Garganelli Recipes

GARGANELLI WITH SAUSAGE AND MUSHROOM RAGU

Steps:

• For the ragu: To the bowl of a food processor, add the mushroom stems, celery, carrot, onion and garlic. Pulse until finely chopped but not pureed.
• Heat a large Dutch oven with a couple tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the chopped veggies with a pinch of salt and crushed red pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and translucent, 5 to 7 minutes.
• Add the sliced mushrooms and stir to combine. Cook for 2 minutes. Add the sausage and break up with a spoon, making sure to push down to the bottom of the pan so it can nicely brown. Brown the sausage for 5 minutes.
• Add the wine and reduce by half, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the tomato paste and stir to combine. Add half of the chicken stock (2 cups), the thyme bundle, bay leaves and kosher salt to taste. Bring the mixture to a boil, then lower to a simmer and cook until the sauce has reduced by half, 10 minutes. Add the remaining chicken stock and cook until the sauce is thickened and holds its shape, 15 to 20 minutes more.
• For the pasta: Mound the flour on a clean, dry work surface. Make a hole (this is also called a well) in the center of the flour pile that is about 8 inches wide (bigger is definitely better here). Crack all of the eggs and the yolk into the hole and add the olive oil, salt and water.
• Using a fork beat the eggs together with the olive oil, water and salt. Then begin to incorporate the flour into the egg mixture with the fork; be careful not to break the sides of the well or the egg mixture will run all over your board and you will have a big mess! Also, don't worry about the lumps. When enough flour has been incorporated into the egg mixture that it will not run all over the place when the sides of the well are broken, begin to use your hands to really get everything well combined. If the mixture is tight and dry, wet your hands and begin kneading with wet hands. When the mixture has really come together to a homogeneous dough, THEN you can start kneading.
• When kneading it is VERY important to put your body weight into it, get on top of the dough to really stretch it and not to tear the dough. Using the heels of your palms, roll the dough to create a very smooooooth, supple pasta dough. When done the dough should look VERY smooth and feel almost velvety. Kneading will usually take from 8 to 10 minutes for an experienced kneader and 10 to 15 for an inexperienced kneader. Put your body weight into it, you need to knead! This is where the perfect, toothsome texture of your pasta is formed. Get in there and have fun!
• When the pasta has been kneaded to the perfect consistency, wrap it in plastic and let rest for at least 1 hour. If using immediately after 1 hour, do not refrigerate.
• Divide the dough in half, then cut off a piece about the size of a tennis ball. (Keep the remaining dough wrapped.) Using your hands, flatten the dough and sprinkle with a little flour. Pass the dough through the pasta machine on the widest setting (#1), then fold each end towards the center like an envelope. Dust with more flour, then pass through the machine again. Repeat this process 3 to 4 times, folding the dough and flouring each time. Decrease the width to #2 and pass through the machine. Fold again and dust with flour. Continue to #3 and repeat, just folding and flouring once until you've reached #5.
• Sprinkle a sheet tray with semolina flour and set aside. Trim the edges of the dough sheet to make a large rectangle. Divide it in half by cutting down the center, then cut the dough into roughly 2-by-1 1/2-inch rectangles. Roll each rectangle around a wooden garganelli dowel to create a cylinder with a triangular tip on either end, and use a little water to secure the seam. Set onto the sheet tray with semolina flour and repeat the rolling, cutting and shaping process with the remaining fresh pasta dough.
• To serve: Set up a large pot of boiling water and generously season with kosher salt. It should be as salty as the sea. Add the garganelli and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. (Work in batches if you like.)
• Meanwhile, add the desired amount of sauce to a saute pan and place over medium heat to warm. Add the cooked garganelli directly from boiling water into the ragu along with a ladle of pasta water. Toss to combine until all the noodles are nicely coated. Add the parmesan cheese and a big drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil. Toss to combine. Plate, then top with more parmesan and a dollop of fresh ricotta cheese.

GARGANELLI WITH RAGù ANTICA

Steps:

• In a large soup pot or Dutch oven, heat 3 tablespoons of the olive oil over medium heat. Add onion, carrot and celery and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Add tomatoes one at a time, crushing them by hand, and adding any juice from the can. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and reduce heat to low.
• Heat remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add beef, pork, veal and chicken livers, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook, breaking the pieces with a wooden spoon, until the meat is no longer pink, about 7 minutes.
• Using a slotted spoon, transfer the meat to the sauce. Add rosemary, sage, bay leaves and Parmigiano rind, if using. Cover, and simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Discard rosemary, sage, bay leaves and cheese rind. Adjust salt and pepper to taste.
• Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling, lightly salted water until al dente (about 2 minutes for fresh pasta, or follow manufacturer's directions for dried), then drain well. Divide the pasta among four plates or bowls, and top with ragù.

GARGANELLI WITH PORK RAGU

Steps:

• Season pork butt with salt and pepper. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large ovenproof heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Brown pork, turning pieces occasionally, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Using slotted spoon, transfer to a large bowl. Add sausage to pot. Cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Transfer to bowl with pork.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Add remaining 2 tablespoons oil to pot, and heat until hot but not smoking. Add onion and garlic; cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in carrot and celery; cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 4 minutes.
• Add tomato paste; cook, stirring occasionally, 7 minutes. Stir in mortadella, herbs, chile, pork, sausage, and any juices from bowl. Stir in milk, and let mixture come to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low; cook, stirring occasionally, until milk has been absorbed, 20 to 30 minutes. Gradually stir in wine and stock. Bring to simmer over medium-high heat.
• Cover pot; transfer to oven. Cook, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid has been absorbed, and meat is very tender, about 3 hours. If liquid is absorbed before meat is tender, add water (about 1 cup at a time), and continue cooking. Season with salt and pepper.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil; add salt. Add pasta; cook until al dente. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup pasta water. Add pasta to pork ragu; toss well, adding up to 1/2 cup pasta water if pasta seems dry. Serve with Parmesan.

GARGANELLI WITH RAGù BOLOGNESE

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)