Spicy Lamb Ragu Recipes

Steps:

• Heat a medium Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the butter and oil and warm until the butter is melted. Add the carrots, celery, onions and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring often, until the vegetables are soft but have no color, about 6 minutes. Add the beef and lamb and cook, breaking apart the meat with a wooden spoon, until the meat is cooked through and no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Stir the tomato paste, chili paste, red pepper flakes and garlic into the meat mixture. Cook the tomato paste, stirring often, about 2 minutes. Add the milk. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the milk is almost entirely evaporated, about 20 minutes.
• Add the wine, bay leaf, Parmesan rind, tomatoes and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Bring to a simmer and reduce the heat to low to just maintain a gentle simmer. Simmer the sauce, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Skim the oil from the surface.
• Spoon the sauce over the Creamy Polenta with Spinach, reserving any extra to serve on the side. Serve with the Parmesan sprinkled over the top and a drizzle of olive oil.
• In a Dutch oven, bring the chicken broth, oil, garlic and 1 1/2 cups water to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium low and whisk in the polenta. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, about 10 minutes. Stir in the Parmesan, mascarpone, pecorino and butter. Cook, stirring often, about 5 minutes. Fold in the spinach and cook until wilted, about 5 minutes longer. Add 1/4 cup water if the mixture gets too thick.
• Pour the polenta onto a large board or platter. Serve with grated Parmesan over the top.

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:

• In a large Dutch oven, heat the olive oil (2 turns of the pan) over medium-high heat. Add the fennel seeds and stir for 30 seconds. Add the lamb, red pepper flakes and some salt and pepper and cook, breaking the meat into crumbles as it browns. Add the rosemary, thyme, onions, carrots, garlic, oregano, bay leaf, orange zest strip and cinnamon stick. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions soften, 7 to 8 minutes. Add the milk and reduce the heat to low. Simmer, partially covered, to let the meat absorb the milk, about 15 minutes.
• Add the tomato paste and stir until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the wine, partially cover, and continue to cook and reduce for 15 minutes. Add the stock and olives. Hand crush the tomatoes into the pot, then add the juices from the can. Simmer, partially covered, for 30 minutes more to cook down the tomatoes and thicken the sauce. Fish out and discard the orange zest strip, bay leaf and cinnamon stick. Adjust the seasoning.
• Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook until al dente. Reserve 1 cup of the cooking water and drain the pasta. Keep warm.
• Mix the mint, parsley, pistachios and some grated orange zest together in a small bowl.
• Toss the ragu, reserved cooking water, pecorino, olive oil and cooked pasta together. Serve in bowls topped with fresh ricotta and sprinkle the herb-pistachio mixture over the top to garnish.