Gute Essen

Pasta with Turkey Ragú

      Tuesday, October 30, 2007 | Leave a comment »

pastaJet lag is a bitch.

Two nights in a row not being able to go to sleep before two or three AM and then needing to be at work is a total pain in the ass, especially coming off the heels of a week long conference where you got used to being up until two AM west coast time.

Why do you care? Because I'm tired. And when I'm tired it means something simple I can make with my eyes closed in 30 minutes including doing the prep and the dishes. It means something that reminds me of being home (mom or dad, which ever) and being relaxed and not stressed out.

Inevitably this means pasta with meat sauce. Or Ragú if you want to be fancy about it.

broccoli rabeNow I can understand both the Mario Batali Sauce is a condiment and should be used sparingly and the Bittman I love Atkins so eat less carbs you fat cow argument -- it really depends on what the sauce it. Spaghetti with a simple red sauce? Drown it. Pesto? Use it sparingly. Ragú? Sparingly. Alfredo or cream sauces? Very sparingly.

Now my dad from whom I cribbed this recipe uses pork and beef and sometimes lamb in this, I prefer turkey. It's not as heavy, doesn't require you to drain off excess fat and, really, there's not that much of a taste difference with the amount of time this cooks. If this were slow cooked, I'd want something like lamb and beef — it'll impart way more flavor over that time (and I wouldn't use ground meat, but rather something full of connective tissue. Something that'll make it lip-smacking good. But that's not either here nor there.)

Conchiglie with Turkey Ragú

  • 1 - 1 1/2 lbs ground turkey
  • 1/2 medium white onion, diced
  • 2 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
  • 1 can San Marzano tomatoesm, drained and crushed (reserve liquid)
  • 2 tsp whole fennel seeds
  • 1 tsp whole cumin seeds
  • 3 tsp (or more) crushed red pepper
  • 2 tbls fresh oregano and/or sage
  • salt and pepper

  1. Put on gallon of water to boil, heavily salted. When boiling, add pasta and cook according to box.
  2. Add 2 tbls olive oil to a sauce pan and heat it over high heat until it shimmers
  3. Add the cumin and fennel, and drop the heat to medium high.
  4. Cook for a few minutes until they toast and become aromatic.
  5. Add the onion and drop the heat to medium, hit it with a dash of salt. You want to sweat the onions.
  6. Let the onions sweat stirring occasionally until translucent.
  7. Add the garlic and crushed red pepper, and cook for a few more minutes -- you don't want the garlic to take on any color, just cook.
  8. Add the ground turkey and bring the heat up to high.
  9. Brown the turkey, stirring occasionally
  10. Add the tomatoes and bring to a boil; use some of the reserve liquid if necessary to get it sauce-like.
  11. Reduce to medium and let simmer for 10 minutes; add fresh herbs, salt and pepper to taste.
  12. Add the drained pasta (which should be done about now) and use some starchy water if the sauce is too tight.

Broccoli Rabe

  • 1 bunch broccoli rabe
  • 3 cloves garlic, slivered
  • crushed red pepper, salt and black pepper to taste

  1. Rinse and cut the broccoli bundle into three sections.
  2. Heat some olive oil until shimmering over high heat, add the garlic and reduce the heat.
  3. Cook the garlic for a few minutes until the edges just begin to color.
  4. Add the broccoli (and the water still clinging to it) and salt, pepper and crushed red pepper. Bring heat to high.
  5. Cook until the greens are done to your liking (I prefer them more "al dente"; Julie likes them well done. I do iit in between now.)

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