Slow-cooked Neapolitan Ragú

Walking the streets of Naples early Sunday morning, you hear a familiar noise and smell: the slow bubble of a nonna’s ragu that has been boiling overnight. Prepped the night before, this delicious elixir is perhaps one of the most quintessential dishes of Neapolitan cuisine: Ragu. In Neapolitan dialect, it is called ‘O Rrau ra dummeneca, or the sunday Ragu. It is a fairly simple recipe that consists of various cuts of meat such as beef short rib, pork butt, and Italian sausages. It is cooked on a low heat for a MINIMUM of 8 hours in tomato puree called passata. Throw in some basil and top with Parmiggiano Reggiano cheese – Thats Amore!

For this recipe, I used Barilla Ziti Pasta, 16 oz and Mutti Passata 700g – Pack of 2 for the ingredients. For me, Mutti Passata 700g – Pack of 2 is hands-down the best tomato puree as it is directly from Italy and very widely sold and used in Italy. Let us know what you think of the recipe.

Neapolitan Ragú

A traditional Neapolitan sunday lunch dish that is slow cooked for a minimum of 8 hours before serving. It contains various meats such as beef and pork that release their flavor into the sauce making a delicious Italian dish.
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 8 hours
Course Main Course
Cuisine Italian, Neapolitan
Servings 6 people
Calories 913 kcal

Equipment

  • Large pot

Ingredients
  

  • 5 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 1 whole Onion
  • 2 tbsp Salt
  • 1/2 cup Red wine
  • 1 cup Water
  • 1 lb Beef short rib
  • 1 lb Pork butt
  • 4 whole Italian Sausages
  • 6 whole Basil leaves
  • 2 bottles Mutti Tomato Puree Passata
  • 1 package Barilla Ziti Pasta

Instructions
 

Ingredient Prep:

  • Chop the whole onion into small pieces and place it into the large pot along with the olive oil.
  • Cut the pork butt, beef short rib and sausages into medium 2 inch pieces.

Cooking:

  • Cook the onions in the olive oil on a medium high heat until they begin to wilt and turn golden brown
  • Add the meats to the onions and stir well.
  • Add the wine and stir until the wine has evaporated.
  • Cook the meat for three minutes and then add the tomato puree.
  • Add a ½ cup of water into each empty puree bottle and shake well and pour into the pot. The purpose of this is to wash out every last bit of puree.
  • Bring the mix to a boil and then immediately reduce the temperature to the lowest possible. Add the basil leaves and tbsp of salt and mix well.
  • Cook the sauce for 8 hours on a low heat stirring occasionally.
  • After 8 hours has passed, begin to boil a large pot of water for the pasta.
  • Once the water is boiling, add the ziti and cook for 10 minutes.
  • When the pasta is done cooking, strain the pasta into a colander and place it back into the pot.
  • Add a couple of ladle fulls of the sauce to the pasta and mix well.
  • Place the pasta in a plate and grate Parmiggiano Reggiano cheese on top. Buon Appetito!
Keyword Basil, Naples, Pasta, Ragu, Sunday lunch, Zitti

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