PAOLA'S RAGÚ
The Ragú, (O Rraú in Neapolitan dialect) is a rich tomato sauce cooked with various cuts of meat. It most likely derives from the French dish ‘ragout’ which was a mutton stew without tomato, as confirmed by the chef Vincenzo Corrado in his book ‘Il Cuoco Galante’ of 1773, with the addition of tomatoes, much later, in the mid-nineteenth century.
The Ragú is one of the most celebrated sauces of the Neapolitan culture. A ritual observed every week when the Neapolitan families reunite for Sunday lunch.
Its preparation requires complete dedication and attention. The sauce needs careful supervision - and stirring - as it cooks slowly for four, five, six hours, without ever being abandoned.
Ragú is one of the most celebrated sauces in Naples.
There are three main cooking phases: in the first phase the onion, meat and lard are left to sauté gently over a low flame. In this way, the onions reduce until the meat is coated with a ‘caramelized’ crust, which is then melted with the addition of some wine, resulting in a beautiful blend. In the second phase the tomato puree is added and is left to brown slowly, while being stirred from time to time. In the third phase the flame is lowered to a minimum and the sauce is left to ‘peppiare’ – meaning; imperceptibly boil for hours. (The verb peppiare is of onomatopoeic origin, deriving from that slight hum sound that comes out of the pot while the sauce is boiling, which sounds similar to that produced by taking puffs on a tobacco pipe).
This queen of sauces is so loved and celebrated that it was introduced as a leitmotif in the famous comedy ‘Sabato, Domenica e Lunedi’ written by the celebrated Neapolitan screenplay Eduardo De Filippo, in which the protagonist describes the recipe for the perfect Ragú.
In this particularly funny scene from the Lina Wertmüller’s movie based on the same comedy, starring Sophia Loren, a fight breaks out amongst the customers at the local butcher shop, while discussing the best way to cook a proper Ragú. This shows how passionate Neapolitans can be when it comes to Ragú!
Ricetta del Ragú
The pieces of meat that can be used for the Ragu are many: the choice depends on the taste and what sort of dish you wish to produce: if it’s to provide a good-looking second course, it would be good to have a first cut of beef or ox, or a round of pork.
Ingredients
Ham (Prosciutto Crudo) 100gr
Pancetta 50gr
Parsley
Pepe
Salt
First cut of pork 1.5kg or 5 pork chops
Onions 400gr
Lard 100gr
Extra Virgin olive oil – 1 dl
2 cloves of garlic
A glass of red wine
Tomato puree 100 gr
Concentrated tomato 200gr
Method
Cook the meat on a bed of chopped onions and pancetta, lard and olive oil. You can use either a big piece of meat or the pork chops filled with garlic, parsley, salt and pepper and rolled into involtini. Cook with a lid and on a low flame, stirring now and then until the meat is coated in brown and the onions are reduced and caramelised.
Add the wine and let it evaporate while stirring. Turn up the flame and add the tomato puree and the concentrated tomato little by little (with a half glass of water to dilute it). Stir it and let the tomato brown until dark red/brown (this will take 2 hours). When you’ve finished adding all the tomato add also a couple of glasses of water, reduce the flame, cover with a lid and let it cook for another 2 hours (making sure to add little water if it becomes too dry).
During this time the meat will have become tender so it can be taken out, leaving just the sauce to continue cooking (“peppiare”) stirring and gently adding little water when too dry.
The sauce is cooked when it looks very dark, greasy, shiny and dense. Check if more salt is needed add the meat back in the pan and cook just for few more minutes.
Serve this preferably with Ziti (tubular shaped pasta) and parmesan..
Paola is our in-house cook, here at the House of Talents. She is offering Italian inspired cookery classes for adults and kids.
We are asking for a £5 donation for group sessions (with a minimum of 5 people per session).
Please get in touch with Paola to sign up for one of her group classes, or to book a one-to-one session.
Email: paolacimmino3@gmail.com
Instagram: @cucina_cimmino
Paola is a member of the House of Talents , which has over 30 established writers, musicians, actors, performers, yoga teachers, mindfulness coaches as well as a home cook and a publisher. They offer creative online courses ranging from portrait painting, public speaking and screenwriting to yoga, mindfulness and embodiment. Coaches in the House of Talents charge just £5 for a group class or workshop and we give 10 % of the proceeds to our chosen charities, which include Greenpeace, Mind and Save the Children.
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