GARGANELLI WITH RAGù BOLOGNESE
Prior to his working at Del Posto, Matt went to Italy with Mario for a story for Gourmet. The premise of the story was that Mario was taking his chefs and the general manager from Del Posto to Italy, specifically to the center of Emilia-Romagna, to show them what it was like to eat there. They ate sixty-two courses in five days and Matt had a lot of dishes to talk about, but the one he was most excited about was the ragù bolognese he had at Diana, a restaurant just outside the main piazza in Bologna. It was as if his eyes had just been opened. He called me right after that meal: "It was rich but delicate and with a touch of sweetness," he told me. When they got back to New York, while Matt was relegated to the soup station of the kitchen, Mark Ladner and Mark's team at Del Posto attempted to create a bolognese that captured the spirit of the one at Diana. When Matt tasted Mark's version, he called me again, excited: "They did it!" he said. "They nailed it." And that- the Del Posto version of the Diana bolognese-was what Matt was going for when we opened Mozza. Having eaten at Diana myself, I can also tell you that Matt nailed it. When making bolognese, the most important thing is to go slow. You never want the meat to cook directly against the pan, because you want to braise the meat, not brown it. The "secret" to it is the Soffritto, which takes several hours to make-so give yourself time. This is slow food!
Yield makes over 1 quart of ragù or enough for more than 16 servings; pasta with sauce serves 6
Number Of Ingredients 20
Steps:
- To make the ragù, combine the oil and garlic in the bowl of a miniature food processor fitted with a metal blade or the jar of a blender and purée. Add the pancetta and purée, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl or jar occasionally, until the ingredients form a homogenous paste. Transfer the pancetta-garlic paste to a large sauté pan and cook over medium heat until the fat from the pancetta is rendered, about 5 minutes, stirring constantly to prevent the garlic from browning. Stir in the Soffritto and cook for about 1 minute. Move the vegetables to create a bare spot in the pan, add the tomato paste to that spot, and cook for 1 minute, stirring, to caramelize the tomato paste slightly. Add the veal and pork; season with the salt, pepper, and nutmeg; and cook, stirring occasionally, until all the juices released from the meat have cooked off and the pan is almost dry, about 10 minutes. Add the wine, increase the heat to medium high, and cook until the wine has evaporated and the pan is almost dry, about 10 minutes. Add the chicken stock, bring it to a simmer, reduce the heat, and simmer the meat with the stock for about 2 hours, stirring occasionally to prevent the meat from sticking to the bottom of the pan, until the stock has almost all cooked off but the pan is not completely dry. Add the milk and simmer until the ragù returns to a thick, saucy consistency, 30 to 40 minutes. Use the ragù, or allow it to cool to room temperature, transfer it to an airtight container, and refrigerate it for up to three days; freeze it for as long as three months. Warm the ragù over medium heat before serving, adding enough water to loosen it to a saucelike consistency.
- To finish and serve the pasta, fill a pasta pot or large stockpot with 6 quarts of water, add 6 tablespoons of salt, and bring the water to a boil over high heat. If you are not using a pasta pot, place a colander in the sink or have a wire strainer handy for lifting the pasta out of the water.
- While the water is coming to a boil, combine 1 1/2 cups of the ragù, the chicken stock, and butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Stir the ingredients to combine and heat, stirring occasionally, until the butter is melted and the sauce is warmed through, adding more chicken stock, if necessary, to obtain a loose, sauce consistency. Turn off the heat while you cook the garganelli.
- Remove the garganelli from the refrigerator or freezer and drop them into the boiling water. Stir to prevent the pasta from sticking together, partially cover the pot so the water returns to a boil quickly and continues boiling, and cook the pasta until it's al dente, about 2 minutes. About 1 minute before the pasta is done, place the sauce over high heat. Lift the pasta out of the cooking water, or reserve 1 cup of the water and drain the pasta, and immediately add it to the pan with the sauce. Cook the pasta with the sauce for 2 minutes, stirring gently with a rubber spatula so you don't tear the pasta, to stain the pasta with the sauce, adding some of the reserved pasta water if the pasta is dry and sticky instead of slippery and glistening. Turn off the heat and add the finishing-quality olive oil, stirring vigorously and shaking the pan to emulsify the sauce. Add the grated Parmigiano-Reggiano and pecorino romano and stir to combine.
- Pile the garganelli in the center of each of six plates, dividing them evenly, and spoon any sauce remaining in the pan over the pasta. Use a microplane or another fine grater to grate a light layer of Parmigiano-Reggiano over each plate, and serve.
- Sangiovese di Romagna (Emilia-Romagna)
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