And over the course of those three years, I reference this blog and recommend the recipes to others looking for something specific, all while thinking about how much I miss it. I do miss it.
I could make a million excuses, some whimpy and some serious (like that whole second baby, adopt a puppy, live a life thing) but we don't have time for that.
Yesterday I made the ragu to end all ragu. It was for Husband's Valentine's dinner/gift, on a day with a high of 10*F and another impending snow storm to add to the 4 feet of snow we already have. This morning I woke up to see a comment on my instagram photo from my friend, Mikey, in Germany. He asked me for the recipe so he could "trap a man... I mean, eat a delicious meal!" If ever there was a dish to trap another human being in the dead cold of winter, this would be it. (Unless they were vegetarian. But I would argue that you could still try. It is that good.) I had to write it down for him.
So, Mikey, and all others who like to eat, I give you:
Braised Brisket Ragu
This recipe takes hours. It is a lot of set up and walk away, but you will want to be around. (I'm very type B. Any sort of planning beyond thinking about it in the grocery store is "extra work" to me.)
You will need:
For the sauce:
1lb beef brisket, trimmed
2 boneless country-style pork ribs (about 1/2 lb)
2 c red wine
2 TBS soy sauce
3 large cans (the 28oz ones) of whole, peeled tomatoes
3 cloves of garlic, chopped (or some pre-chopped stuff from a jar)
8 cloves garlic, peeled and whole (more if you want a garlic-y sauce)
1 onion, peeled and cut into quarters
1 TBS olive oil
2 bay leaves
2 tsp dried thyme (a fresh sprig or two would be better, but Snowmageddon happened here)
salt & fresh ground pepper
For fresh pasta dough for 3-4 people:
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups pasta flour
2 eggs
OR you can buy a wide, long pasta. My preferred pasta with this sort of ragu is tagliatelle, which you can't find in stores around here. It is easier and cheaper to make it myself, and tastes so much better.
Step One: Marinading the meat
Ideally, you want to do this the night before. If you are like me and were planning on a completely different meal until 9am, then marinade as soon as you can, for at least a few hours.
Cube up the brisket and the pork into giant chunks. Put it in a container with the wine, soy sauce, chopped garlic, one bay leaf, and one teaspoon of thyme. Put it in the refrigerator and give it a vigorous shake every once in a while.
Step 2: Roasting the rest
This step should start at least 4 hours before mealtime, or you can do this ahead. In fact, you could make the whole thing a day earlier, as sitting for a day just melds the flavors into something magical. But then you are really taunting yourself with a house that smells ridiculously amazing and nothing to eat.
Preheat the oven to 425F with a rack right in the middle.
Drain all the tomatoes, reserving their juice. The best way to do this is to toss them in a strainer over a bowl. If they are particularly saucy, you can run about 1/4 cup water over them into the bowl, too. Let them sit there for about 10 minutes.
Place the drained tomatoes in a large dutch oven (or any oven-safe, stove-safe, heavy-bottomed, coverable pot you own) and toss with the whole garlic, onion, olive oil, and about 1 tsp salt.
Now is also the time to take your meat out of the refrigerator.
Put the pot in the oven and let them get good and roasty. I had to periodically drain mine (save that juice!), every 30 minutes or so. You want to roast them until they start to char a bit. Char on the pot bottom is good, too, so don't worry about not stirring them or that you will spend the remainder of your days scrubbing the pot. Mine took about 90 minutes to get nice and roasted, as you can more or less see below.
Once your tomatoes are roasted, scoop them out of the pot. You can put them back in with their juices. Sorry. I should have told you this is the meal of ten thousand dishes, too.
Lower the temperature of the oven to 300F.
Strain the meat, reserving the marinade. I couldn't take the thought of one more dish, so I just picked pieces out and let them drip off a bit as needed.
Sear the meat in small batches over medium-high heat, in the pot you just took the tomatoes from. Set aside once seared.
Some people see a hot mess. I only see flavor. Deglaze the pan with the wine marinade.
Once the wine reduces by half (simmer for about 10 minutes) add in the tomatoes. Crush them with a potato smasher or spoon. Add the meat back to the pot, along with all the accumulated juices.
Add in the rest of the thyme and bay leaf, and put it in the oven, uncovered, for at least an hour. There is no wrong, just right.
Step 3: is optional, but preferred.
Make the pasta.
I wouldn't do this if I didn't have a pasta roller attachment. Thank you, KitchenAid. You make my Italian heart sing.
It is very simple.
I like to work with half the ingredients at a time, since I usually have little hands trying to help, and this can be a bit finicky.
Alternate pouring cups of flour onto a clean surface (cutting board), starting with the all-purpose flour. One cup all purpose, one cup pasta... until you have a flour mountain. Then take the back of the measuring cup and push the mountain peak down and sides out to make a flour nest.
Crack your eggs right in the middle.
Start working flour into the eggs slowly, while maintaining the nest. I know how it sounds, but years of playing in sand boxes and with playdough have readied you for this moment.
Once your egg and flour mess starts to turn into a sticky dough ball, use some of the remaining flour (there is likely a good amount still) to powder another part of the board. Start kneading the dough. And knead. Flour the board and your hands as needed. If the dough gets too dry (crumbly) add a few drops of water, knead a little more. After about 2 minutes or so you should have a nice doughy ball. Wrap it in plastic (or cover it with a bowl) and let it set for at least 10 minutes, no more than 30.
(This is just enough time to trip down your stairs and sprain your foot. Ask me how I know.)
Run your pasta through the rollers until you get it to the thickness you prefer. This meal does better with a thicker pasta. For me, that is setting 7 on my rollers.
Using a straight blade knife or pizza cutter, cut the pasta into strips 1/2" wide. Tagliatelle. Bam.
Toss the pasta in a little flour and just let it hang out until it is time to cook it.
Step 4: Home stretch!
This one is a pain. Take the pot from the oven and put it near your cutting board. You are going to need a few forks.
One cube at a time, shred the meat and return it to the pot. Give it a good stir. Taste test the sauce at this point and add salt and pepper as desired. It still has some cooking to go, so don't overdo it. If your sauce became particularly thick or strong, add some water.
Cover the pot and put it back in the oven. I lowered mine down to 200 and left it for another hour. Additionally, you could keep it at 300 and just shut it off after 20-30 minutes.
Boil and salt the water for your pasta, whichever it may be. If you made pasta, it takes about 2 minutes to cook, so keep a close eye on it!
Step 5: Eat!
Serve with crusty Italian bread and top with plenty of fresh cheese. We drank a beautiful pinot noir with this dish, and it was perfect.
Enjoy!
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