A Rich and Simple Ragout
This week we have a classic ragout for you - seething with pork and red wine, rosemary, thyme plus a hint of cinnamon quill and star anise.
While you could pile it atop a pillowy polenta or perhaps potato, we say do like we do at Earl and swish it through pasta-of-the-moment, mafaldine.
Disclaimer - this dish requires three hours of simmering – but it’s mostly hands-off, making for an easy, yet impressive, main!
The recipe
Pork Ragout with Mafaldine Pasta
- Serves
- 4
- Prep time
- 20 minutes
- Cooking time
- 4 hours
Ingredients
- Olive oil, for cooking
- 2 red capsicums, roughly chopped
- 1 brown onion, roughly chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled
- 1 bunch rosemary, leaves picked
- 1 bunch thyme, leaves picked
- 1 cinnamon quill
- 2 star anise
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 500ml red wine
- 2 tins chopped tomatoes
- Salt, for seasoning
- 1kg pork shoulder, boned and skin off
- 400g mafaldine pasta (fresh or dried is fine)
- Parmesan, to serve
Method
- In a wide pot, add olive oil to cover the base, add capsicums, onions and garlic and saute over medium heat until soft and lightly coloured.
- Add the herbs, spices and bay leaf and saute for 15 minutes, then add tomato paste and cook out until paste has thickened.
- Deglaze with red wine and reduce until alcohol has cooked out, by roughly half. Add the chopped tomatoes and season with salt.
- Place the pork shoulder in sauce and cover with a lid. Reduce heat and simmer for 3 hours.
- Allow sauce to cool, then remove pork shoulder. Using two forks, shred pork and place the shredded pork back into the sauce.
- Cook the pasta according to packet instructions, then toss the pasta through the sauce, and serve with grated parmesan.
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