This is super untraditional and I basically home brewed most of it based on a mishmash of recipes and improvisation. This is just how I like to make it. Also I would typically add more seasoning than is listed here, but I was trying to make it a little less intense feel free to add more of any of the herbs or anything else. I just wrote down a rough recipe for friends and family that were asking.
Sunday gravy ingredients
1/3-1/2c extra virgin olive oil
1lb ground lamb
1lb ground beef
Optional: meatballs, braciole, pork chops, lb each
1lb ground pork or veal
~1lb Italian sausages
1-2lbs mushrooms, to be halved and sliced thick. Baby bella or porcini
1/4 cup minced garlic
2 tsp dried basil
1 tbsp oregano
1/2 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp rosemary
2 tsp crushed red pepper -add more if desired
Tbsp fresh ground pepper, more to taste, more to garnish
~1/2 cup or appr. 2 packs of fresh basil, chiffonade. More to garnish
1 extra large sweet or yellow onion, finely minced
2-3 large carrots, finely shredded
2-3 celery stalks, finely shredded
2/3rd tube of tomato paste
1/3 bottle dry red wine
2 large cans crushed san marzano tom
2 tsp kosher salt – add more to taste before serving
1/4c fresh grated or 1/2c microplane parmigiano reggiano, more to garnish
1/4-1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 stick of butter
Optional – dash of fresh grated nutmeg – 1-2 passes over microplane
To be served with large size rigatoni
Sunday gravy – recipe
1. Heat olive oil on high in bottom of heavy pot, Dutch oven, or other large soup pot
2. Once oil shimmers, brown sausages and/or other optional meats. Remove from pan once well browned and reserve.
3. Next add the ground meat, stirring occasionally to prevent burning. Cook on high until steam starts to subside and no standing water remains.
4. Once remaining ground meat is well browned with some crispy bits, add mushrooms, garlic, rosemary, oregano, thyme, dried basil, crushed red pepper, black pepper, and half of fresh basil. Stir and fold mix until fragrant, taking care not to let garlic or spices burn.
5. Once mixture is fragrant, reduce heat to medium high, stir in minced onion and cook until onion is starting to become translucent. Add grated celery and carrot. Cook another 2-3 minutes. Stir continuously.
6. Reduce heat to medium. By now a fond or crust should be starting to form on the bottom of pan. Take care not to burn. Add tomato paste and mix in thoroughly, continuously stirring. Paste will add to fond and begin to stick to bottom of pan. This is good, but don’t burn it. Let it brown and caramelize and build a base of brown crusty flavor.
7. Once fond has built up, add red wine to deglaze. While stirring in wine, make sure to scrape bottom of pan to completely dissolve the fond. Once wine is mixed in, stir in the two cans of tomatoes. Return the cooked sausages and any remaining browned meat to the pot. Reduce heat to low, cover with lid slightly ajar and let simmer for 1-1.5 hours.
8. Sauce should be reduced. Stir in parmigiano and butter. Reduce heat to low. Vigorously stir in heavy cream and add remaining fresh basil. Optional, 1-2 passes on microplane with fresh nutmeg. Taste and adjust salt accordingly.
9. In large pot, add large rigatoni to salted (1tsp/pint of water) boiling water. Cook a few minutes until extra al dente. White should still be visible at center of pasta, but not crunchy. Retain one cup of pasta water for later and then strain.
10. Place cooked pasta back into now empty pot. Reduce heat to low and add enough sauce to just reach the top of the pasta. Simmer pasta and sauce until al dente, adding reserved pasta water to achieve desired consistency. Using a silicone spatula or similar, gently fold pasta occasionally, being careful not to break pasta in process. Be mindful of the salt in the pasta water.
11. Serve pasta in bowls. Remove sausage from sauce, slice, and serve on top of pasta. Garnish liberally with parmesan, black pepper, and basil. Serve.
1 Comment
This is super untraditional and I basically home brewed most of it based on a mishmash of recipes and improvisation. This is just how I like to make it. Also I would typically add more seasoning than is listed here, but I was trying to make it a little less intense feel free to add more of any of the herbs or anything else. I just wrote down a rough recipe for friends and family that were asking.
Sunday gravy ingredients
1/3-1/2c extra virgin olive oil
1lb ground lamb
1lb ground beef
Optional: meatballs, braciole, pork chops, lb each
1lb ground pork or veal
~1lb Italian sausages
1-2lbs mushrooms, to be halved and sliced thick. Baby bella or porcini
1/4 cup minced garlic
2 tsp dried basil
1 tbsp oregano
1/2 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp rosemary
2 tsp crushed red pepper -add more if desired
Tbsp fresh ground pepper, more to taste, more to garnish
~1/2 cup or appr. 2 packs of fresh basil, chiffonade. More to garnish
1 extra large sweet or yellow onion, finely minced
2-3 large carrots, finely shredded
2-3 celery stalks, finely shredded
2/3rd tube of tomato paste
1/3 bottle dry red wine
2 large cans crushed san marzano tom
2 tsp kosher salt – add more to taste before serving
1/4c fresh grated or 1/2c microplane parmigiano reggiano, more to garnish
1/4-1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 stick of butter
Optional – dash of fresh grated nutmeg –
1-2 passes over microplane
To be served with large size rigatoni
Sunday gravy – recipe
1. Heat olive oil on high in bottom of heavy pot, Dutch oven, or other large soup pot
2. Once oil shimmers, brown sausages and/or other optional meats. Remove from pan once well browned and reserve.
3. Next add the ground meat, stirring occasionally to prevent burning. Cook on high until steam starts to subside and no standing water remains.
4. Once remaining ground meat is well browned with some crispy bits, add mushrooms, garlic, rosemary, oregano, thyme, dried basil, crushed red pepper, black pepper, and half of fresh basil. Stir and fold mix until fragrant, taking care not to let garlic or spices burn.
5. Once mixture is fragrant, reduce heat to medium high, stir in minced onion and cook until onion is starting to become translucent. Add grated celery and carrot. Cook another 2-3 minutes. Stir continuously.
6. Reduce heat to medium. By now a fond or crust should be starting to form on the bottom of pan. Take care not to burn. Add tomato paste and mix in thoroughly, continuously stirring. Paste will add to fond and begin to stick to bottom of pan. This is good, but don’t burn it. Let it brown and caramelize and build a base of brown crusty flavor.
7. Once fond has built up, add red wine to deglaze. While stirring in wine, make sure to scrape bottom of pan to completely dissolve the fond. Once wine is mixed in, stir in the two cans of tomatoes. Return the cooked sausages and any remaining browned meat to the pot. Reduce heat to low, cover with lid slightly ajar and let simmer for 1-1.5 hours.
8. Sauce should be reduced. Stir in parmigiano and butter. Reduce heat to low. Vigorously stir in heavy cream and add remaining fresh basil. Optional, 1-2 passes on microplane with fresh nutmeg. Taste and adjust salt accordingly.
9. In large pot, add large rigatoni to salted (1tsp/pint of water) boiling water. Cook a few minutes until extra al dente. White should still be visible at center of pasta, but not crunchy. Retain one cup of pasta water for later and then strain.
10. Place cooked pasta back into now empty pot. Reduce heat to low and add enough sauce to just reach the top of the pasta. Simmer pasta and sauce until al dente, adding reserved pasta water to achieve desired consistency. Using a silicone spatula or similar, gently fold pasta occasionally, being careful not to break pasta in process. Be mindful of the salt in the pasta water.
11. Serve pasta in bowls. Remove sausage from sauce, slice, and serve on top of pasta. Garnish liberally with parmesan, black pepper, and basil. Serve.