This is the weeknight ragù — not the Sunday-sauce three-hour kind, but the fast, honest version built from ground pork and big flavors. Fennel seed and Calabrian chili do the heavy lifting. The fennel opens the pork up; the Calabrian chili adds heat that's earthy rather than sharp.
San Marzanos, a glass of red wine, twenty minutes on a simmer — and you have something that tastes like it's been going all day. The shape matters too. Mezze rigatoni is short, ridged, hollow. It doesn't just carry the sauce — it holds it.
Chapter: Weeknight Dinners · Cuisine: Italian-American
Ingredients
- 1 lb mezze rigatoni
- 1½ lbs ground pork
- 1½ tsp fennel seeds — lightly toasted and coarsely crushed
- 1 tbsp Calabrian chili paste — or to taste
- 1 medium yellow onion — finely diced
- 4 cloves garlic — finely minced
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- ½ cup dry red wine
- 1 can (28 oz) crushed San Marzano tomatoes
- 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 oz Parmigiano-Reggiano — finely grated, plus more for serving
- Kosher salt and black pepper
- Fresh basil — torn, for serving
Method
- Heat olive oil in a wide, heavy pot over medium-high. Add ground pork, season with salt and pepper, and cook without stirring for 3–4 minutes to develop a deep brown crust. Break up the meat and continue cooking until no pink remains and everything smells caramelized, about 8 minutes total.
- Add fennel seeds and Calabrian chili paste. Stir for 1 minute. Add onion and garlic, reduce heat to medium, and cook until softened, about 4 minutes.
- Add tomato paste and stir into the meat, cooking for 2 minutes until it darkens slightly. Add red wine, scraping up any browned bits. Simmer until wine reduces by half, about 3 minutes.
- Add San Marzanos, breaking them up with a spoon. Bring to a simmer and cook over medium-low for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until sauce thickens and the fat begins to pool at the surface — that's the flavor.
- Cook mezze rigatoni in generously salted boiling water until just al dente. Reserve ½ cup pasta water before draining. Add pasta to the ragù with a splash of pasta water. Toss over medium heat for 2 minutes.
- Off heat, stir in Parmigiano. Plate in warm bowls, finish with basil and more cheese at the table.
Find 35 more recipes like this in The One Clog Cookbook: Italian Dinner Party — Modern Italian American.
Cook with intention. Feel and taste your way through it. Keep one clog in the kitchen. Always.
— Brian W. Bonanno