Sausage Ragù with Pasta

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 180 °C conventional (160 °C fan). In a heavy pot with a lid, heat the oil over medium heat and cook the onion, garlic, carrot, celery and fennel seeds for about 8 minutes, until the carrot is soft and sweet but without colour.
2. Turn up the heat, add the sausage meat and break it up as small as possible, stirring, until it is no longer pink. It will not brown much and will not break down as finely as mince; that is made up for later.
3. Fry the tomato purée for 1 minute, then pour in the wine and boil hard for about 2 minutes until reduced by half, scraping the bottom clean.
4. Stir in the stock, tomatoes, thyme, bay, salt, pepper and, if you like, chilli and bring to the boil. Braise with the lid on in the oven for 1 hour.
5. Take the pot out and mash the meat finely with a potato masher. Put it back in the oven with the lid on for 45 minutes. The ragù becomes thick; it is loosened later with pasta water. Remove the thyme sprigs and bay and adjust the salt.
6. Cook the pasta in plenty of salted water according to the packet instructions. Shortly before draining, scoop out about 350 ml of cooking water.
7. Put the ragù on the hob over medium heat, add the pasta with about 120 ml pasta water and toss with two spoons until the sauce clings to the ribbons. Add more pasta water if needed.
8. Serve immediately in warmed bowls with Parmesan and a little parsley.

Drink with it

• Red wine · excellent match

  Chianti Classico or Montepulciano d'Abruzzo

  The acidity of the red wine cuts the fat of the sausage, and cherry fruit and herbal notes complement tomato and fennel seeds.

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• Red wine · good match

  Barbera

  High acidity with little tannin keeps the dense, fatty ragù fresh.

• Dark beer · good match

  Dark lager or Märzen

  Malty roasted notes meet the braised sausage, and the carbonation dissolves the fat.

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