Baked ziti with slow-cooked pork ragu


I made this on New Year's Eve last year for a fairly demanding and sophisticated foodie crowd.

Originally I'd just wanted to make something that could be prepared a day before and heated up with minimal effort during the evening -- we'd spent the day on a limousine tour of champagne vineyards in Sonoma County, and we'd known in advance that we'd likely be incapacitated enough that cooking an elaborate meal from scratch would be well nigh impossible.


But even with a tough crowd, the dish was a hit far beyond my wildest imagining. As they ate, the other guests spoke of comforting baked pasta dishes they'd eaten over the course of their lives, and the contexts in which they were served, and their memories of family and friends. They laughed a lot. They drank a lot. And even after a day of champagne and a huge lunch at Willi's Wine Bar, they wouldn't...stop...eating.

The next day, people were calling the hostess and announcing their intention to return...but only if there was more of that baked ziti.

This is something to spend your time on; the sauce repays the love you put into it. The sour cream, which I originally thought of as a cheap trick, confers an ineffable richness and pleasantly surprising tartness, preventing the fatigue that would otherwise set in sometime during your third helping.

Share it with a big group of your dearest friends, in your favorite room in the world.

This recipe serves eight people for two days. :-)

SAUCE:

olive oil – 2 T
bacon – 2 slices
pork shoulder – 2 lbs. (cut into 1” cubes)
hot Italian sausage – 1 lb. (casing removed, cut into 1” segments)

onion – 1 large (coarsely sliced)
garlic – 8 cloves (sliced)
carrots – 2 (coarsely sliced)
celery – 2 stalks (coarsely sliced)
thyme – 6 large sprigs
bay leaves – 2
red pepper – 1/2 t
wine, red – 2 c
beef stock – 2 c (use the low-sodium variety)
tomatoes – 1 28-oz. can


PASTA:

ziti or rigatoni – 1.25 lb. (cooked)
mozzarella – 8 oz. (coarsely grated)
provolone – 8 oz. (coarsel, grated)
sour cream – 1 c (whipped)
parmesan – 8 oz. (grated)


1.Heat the oil in a tall sauce pot over medium-high heat. Brown the meats separately (bacon, pork shoulder, sausage), and set them aside in a covered bowl. Crumble the bacon. Remove excess oil, leaving 2-3 T.

2. In the browning oil, cook the vegetables (onions, garlic, carrots, celery) until the vegetables are slightly soft. Throw in the herbs (thyme, bay, pepper) and cook for a minute or so. Add some salt, but remember to add less if you’re using canned stock.

3. Add liquids (wine, stock, tomatoes) and the browned meats. Add enough water that the meat isn’t poking out of the sauce. Bring to a boil and then cut back to a bare simmer. Cover and cook for two hours. Skim excess fat occasionally.

4. Using a wooden spoon, find the pork cubes and press them against the side of the pot, so that they come apart into individual fibers. Leave the sausage alone. Simmer for a while longer, and make a final adjustment for consistency and seasoning. This sauce gets better if it sits for a couple of days, but can be used immediately.

5. To assemble: Butter a rectangular ceramic dish (I use a Le Creuset 15"x10"). Add the ingredients in layers: half the pasta, provolone, sour cream, half the sauce, the rest of the pasta, the mozzarella, the rest of the sauce, and finally the parmesan. Cover and refrigerate.

6. To cook: Take the dish out an hour ahead of cooking time. Preheat oven to 400°F and cook uncovered for 15 min or until the cheese is browned on top, at which point cover loosely with foil. Continue to cook until warmed through, around 15-20 minutes more. Rest for 10-15 minutes before cutting.


I forgot to take a close-up picture of the dish itself but I remembered to document the setting.




Posted: Mon - January 3, 2005 at 09:59 AM          

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