Venetian duck ragu
By Cassie Best
Cinnamon adds complexity to this slow-cooked pasta sauce, which goes perfectly with large tubular paccheri pasta, or ribbons of pappardelle
-
Prep:15 mins
Cook:2 hrs 30 mins
- Serves 6
- Easy
Nutrition per serving
-
kcal 505
-
fat 12g
-
saturates 2g
-
carbs 62g
-
sugars 8g
-
fibre 2g
-
protein 30g
-
salt 0.9g
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 4 duck legs
- 2 onions, finely chopped
- 2 fat garlic cloves, crushed
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 2 tsp plain flour
- 250ml red wine
- 2 x 400g cans chopped tomatoes
- 1 chicken stock cube, made up to 250ml
- 3 rosemary sprigs, leaves picked and chopped
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 tsp sugar
- 2 tbsp milk
- 600g paccheri or pappardelle pasta
- Parmesan, grated, to serve
Method
Heat the oil in a large pan. Add the duck legs and brown on all sides for about 10 mins. Remove to a plate and set aside. Add the onions to the pan and cook for 5 mins until softened. Add the garlic and cook for a further 1 min, then stir in the cinnamon and flour and cook for a further min. Return the duck to the pan, add the wine, tomatoes, stock, herbs, sugar and seasoning. Bring to a simmer, then lower the heat, cover with a lid and cook for 2 hrs, stirring every now and then.
Carefully lift the duck legs out of the sauce and place on a plate – they will be very tender so try not to lose any of the meat. Pull off and discard the fat, then shred the meat with 2 forks and discard the bones. Add the meat back to the sauce with the milk and simmer, uncovered, for a further 10-15 mins while you cook the pasta.
Cook the pasta following pack instructions, then drain, reserving a cup of the pasta water, and add the pasta to the ragu. Stir to coat all the pasta in the sauce and cook for 1 min more, adding a splash of cooking liquid if it looks dry. Serve with grated Parmesan, if you like.
