Lamb Sauce For Pasta Bruzzi Style Recipes

Steps:

• Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Add onions and garlic, and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions have become translucent and have totally softened, 5 to 8 minutes. Add a pinch of red-pepper flakes and anchovies, if using, and cook for a minute or two, just to toast the spices and melt the anchovies.
• Add tomato paste and continue to cook, stirring occasionally so it has a chance to stick to the bottom of the pot and caramelize a bit, 2 or 3 minutes.
• Add lamb and season with salt and pepper. Using a wooden spoon or a spatula, stir lamb until the fat starts to soften and the meat begins to break down. Continue to cook, stirring rather frequently until the lamb begins to brown and sizzle in its own fat, 5 to 8 minutes.
• Add crushed tomatoes, stirring to scrape up any bits on the bottom of the pot. Fill the tomato can halfway with water and swirl around to get all the remaining tomato, then add to the pot. Season with salt and pepper and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low and continue to cook until sauce is thickened and insanely flavorful, 25 to 30 minutes.
• Serve sauce mixed into and over pasta with plenty of cheese for grating over the top, scattered with a small handful of marjoram, oregano or thyme leaves if you like.

Steps:

• Trim away any gristle, but none of the fat, from the lamb. Cut the meat into very very fine dice. Put the oil an the onion in a 10-inch skillet and turn on the heat to medium high. Cook, stirring frequently, until the onion becomes colored a pale gold. Add the pancetta and rosemary turning them over with a wooden spoon to coat them well. Cook, stirring from time to time, until the pancetta's fat has melted completely, but do not let the pancetta cook until crisp. Put in the lamb dice, turning them over and cooking until the meat has been browned on all sides; add salt and liberal grindings of black pepper turning the contents of the pan over again two or three times with a wooden spoon. Add the wine and let it simmer until it has completely evaporated. Add the tomatoes and cook at a steady but gentle simmer, stirring from time to time, until the fat begins to separate from the sauce about 15 minutes. Cook and drain the pasta and toss it immediatly and thoroughly in a warm platter with the sauce. If necessary reheat the sauce while the pasta is cooking. Stir in half the grated cheese, and bring to the table with the remaining cheese on the side. You can prepare the sauce a day or two in advance, reheating it thoroughly before tossing with the pasta.

Steps:

• Cook the onions in the oil over medium heat, stirring until very soft, about 20 minutes. Add the thyme, garlic, pepper flakes, lamb juice and tomatoes and cook, stirring, until saucy, about 20 minutes.
• Stir in the meat and continue to cook, seasoning as necessary, until flavors meld, at least 15 minutes. Cook the pasta and serve with the sauce; garnish with cheese.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Heat oil in 4-quart ovenproof casserole. Add pancetta, lightly brown and remove. Add lamb shanks, brown on all sides and remove. Lower heat; add onions, garlic and rosemary. Sauté until soft. Add white wine. Scrape pan, return pancetta and lamb to casserole, season with salt and pepper, then cover and bake 90 minutes, turning lamb once.
• Remove lamb from casserole. Cut meat from bones, trimming off fat and gristle. Finely dice meat and add to casserole. Add tomatoes and red pepper. Simmer on top of stove one hour. Check seasoning.
• Boil pasta until al dente, drain, toss with sauce, and serve with pecorino for dusting.