Ragù

Ragù is Bologna’s meat sauce for seasoning its homemade pasta and comes from the City of Bologna. It is not the same as ragoût which is a French stew. We really became hooked on ragù during our 1995 visit to Italy.  We ate for a few consecutive  nights at a small restaurant in Florence.  It served pasta with a ragù sauce that is just one more reason to go back to Florence. In 1997 we stayed on the Isola de Elba and ragù was a daily favorite for us.

 

The only thing ragù shares with the french stew is the verb ragoûter, which means to excite the appetite. The three essential points is to saute the meat just barely long enough to lose its raw colour. It must not brown or the meat will lose its delicacy. Then cook the meat in milk before the tomatoes are added. This keeps the meat creamier and sweeter tasting.  Finally, cook the meat sauce at the merest simmer for a long time. The minimum is 3 1/2 hours.  Five hours is better.

For about six servings:

2 tablespoons chopped yellow onion
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons chopped celery
2 tablespoons chopped carrot
3/4 pound lean beef
Salt

1 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup milk
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
2 cups canned Italian tomatoes, roughly chopped, with the juice

 

Make the ragù in a deep enameled cast-iron casserole. The deeper the better so that it does not reduce too quicky. Place the chopped onion with the oil and butter and sauté over medium heat until the onion is translucent. Add the celery and carrot and cook for another two minutes.

Add the group beef, crumbling it with a fork. Add 1 teaspoon of salt, and stir and cook until the meat has last its raw colour. Add the wine, turn the heat up and cook, stirring occasionally, until all the wine has evaporated. Turn the heat down and add the milk, nutmeg and cook until the milk has evaporated. Stir frequently.

When the milk has evaporated, add the tomatoes and stir. When the tomatoes have started to bubble, turn the heat down until the sauce cooks at the lowest simmer possible.  Just an occasional bubble. Cook, uncovered for 3 1/2 to 5 hours.  Season with garlic, Italian seasoning, pepper.