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Italian Sunday Dinner
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Quick answer
A classic Italian Sunday dinner runs antipasto, pasta or a slow sauce, a meat main with a vegetable side, then dessert and coffee. Pick one slow centerpiece — lasagna, Sunday gravy, chicken parmigiana, saltimbocca or osso buco — and build the rest around it with make-ahead dishes.
The shape of the meal
Antipasto first — a salumi and cheese board or marinated olives, no cooking required. Then the primo: Sunday gravy over rigatoni, or lasagna if you started the day before. The secondo is the meat course below, with simply dressed greens. Finish small: tiramisù, cannoli or an affogato, with coffee.
The four mains
Lasagna alla Bolognese
About 3 hr 45 min, mostly hands-off
Slow-simmered beef and pork ragù, béchamel and layers of pasta under Parmigiano-Reggiano. The ragù simmers 2½ to 3 hours; assemble ahead and bake before dinner.
Best for: Feeding a crowd — it holds beautifully and reheats even better.
Full Lasagna alla Bolognese recipe →Chicken Parmigiana
About 1 hour
Breaded chicken cutlets fried until crisp, topped with tomato sauce and mozzarella and baked until bubbling.
Best for: The guaranteed crowd-pleaser — familiar, fast and generous.
Full Chicken Parmigiana recipe →Saltimbocca alla Romana
About 20 minutes
Veal cutlets with prosciutto and sage, pan-seared and finished with a quick white-wine pan sauce.
Best for: A smaller Sunday table — elegant and the fastest main here.
Full Saltimbocca alla Romana recipe →Osso Buco
About 2 hr 30 min, mostly braising
Veal shanks braised low and slow with white wine, broth, tomato and aromatics until the meat yields to a fork, finished with gremolata.
Best for: The special-occasion centerpiece — the braise does the work while you set the table.
Full Osso Buco recipe →Timing so it all lands hot
- Morning: start the ragù, gravy or braise; assemble the lasagna if that’s the plan.
- Midday: make the dessert — tiramisù needs chilling time anyway.
- One hour before: set the antipasto board; dress the greens at the last minute.
- At the table: pasta first, meats after, dessert and coffee when nobody can move.
Sunday dinner questions
What is a traditional Italian Sunday dinner?
A multi-course family meal: an antipasto, a first course of pasta or a slow sauce like Sunday gravy, a meat second course with a vegetable side, then dessert and coffee. At home, one starter, one pasta, one main and a dessert is plenty.
Can I make Sunday dinner ahead?
Yes — the slow dishes are better ahead. Make the ragù, lasagna or gravy a day or two before, and tiramisù the day before. Only the frying and the salad dressing happen at the last minute.
Which main should I pick: lasagna, chicken parm, saltimbocca or osso buco?
Lasagna feeds a crowd and waits patiently. Chicken parmigiana is the crowd-pleaser. Saltimbocca is the fastest — about 20 minutes. Osso buco is the special-occasion braise.
How long does the whole meal take?
With a slow centerpiece, start in the morning and expect 3 to 4 hours of mostly hands-off cooking. With saltimbocca as the main, the whole dinner can come together in about 90 minutes.
What wine goes with Sunday dinner?
A medium-bodied red like Chianti or Montepulciano covers tomato sauces, lasagna and most braises — see the Italian wine guide for pairings by dish.
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