fusilli col buco with neapolitan ragù

fusilli col buco al ragù napoletano

4 to 6 servings

In parts of Italy, the tradition is to enjoy a ragu in two courses: a first course of pasta with a sauce rendered from the slow braising of beef; and the main course, the braised meat, fragrant from cooking with the sauce and tender from its long simmering. This dish is easy to make but needs hours on the stove for the meat to become meltingly tender, so plan accordingly.

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Ingredients

1/3 cup tomato paste, preferably double concentrate
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
4 ounces pancetta, finely chopped (3/4 cup)
2 tablespoons lard or extra-virgin olive oil
1 carrot, finely chopped
1 celery stalk, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 1/2 pounds boneless chuck roast
3/4 cup dry white wine
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Fine sea salt
1 pound fusilli col buco or other long pasta

Instructions

Dilute tomato paste in 2 cups water; set aside.

In a wide heavy pot with a lid, combine onions, pancetta and lard. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until onions begin to soften, 8 to 10 minutes. Add carrot, celery and garlic; continue to cook, 3 to 4 minutes more. Add meat and cook 5 minutes per side, then add wine, increase heat to high and cook until wine has mostly evaporated, 5 to 7 minutes.

Add tomato paste mixture, reduce heat to very low and gently simmer, covered, stirring sauce and turning meat occasionally, for 2 hours.

Add oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and a little water, if sauce appears dry; continue to gently simmer, covered, stirring sauce and turning meat occasionally, for 2 hours more.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook until al dente.

Meanwhile, remove meat from pot; set aside.

When pasta is al dente, drain pasta; add to pot with sauce and toss to combine. Adjust seasoning, if necessary, and serve pasta immediately. Serve the meat as a second course.

October 2010

keywords:

pasta, meat sauce, ragu

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Comments [3] | Add your comment

I like the reality of 2 meals in one dish. Absolutely fantastico. The sauce is rich and full bodied. The meat added that second course. The long pasta was great. I had tagliatelle in the pantry. The dish was very attractive

Posted: November 10, 2011 17:55 by blacksheep
The sauce was delicious... I liked having only to use tomato paste and a few simple ingriedents. Cooked for at least 4 hours... it really made the meat fork tender... and it was amazing!

Posted: June 09, 2011 12:04 by Cyclingchef
I liked this recipe a lot, although I shredded the meat in the sauce after 4 hours, and it had a different color than the photo. I thought the fusilli was a good choice. It resembles a winter stew, but with pasta.
Posted: December 30, 2010 21:50 by Tom Catania