White ragu sauce in one hour ( Italian ragù bianco)
A delicious and creamy white ragu sauce, aka ragù bianco, made with pancetta and ground pork. This pasta dish is a perfect comfort food to eat on those chilly nights and brings a warm, festive touch to any holiday gathering. The good new is that is ready in 1 hour and it can be prepared in advance.
Servings: 4 people
Calories: 1559kcal
Equipment
- 1 Chopping board and Vegetable Knife
- 1 Medium sauce pan
- 1 Food processor
- 1 Wooden spoon
Ingredients
- 1 carrot
- 1 medium onion
- 1 celery stalk
- 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2 fresh bay leaves
- 3 juniper berries
- 1 fresh rosemary spring
- 100 gr smoked pancetta 3½ oz
- 350 gr ground pork 12.34 oz
- 100 ml white wine such as pinot grigio, verdicchio or chardonnay 3.38 fl oz
- 740 ml beef broth or veggies one (keep it warm) 26,10 oz
- 50 gr unsalted butter 1.8 oz
- 300 gr pasta 10.58 oz
- Salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Start by making the vegetables for the soffritto. Cut into chunks the carrot, celery and onion. Add them a food processor and blitz the vegetables until are finely shredded.
- Add the olive oil along with the vegetables, herbs and the juniper in a sauce pan. Turn the heat on medium-low heat. Fry the soffritto for 6-8 minutes, or until they become pale. Mix and scrub the bottom of the pan with a wooden spatula.
- Add the pancetta and give it a good stir and make sure to scrub the bottom of the pan. After 5 minutes add the ground pork, mix everything together and with a wooden spatula break down the meant by pushing it down. Cook all for 8 minutes. Keep stirring and scrubbing. You might see that the bottom of the pan is getting brownish, don't worry. We will deglaze it later with the wine.
- After 8 minutes pour the white wine and turn the heat to high. Make sure to stir and scrub down any brown bits from the bottom.
- Once the alcohol is evaporated, turn the heat to low and add some parts of the broth into the pan to cover slightly the meat. Give a good mix with a wooden spatula. Once is staring to dry up add more broth and keep stirring every now and then. Make sure that the broth is always warm. Don't leave the ragu alone, keep stirring.
- Cook the ragu until all the broth is being used and the ragu has became a creamy consistency.
- After 20 minutes the sauce should be coming together. Add the butter and stir to combine. Taste to adjust the salt and black pepper, if needed.
- Cook the pasta of your choice, in plenty of salted boiling water. Once it's al dente, reserve some pasta water. Add the pasta water into the ragu along with the drained pasta. Mix well, then add some grated Parmigiano Reggiano. Toss again and served with some more grated Parmigiano Reggiano.
Notes
Store
- Fridge - Place the leftovers in an airtight container for about three days. For the best experience, reheat the ragu before serving in a frying pan with a splash of water.
- Freezer - Once it has completely cooled, transfer the leftovers into small airtight containers and place them in the freezer. I like to divide the leftovers into smaller portions for easy, ready-to-eat servings. They will stay fresh for up to one month. When needed, defrost them in the fridge for 12 hours before reheating, then follow the instructions above.
Quick and easy, ragu, white sauce
