Chitarra Pasta with Lamb Ragu
By Nicole KonstantinakosPublished on March 26, 2020
Time
3 hours
Yield
Serves 6 to 8
Italian Name:
Maccheroni alla chitarra con ragù di agnello
Ingredients
Ragù
1½ pounds boneless lamb shoulder, trimmed and cut into 3-inch piecesSalt and pepper 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil 2 ounces guanciale, chopped fine1 onion, chopped fine1 carrot, peeled and chopped fine1 celery rib, minced3 garlic cloves, minced1 tablespoon tomato paste 2 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary ½ teaspoon saffron threads, crumbled¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes ½ cup dry white wine 1 (28-ounce) can whole peeled tomatoesMaccheroni
1 pound fresh pasta Salt and pepper grated Pecorino Romano cheeseBefore You Begin
If you cannot find a chitarra to cut your own pasta, you can substitute 1 pound dried maccheroni alla chitarra (also known as spaghetti alla chitarra or pasta alla chitarra) for the fresh maccheroni. Fresh or dried linguine or spaghetti can also be used. You can substitute 2 pounds lamb shoulder chops (blade or round bone) for the lamb shoulder. Guanciale is traditional in this recipe, but an equal amount of salt pork, rind removed, rinsed, can be substituted. If it's difficult to chop the guanciale, put it in the freezer for 15 minutes to firm up. If your chitarra has more than one set of strings, choose the set that are spaced approximately ⅛ inch apart.
Instructions
- FOR THE RAGÙ: Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 300 degrees. Pat lamb dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat oil in Dutch oven over medium-high heat until just smoking. Brown lamb on all sides, about 8 minutes; transfer to plate. Pour off all but 1 tablespoon fat from pot and let pot cool slightly.
- Add guanciale to fat left in pot and cook over medium-low heat until fat is rendered, about 2 minutes. Stir in onion, carrot, and celery, increase heat to medium, and cook until softened and lightly browned, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in garlic, tomato paste, rosemary, saffron, and pepper flakes and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
- Stir in wine, scraping up any browned bits, and cook until reduced by half, about 3 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and their juice, breaking up tomatoes into rough 1-inch pieces with wooden spoon, and bring to simmer. Nestle lamb into pot along with any accumulated juices and return to simmer. Cover, transfer pot to oven, and cook until lamb is very tender, 2 to 2½ hours, turning lamb halfway through cooking.
- Remove pot from oven. Transfer lamb to cutting board, let cool slightly, then shred into bite-size pieces using 2 forks; discard excess fat. Stir lamb and any accumulated juices into sauce and let sit until heated through, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover to keep warm. (Ragù can be refrigerated for up to 3 days; gently reheat before using.)
- Transfer dough to clean counter, divide into 5 pieces, and cover with plastic wrap. Flatten 1 piece of dough into ½-inch-thick disk. Using pasta machine with rollers set to widest position, feed dough through rollers twice. Bring tapered ends of dough toward middle and press to seal. Feed dough seam side first through rollers again. Repeat feeding dough tapered ends first through rollers set at widest position, without folding, until dough is smooth and barely tacky. (If dough sticks to fingers or rollers, lightly dust with flour and roll again.)
- Narrow rollers to next setting and feed dough through rollers twice. Continue to progressively narrow rollers, feeding dough through each setting twice, until dough is ⅛ inch thick. (If dough becomes too long to manage, halve crosswise.) Transfer sheet of pasta to lightly floured counter and repeat rolling with remaining 4 pieces of dough; do not overlap pasta sheets. Let pasta sheets sit until dry to touch, about 15 minutes.
- Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and liberally dust with flour. Liberally dust pasta sheets with flour and cut into lengths approximately 2 inches shorter than length of strings on chitarra. Lay 1 pasta sheet on top of chitarra strings and firmly roll floured rolling pin over pasta to cut into strands. Liberally dust maccheroni with flour and arrange in small bundles on prepared sheets. Repeat with remaining pasta sheets. (Maccheroni can be held at room temperature for up to 30 minutes, refrigerated for up to 4 hours, or chilled in freezer until firm, then transferred to zipper-lock bag and frozen for up to 1 month. If frozen, do not thaw before cooking.)
