Oxtail Ragu with Pappardelle ##
An Original Recipe by Not Quite Nigella
Preparation time: 10 minutes for ragu, 25 minutes for pappardelle
Cooking time: 2, 4 or 8 hours (depending on how you choose to cook it) for ragu, 5-10 minutes for pappardelle
- 2 tablespoons olive oil for frying
- 1 onion, peeled and diced
- 2 carrots, diced
- 3 sticks celery, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, peeled
- 2 bay leaves
- 1.2kgs/2.64lbs oxtail
- 1/4 cup porcini mushrooms soaked in 1/2 cup hot water
- 410g/14oz tin crushed tomatoes
- 1/2 cup tomato paste
- 1 cup red wine
- Salt, pepper and sugar to taste
- Wedge of reggiano cheese to serve
Pappardelle
- 3 cups 00 flour
- 1.5 teaspoons salt
- 4 eggs at room temperature
- 3/4 cup water (or thereabouts)
Step 1 - In a saucepan, saute the onion, carrots, celery and garlic in the oil until soft. Add the bay leaves, oxtail, porcini mushrooms including the soaking water, tomatoes, tomato paste and red wine. If you are making this in a pressure cooker, set it to high pressure and cook for 2 hours 10 minutes. If you're doing it on a stovetop, simmer it for four hours with the lid on and in a slow cooker, cook it for 8 hours. When it is ready, the meat should come off the bone easily with a couple of forks.
Step 2 - To make the pappardelle, place the flour, salt and eggs in a mixer fitted with a dough attachment. Add the water in and knead until elastic. To do this by hand, place the flour on a board and make a well in the centre. Add the eggs and combine and then knead adding as much water as necessary to create an elastic dough. Wrap in cling film and rest at room temperature for 1-2 hours.
Step 3 - Divide dough into six pieces and roll through a pasta maker making sure to dust the pasta machine and dough with flour until you get it as thin as possible without tearing. Start on 0 or the widest setting and keep putting up by one increment. Cut into thick ribbons. Allow to dry for 10 minutes and then store on parchment or boil in plenty of salted boiling water for 1-2 minutes until cooked. Serve with the ragu with some reggiano on top.