Ragu

Every now and again I like to whip up a batch of Ragu. No, not the stuff called Ragu that comes in a jar at the grocery store. But a meaty sauce made from ground beef and pork, soffrito, and tomato paste, sometimes duck or other poultry. One type of soffrito, the Italian type here, is similar to mirepoix (onions, celery, carrots), cooked in olive oil for at least 30 minutes. The meat I used is home ground lean beef chuck and home ground pork (I used a pork chop here). It’s perfectly fine to use pre-ground beef and pork. I’ve made Ragu and Bolognese many times, and this one is my favorite so far. It’s inspired by a recipe from Samin Nosrat, chef and author of ‘Salt Fat Acid Heat’. I changed a few things a bit from the original recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 pound coarsley ground lean beef (I ground beef chuck at home)

• 1/2 pound coarsley ground lean pork (I ground a pork from a bone-in chop at home)

• 1 cup white onions, fine chop

• 1 cup carrots, peeled, fine chop

• 1 cup celery, fine chop

• 3/4 cup red wine

• 1 cup beef stock or broth

• 1 cup whole milk or half & half

• 2 bay leaves

• 3-inch strip of lemon zest

• 3-inch strip of lemon zest

• half a cinnamon stick

• 3 tbsp tomatompaste

• Kosher salt

• Fresh ground white or black pepper

• Fresh basil, chiffonade, for service

• Freshly grated Parmesan cheese

• 8 ounces pasta – rigatoni, penne, fettuccine, or tagliatelle – cooked al dente according to package directions.

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Directions:

• Heat a medium sauce pan over medium high heat. When hot, add about 1 tbsp of olive oil. Add the ground beef and ground pork to the pot. Cook, stirring and breaking up the meat until it gets browned, aboutb7-8 minutes. When browned, transfer the meat to a bowl.

• Add the onions, celery, and carrots to the same pot and cook over medium heat. Add more oil, at least enough to almost cover the vegetables. Cook, stirring regularly, until the vegetables are tender and beginning to brown, about 25-30 minutes. Add the tomato paste, stir into the vegetables.

• Return the meat to the pan, and the pork bone if using. Increase the heat to high, and add the wine. Add the milk, stock, bay leaves, zests, and cinnamon stick. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil, lower heat to a simmer. Simmer the sauce, uncovered, stirring occasionally, for about 1 1/2 hours on low.

• Use a spoon or a ladle to skim off the excess fat as needed. Remove the bay leaves, the zest peels, the cinnamon stick, and the bone.

• Toss some of the ragu in the cooked pasta of choice. Plate the pasta, add more ragu. Garnish with fresh chiffonade basil strips. Serve with fresh grated Parmesan cheese at the table.