- Bring 4 quarts water to boil in large pot. Add pasta and 1 tablespoon salt and cook, stirring often, until al dente. Reserve ½ cup cooking water, then drain pasta and return it to pot. Add sauce and toss to combine. Adjust consistency with reserved cooking water as needed. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with Pecorino.
for the maccheroni
Time
3 hoursYield
Serves 6 to 8Italian Name:
Maccheroni alla chitarra con ragù di agnelloIngredients
Ragù
Maccheroni
Ingredients
Ragù
Maccheroni
Ingredients
Ragù
Maccheroni
Why This Recipe Works
In the rugged mountains of Abruzzo, many shepherds practice transhumance ( transumanza in Italian), or the seasonal movement of sheep between alpine summer pastures and lowland winter pastures. This custom enables the sheep to graze on a wide array of grasses and flowers, and as a result they produce particularly aromatic milk and meat. It's no wonder that a simple lamb ragù, perfumed with mountain herbs and saffron (cultivated by a mere few families on the plains of Abruzzo), is a staple of this region. After testing our way through traditional recipes that called for braising or stewing various cuts of lamb, we found that braising large (3-inch) chunks of boneless lamb shoulder, shredding them, and then returning them to the cooking liquid yielded far and away the best result: meltingly tender and deeply flavorful bits of lamb in a rich sauce. This classic Abruzzese ragù is most often paired with a unique pasta known locally as maccheroni alla chitarra —a rich egg dough rolled into thick sheets and cut into attractive squared-off strands on a cutter called a chitarra (“guitar” in Italian) that resembles a stringed musical instrument. Until recently, the chitarra was difficult to find outside of Abruzzo, but it's now available through specialty vendors and online.
Before You Begin
If you cannot find a chitarra to cut your own pasta, you can substitute 1 pound dried maccheroni alla chitarra (also known as spaghetti alla chitarra or pasta alla chitarra) for the fresh maccheroni. Fresh or dried linguine or spaghetti can also be used. You can substitute 2 pounds lamb shoulder chops (blade or round bone) for the lamb shoulder. Guanciale is traditional in this recipe, but an equal amount of salt pork, rind removed, rinsed, can be substituted. If it's difficult to chop the guanciale, put it in the freezer for 15 minutes to firm up. If your chitarra has more than one set of strings, choose the set that are spaced approximately ⅛ inch apart.
Instructions
- FOR THE RAGÙ: Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 300 degrees. Pat lamb dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat oil in Dutch oven over medium-high heat until just smoking. Brown lamb on all sides, about 8 minutes; transfer to plate. Pour off all but 1 tablespoon fat from pot and let pot cool slightly.
- Add guanciale to fat left in pot and cook over medium-low heat until fat is rendered, about 2 minutes. Stir in onion, carrot, and celery, increase heat to medium, and cook until softened and lightly browned, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in garlic, tomato paste, rosemary, saffron, and pepper flakes and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
- Stir in wine, scraping up any browned bits, and cook until reduced by half, about 3 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and their juice, breaking up tomatoes into rough 1-inch pieces with wooden spoon, and bring to simmer. Nestle lamb into pot along with any accumulated juices and return to simmer. Cover, transfer pot to oven, and cook until lamb is very tender, 2 to 2½ hours, turning lamb halfway through cooking.
- Remove pot from oven. Transfer lamb to cutting board, let cool slightly, then shred into bite-size pieces using 2 forks; discard excess fat. Stir lamb and any accumulated juices into sauce and let sit until heated through, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover to keep warm. (Ragù can be refrigerated for up to 3 days; gently reheat before using.)
- Transfer dough to clean counter, divide into 5 pieces, and cover with plastic wrap. Flatten 1 piece of dough into ½-inch-thick disk. Using pasta machine with rollers set to widest position, feed dough through rollers twice. Bring tapered ends of dough toward middle and press to seal. Feed dough seam side first through rollers again. Repeat feeding dough tapered ends first through rollers set at widest position, without folding, until dough is smooth and barely tacky. (If dough sticks to fingers or rollers, lightly dust with flour and roll again.)
- Narrow rollers to next setting and feed dough through rollers twice. Continue to progressively narrow rollers, feeding dough through each setting twice, until dough is ⅛ inch thick. (If dough becomes too long to manage, halve crosswise.) Transfer sheet of pasta to lightly floured counter and repeat rolling with remaining 4 pieces of dough; do not overlap pasta sheets. Let pasta sheets sit until dry to touch, about 15 minutes.
- Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and liberally dust with flour. Liberally dust pasta sheets with flour and cut into lengths approximately 2 inches shorter than length of strings on chitarra. Lay 1 pasta sheet on top of chitarra strings and firmly roll floured rolling pin over pasta to cut into strands. Liberally dust maccheroni with flour and arrange in small bundles on prepared sheets. Repeat with remaining pasta sheets. (Maccheroni can be held at room temperature for up to 30 minutes, refrigerated for up to 4 hours, or chilled in freezer until firm, then transferred to zipper-lock bag and frozen for up to 1 month. If frozen, do not thaw before cooking.)
- Bring 4 quarts water to boil in large pot. Add pasta and 1 tablespoon salt and cook, stirring often, until al dente. Reserve ½ cup cooking water, then drain pasta and return it to pot. Add sauce and toss to combine. Adjust consistency with reserved cooking water as needed. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with Pecorino.
for the maccheroni
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