How To Make Pasta with Sausage Ragu By Rachael

Italian sausage

🥗Healthier: ground turkey

💰Cheaper: ground beef

Ground turkey is lower in fat, while ground beef is often less expensive.

parmesan cheese

🥗Healthier: nutritional yeast

💰Cheaper: grated pecorino

Nutritional yeast is dairy-free, while pecorino is often cheaper than parmesan.

Start by chopping 1 carrot, 1 onion, and a little bit of celery with the leafy top.

Liberally salt the chopped vegetables to draw out liquid.

Add garlic to the pot after the vegetables have sweated.

Add 1/2 pound ground pork, 1/2 pound hot sausage, and 1/2 pound sweet sausage to the pot.

Cook the meat until it loses its raw color, without browning it.

Add 2 tablespoons of fresh sage to the mixture.

Add a squirt of tomato paste from a tube into the mixture.

Pour in 2 cups of crushed tomato, or whatever tomato product you have on hand.

Thin the sauce with chicken stock and drop in the gigli pasta.

Simmer the sauce for a few minutes, as the tomato is already crushed and doesn't need to break down further.

Cook the gigli pasta for one minute less than the package instructions.

Drain the pasta and return it to the hot pot.

Add extra virgin olive oil and about 3/4 cup of fresh ricotta to the pasta.

If using cow's milk ricotta, add parmigiano cheese; if using sheep's milk ricotta, add pecorino cheese.

Mix the pasta with most of the sauce, reserving some to garnish on top.

Serve in a big family bowl, adding more meat sauce on top.

Garnish with a little green for a festive look.

Cooking Techniques

Equipment Needed

Spice Level:

Dietary

Allergens