallo.
- PANCETTA: Prosciutto Cotto can be used instead of pancetta.
- SMOKED BOMBETTE: For a smoked version, use smoked pancetta and smoked provolone.
- GARLIC: If you don't like garlic, you can leave it out. Many people add sun-dried tomatoes to the filling.
- THE MEAT: Most people use "capocollo", which is the pork butt, a fatty part that remains very soft and flavorful. If you want to use leaner meat, you can choose pork loin, veal sirloin or chicken breast. Of course, the result will be drier. But thanks to the small size of these little balls and the use of pancetta inside, the result will still be very tasty.
- WITH TOMATO SAUCE: Very tasty is the version with tomato sauce. Cook the meatballs in about 250 grams (1 cup) of tomato passata over medium heat for about half an hour. You can even use this delicious sauce to dress pasta.
Origins and History
Bombette Pugliesi come from the heart of Puglia, in the beautiful Valle d’Itria — the land of trulli that stretches across Bari, Brindisi, and Taranto, including towns like Alberobello, Locorotondo, Cisternino, and Martina Franca.
These flavorful pork rolls first appeared in the 1960s in Martina Franca. According to local tradition, Maria Giliberti, the wife of butcher Ninuccio Lasorte, created the first version using horse meat. Her husband later perfected the recipe by switching to pork, which proved softer and juicier.
The dish quickly spread throughout the Itria Valley, especially in Cisternino and Martina Franca, where every butcher proudly claims to make the best bombette. Many of these butchers still have a fornello — a traditional wood-fired oven — and turn into informal “fast food” spots at night, serving freshly grilled meat in the charming streets of the old towns.
Today, Bombette Pugliesi and Capocollo di Martina Franca are considered among the most beloved Slow Food specialties of Southern Italy — and finding both in the same recipe is a true culinary treasure.
Recipe Card
Bombette Pugliesi (Traditional Italian Meat Rolls)
Ingredients
- 8 thin slices pork butt - (capocollo)
- 8 thin slices pancetta
- 80 g caciocavallo cheese - 3 oz
- 1 clove garlic
- a small bunch fresh parsley
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- salt - to taste
- black pepper - to taste
Instructions
PREPARE THE MEAT
- Cover the pork butt slice with a sheet of baking paper. Then pound the slices with a meat pounder to make them even thinner. Pugliese bombette are small, 3 to 5 cm (1 to 2 inches), so the slices should not be very large. From one slice you usually make two rolls by cutting it in half.
- Season the pork slices with a little salt and pepper.
THE STUFFING
- Lay a slice of pancetta on top of the meat. Meanwhile, thinly slice the caciocavallo cheese and set aside.
- With a small chopper, chop the garlic and parsley.
- Place the caciocavallo slices on the pancetta. Then add the chopped parsley and garlic.
- Finally fold the stuffed pork slices in two. PLEASE NOTE: If you do not want to eat the garlic, rub the pork slice with the garlic clove, just to give it some flavor, and then stuff them.
CLOSE THE BOMBETTE
- Close the slice of meat tightly to form small round pork balls. Secure the ends with wooden toothpicks. PLEASE NOTE: To make authentic bombette pugliesi, you should not roll the slice of meat completely, rather create small balls by folding the sides, as if it were a package, and close it with toothpicks.
- Sprinkle the bombetta with a little salt and pepper to taste.
THE COOKING: THREE METHODS
- FRY PAN: Heat the oil in a nonstick frying pan. Place the bombette and let them brown over medium heat for 10 minutes. Turn the meat over and continue cooking for another 10 minutes or so, until the Pugliese bombette are well cooked on the inside and golden brown on the outside.
- BAKE: Alternatively, you can bake the pugliese bombette in a preheated oven at 200°C (392°F) for 20 minutes and finish roasting under the grill for a few minutes.
- BARBEQUE: Of course, the best cooking is still on the barbecue, if you have it available. For barbecue, it is best to skewer 3 or 4 bowlers on a single skewer so that they can be more conveniently arranged on the grill.
Fred says
Is the pork raw pork butt sliced thin?
Silvana Nava says
Yes, exactly! Use raw pork butt, thinly sliced. The meat should be tender and easy to roll, similar to how you would prepare it for involtini.