A recent food challenge in the Riegl kitchen involved a bottle red wine that we decided was better to cook with rather than drink. I’ve been thinking autumn for the last few weeks despite the thermometer wanting to hold onto summer temperatures, so went searching for a red wine-based pasta sauce.
I looked online and through my cookbook collection and landed on a great recipe from Biba Caggiano in her 1992 Trattoria Cooking cookbook. My parents gave me this cookbook after our first trip to Italy in 1994. I wrote in a recent post, Hugo Spritz, about my architectural obsession with the Pantheon in Rome. According to Caggiano this recipe was inspired by The Pantheon Trattoria (perhaps the present day Armando al Pantheon?) located on the square facing this amazing structure. As soon as I read this I knew I’d found a recipe with which I could work.
This recipe starts with soaking porcini mushrooms – both the mushrooms and soaking liquid go into making the sauce. I added to this many ingredients from Growing Roots’ Farmers Market in Malvern, PA. Fresh shiitake mushrooms from Full Circle CSA (I can never have too many mushrooms!), carrots, celery and onions from Mount Pleasant Produce, and sweet Italian sausage from Walnut Creek Farm. The ground veal came from Worrell’s Butcher Shop just down the street. The key for me is letting the ragù cook for an hour (once all the ingredients are added) so the flavors can develop. I was surprised at how many recipes I saw that say to cook a ragù for 20 minutes or so. That’s just not enough time – if you’ve made the effort to find good ingredients then give the time needed to let them cook into a complex-flavored sauce. I doubled this recipe and froze the sauce in two-serving containers. Dare I say it was even better the second time we had it!
Since making this recipe I found out that Biba Caggiano passed away last month at the age of 82. Now I’m even more happy to have selected Caggiano’s recipe for my food challenge. I grateful for the many fabulous recipes she has left behind.
Gluten-Free/Wheat-Free Option: This sauce is naturally gluten/wheat free. I first served it with Cappello’s spaghetti (made with almond flour) and then with DeLallo’s potato gnocchi. Both were delicious.
| Pantheon Ragù | | Print |
- 1 ounce dried porcini mushrooms
- 1 28 ounce can San Marzano whole tomatoes
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- ½ half medium onion, diced
- 2 medium carrots, diced
- 2 celery stalks, diced
- 3 ounces fresh shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and caps sliced
- 3 garlic cloves, crushed
- ½ pound ground veal
- ½ pound sweet Italian sausage, casings removed
- 1 cup dry red wine
- Fine sea salt and freshly ground pepper
- ½ cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese plus more for serving
- Soak dried porcini mushrooms in 2 cups warm water for about 20 minutes. Strain mushrooms and reserve liquid. Rinse mushrooms well under water and transfer to a plate. Line same strainer with two paper towels and strain mushroom liquid into a 2 cup measuring cup (or bowl) to remove any sandy deposits. Set both aside. There's no need to chop the mushrooms unless they are overly big.
- Add can of tomatoes (with their sauce) to a medium bowl. Crush tomatoes with your hand. Set aside.
- In a 4 to 5 quart Dutch oven, heat butter and olive oil over medium heat. Once butter foams, add onion, carrots, celery and fresh shiitake mushrooms. Cook, stirring occasionally until soft, about 5 minutes.
- Add garlic and stir for 1 minute.
- Add veal and sausage. Cook, stirring and breaking up meat with back of wooden spoon until meat is lightly colored, about 10 minutes.
- Add porcini mushrooms and red wine. Raise heat to high and cook until wine is almost evaporated, about 2 to 4 minutes.
- Stir in crushed tomatoes (with sauce) and 1 cup porcini mushroom soaking liquid and bring to a simmer.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- Turn heat down to low and simmer (uncovered), stirring occasionally for 60 to 75 minutes or until sauce has a medium-thick consistency. If sauce is too thick, add a bit more porcini mushroom soaking liquid.
- Stir in Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.
- Serve sauce hot on your favorite pasta. Or cool and refrigerate (for up to 5 days) or freeze (for up to 3 months).
Source: Adapted from Biba Caggiano’ Trattoria Cooking (1992)
I know where you get it. Your grandmother cooked her pasta sauce for several hours. Delicious.
Dad – A wonderful family trait! And, I thought I was channeling my Sicilian mother-in-law!
I’m happy to report that in his retirement, your uncle has started cooking on Thursday nights and made this fabulously flavored ragu last night. He used fresh Italian sausage and veal from our local Ma & Pa butcher and tomatoes from our garden. He did ask me two questions which I couldn’t answer: 1. Do you chop the mushrooms? 2. Do you simmer with the lid on or off?
Susie – I love hearing this! Way to go Christopher. And, good questions. I just updated the recipe to address both. No need to chop the porcini mushrooms but I do recommend slicing the fresh shiitake mushrooms. And, no need to cover the sauce when it’s simmering. The original recipe actually called for this and it didn’t cook down enough. Ed and I conferred and agreed that we’d not cover it in the future. Keep the questions coming!
Thank you! This recipe is definitely a ‘keeper!’
Excellent!