Papardelle with Duck Ragu

A few weeks ago I had Duck Ragu for lunch at one of my favourite Toronto lunch spots, Mercatto. It was rich, delicious and something I knew I wanted to make at home eventually.

Since tomorrow is my 19th wedding anniversary, I thought it might be nice to make something a bit laborious and luxurious to celebrate the day I made Glen the happiest man on the planet. Ha ha! Well, it hasn't always been easy, and we've certainly had our moments but making it to 19 years these days is a massive achievement in tolerance, patience, understanding and, of course, love.  Happy anniversary tomorrow!

While on a different kitchen mission, I stumbled across Gwyneth's Paltrow's cookbook called My Father's Daughter at Home Sense, and it contained a recipe for Duck Ragu, so I picked it up with plans to make one weekend.   The below recipe has been adapted from Gwyneth's recipe with a bit of Sandra thrown in for good measure, as usual.

I will reserve the duck fat that comes off for making potatoes another time - potatoes cooked in duck fat are one of the most wonderful things in the world. Sorry if I offended any vegetarians there, but it is true. I also have plans to make a duck stock and turn that into a soup with soba noodles and enoki mushrooms if I can find them. Maybe even some Korean pancakes on the side, but that's another day and another post.....

Papardelle with Duck Ragu

1 medium sized duck, washed and dried
1 tablespoon coarse sea saltFreshly ground black pepper

To Roast the duck:

Preheat the oven to 350°F.  Sprinkle the duck with salt and pepper, inside and out. Roast for about of 2 hours, flipping it from its back to its breast (and vice versa) every 1/2 hour. Let it cool in the pan until you can handle it. Drain off the fat and reserve it for another use.

To make the Ragu:

4 slices bacon, diced

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium yellow onion, peeled and finely diced
2 medium carrots, peeled and finely diced
3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

3-4 sprigs fresh thyme, bruised but whole
2 cans San Marzano tomatoes with their juice, chopped
1 jar passata from San Marzano tomatoes
1 cup red wine, preferably Italian
500 g (1 lb) pappardelle

While the duck is roasting, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat and add the bacon. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until starting to crisp. Add the onion, carrots, celery, garlic, and rosemary, turn the heat down to low, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10-15 minutes, or until softened.

Roughly dice the tomatoes as you take them out of the can.  A good trick I learned from our Chef is to pierce each tomato with a knife as you take them out of the can, to allow any juice inside the tomato to come out, making them easier to dice.

Add the diced tomatoes and their juice and the jar of passata (tomato pureé)  to the pot.  Put a little bit water in the cans and jars and  swish it around to get all the tomato stuck to the sides pour into the pot.

Add the wine, a good grind of pepper, and a large pinch of salt. Bring sauce to a boil over medium heat, and and then turn the heat down low and let simmer for about 1 hour.

About 15-20 minutes before you want to eat, bring a very large pot of water to a boil over high heat.  As the water comes to a boil, add 2 tablespoons of salt to the water.  The water should taste slightly salty and almost like the sea.  Add the pasta and cook according to package directions (approximately 6-8 minutes).  When finished cooking then drain well.  Return the pasta to the pot, and add a few large ladles of ragu to the pasta and toss.  

To serve, place coated pasta in a large bowl, pour a ladlefull of ragu over the pasta.  Sprinkle with grated parmesan cheese and chopped parsley if desired.