Skip's Food Blog: Pasta al Ragù di Cervo

recently learned—this being my first full winter in Noank—we have a robust deer population in the area. And as I've made the acquaintance of several local chefs over the past year, I've benefited from their largesse from time to time. Most recently, that largesse came in the form of 1.6 Lb. of venison shoulder.

I happen to know it was 1.6 pounds, because I weighed it on my nifty new digital kitchen scale. I also discovered, with the press of a button on the scale, that it weighed 726 grams as well. The scale, by the way, represented largesse of another kind at Christmas.

Of course, my first thought was Ragù di Cervo,venison ragu, served over pasta. The venison reminded me of one of the more memorable meals I've eaten over time; Ragù di Cinghiale, wild boar ragu. This was at a little trattoria in the Oltrarno district of Florence called—perhaps not by coincidence—Il Cinghiale Bianco, The White Boar.

But memorable meals aside, the reason I thought about ragu was that venison is tough; both literally and figuratively. Venison simply doesn't have a lot of fat, and therefore can be difficult to tenderize. While tenderloin can be seared and finished quickly in a hot oven, the rest of the animal usually needs a marinade and slow roast, or braise.

In the case of my venison, it came pre-chopped because my friend was planning to grind it further for venison sausages. That too aided my decision to make ragu. And since the meat was already chopped into very small pieces, I was able to forgo the marinade and get straight to cooking.

You'll find all the usual suspects in the recipe that follows: a batutto of carrot, celery, onion, parsley, and garlic; abundant red wine; and San Marzano tomatoes. Rosemary, sage, and a slightly non-traditional ingredient, ginepro, juniper berries, make appearances as well. Other than that, all you'll need is time and perhaps the addition of chicken stock.

Note: Italians typically serve Ragù di Cervo with Papardelle. But as I was fishing around Google, looking for more background on the dish, I discovered that the folks in Friuli in northeastern Italy, have no objection to serving their ragu with Farfalle. I'm sure it would be great with Rigatoni as well.

Pasta al Ragù di Cervo
Pasta with Venison Ragu

Ingredients:

1 Medium carrot, peeled and roughly chopped
1 Medium stalk of celery, roughly chopped
1 Medium yellow onion, peeled and roughly chopped
2 - 4 Cloves garlic, peeled
4 Tbs. Flat-leaf Italian parsley
Olive oil
1 1/2 - 2 Lb. Venison shoulder, chopped into approximately 1/2 in. pieces
1 - 1 1/2 Cups dry red wine
1 Cup Italian plum tomatoes (preferably San Marzano)
4 - 6 Sage leaves, finely chopped
1 Sprig rosemary, leaves only
1 Tbs. Juniper berries, crushed
Salt & Freshly ground black pepper
Chicken stock - as needed
1 Lb. Papardelle, or Farfalle
Additional parsley for garnish

Preparation:

Place the carrot, celery, onion, garlic, and parsley in the bowl of the Cuisinart, and pulse approximately ten times at one second per pulse.

Heat a large sauté pan over medium-high heat, then add enough olive oil to cover the pan bottom. Add the batutto, season with salt and pepper, and sauté for approximately ten minutes, or until the vegetables have wilted and begun to turn golden brown.

Add the venison, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, and sauté until there is no trace of pink left to the meat.

Raise the heat to high, and add enough red wine to completely cover the meat. Boil until the wine has reduced by approximately half.

Lower the heat to medium-low and add the tomatoes, breaking them up with the back of a fork as they go in. Taste for seasoning, and add salt and pepper as necessary. Add the sage, rosemary, and juniper berries. If the meat is not completely submerged in liquid, add enough chicken stock to cover the meat.

Regulate the heat so the meat barely simmers, and simmer, uncovered, for approximately two hours. If too much liquid evaprorates during that period, add more chicken stock as necessary.

At serving time, bring a large pot of salted water (at least six quarts) to the boil and add the pasta. Cook until just at the al dente state, remove from the heat and drain in a collander.

Return the pasta pot to the stove, add the drained pasta, and pour the sauce over all. Cook over low heat for two or three minutes, tossing constantly to thoroughly combine the sauce and pasta.

To Serve:

Divide the pasta equally among six dishes, and garnish with the remaining chopped parsley.

Serves six.

Note also: This is a very rich, earthy dish. So if you're serving an entrée to follow the pasta, this recipe will easily feed eight as a primo piatto.