Uccelli scappati

Uccelli scappati is an Italian dish that is especially popular in Lombardy and the province of Brescia. Traditionally, pork or veal is rolled in pancetta, seasoned with sage, then skewered. The combination is then sautéed in butter and cooked in white wine.

When served, the dish is always accompanied by polenta on the side. The name of this dish translates to escaped birds, referring to the facts that it is made with ingredients which were typically used to stuff game birds, and that the hunters had an unsuccessful bird hunt, so they prepared meat rolls which were shaped similarly to the birds that didn’t make it to the plate.