When I want to eat pasta, I want a ragu or bolognese. Especially in the winter. Since I don’t eat pasta that often, that’s pretty much what I’ll order if I happen to be at an Italian restaurant. It’s great with a wide, handmade noodle or smaller shaped pasta. I love orecchiette, the little ear shaped pasta. Those little ear shaped cups catch the sauce perfectly and are just so darn cute.
What I love about this recipe.
The idea for this recipe came from a rare night out with family in town. We left all the kids at home with grandparents and had an amazing dinner out at a hipster Italian joint. One of the standout dishes for me was pasta with a super delish ragu. I loved how the pasta and meat sauce was served over a big dollop of ricotta cheese. Since then, I wanted to try to recreate this at home. So, I kept thinking a speedy ragu and maybe ricotta whipped with olive oil might be a good take on that meal.
I love a long simmered sauce but I wanted to be able to make this on any regular night of the week. Sure, an instant pot or pressure cooker would make short work of this but I hate pulling mine out of the closet to use it (full disclosure here-lol).
With this in mind, I decided to use sausage meat as it is already flavored, fatty and extra delicious. Then, to amp up the umami with a quick simmer, I added some anchovies (haters can skip this step). They really don’t make the ragu taste fishy. I promise! I kept the carrots, celery and onion (soffrito) because I love all of these flavors and well, because, vegetables. We all need more of them in our diet.
My decision to keep wine out of the ragu was mainly just because I never have red wine in the house. If you have red wine, feel free to use some. Or use white wine, if you have some leftover. It’s not necessary but it would be a nice addition. I would add a cup or so after browning the sausage meat. Let it reduce by half before adding the crushed tomatoes. After all the ingredients are in the pot, you just let it simmer for 25-30 minutes until it thickens a little and tastes delish!
Why you need to make this quick ragu recipe.
Serve this ragu with your favorite pasta. Any leftover will be amazing the next day. I can vouch for this because I made a big bowl with spaghetti the day after! This is also a great recipe to double and keep in the freezer for a night when you can’t be bothered to cook. The whipped ricotta is negotiable. It just makes this recipe extra. Need more reasons to make this ragu? Be generous and gift it to some new parents or make a big pot for Sunday dinner with family.
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Quick Sausage Ragu with Pasta and Whipped Ricotta
Ingredients
for the Ragu
- 1 ½ cups (180 g) yellow onion, peeled and roughly chopped (1 medium onion)
- 1 cup (150 g) carrots, peeled and roughly chopped (2 medium carrots)
- ¾ cup (74 g) celery, roughly chopped
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, sliced or minced
- 2 filets anchovies (optional)
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 pound (453 g) pork sausages (sweet or spicy), removed from casings
- 28 ounces (795 g) crushed tomatoes, canned (or whole canned tomatoes crushed by hand)
- salt and black pepper, to taste
- 1 pound (454 g) orecchiette pasta (or your favorite shape or pappardelle, tagliatelle, etc)
- parmesan cheese (for garnish)
- chopped parsley (for garnish-optional)
- crushed red pepper flakes (for garnish- optional)
for the Whipped Ricotta
- 2 cups (450 g) ricotta cheese
- 3 tbsp (40 ml) extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tsp salt (or to taste)
- ⅛ tsp black pepper
Method
- In a food processor, add the carrot, celery and onion. Pulse several times until everything is finely chopped. Heat a large dutch oven or high-sided skillet over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and the vegetables. Cook, stirring often, for about 5-6 minutes or until mixture is slightly drier and starting to brown lightly. Stir in the garlic, anchovies (if using) and tomato paste. Cook for another minute.
- Add the sausage meat. Cook, breaking up meat, until just starting to brown (5-6 minutes). Add the crushed tomatoes. Fill can about 2/3 full of water, swish to collect all the tomatoes left in the can and add to pan. Season with salt and black pepper. Stir to combine. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a gentle simmer and cook for 25-30 minutes until sauce has thickened a bit.
- While sauce is cooking, put a large pot of water on the stove to heat for pasta. In a food processor, add the ricotta cheese, salt and pepper. While machine is running, slowly stream in 3 tablespoons of olive oil. Taste and adjust seasoning as desired. Set aside.
- Cook pasta according to package instructions for al dente pasta. Cook pasta 1-2 minutes less than time instructed. Drain, reserving 1-2 cups of the pasta cooking water. With pasta sauce simmering, add the drained pasta. Stir and cook gently for about 1 minute. Add a little pasta cooking water to loosen, if needed.
- To plate: spread about 1/4 cup of the whipped ricotta to a bowl or plate. Spoon pasta over the ricotta. Garnish with parmesan, parsley and red chili flakes, if desired. Serve immediately.
Notes
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Susan,
Your recipes are terrific and everything looks delicious. You are not only creative with your cooking, but you make it easy to understand and follow with your excellent videos and straightforward instructions. Maybe someday my dishes will look and taste as good as yours surely do. Until then, keep inspiring us.
Awww, thank you John! I hope you try cooking it someday! x
Lovely! Quick, flavourful and a big hit with kids. What more could I ask for? Thank you!
So glad to hear the recipe was a hit! Thanks for the feedback!
This was so fantastic! I have always hated ricotta because of the texture, but whipping it up with such a tasty ragu was 100% a win for the whole family. Thank you so much!
Woohoo! I’m so glad to hear I could change your mind about ricotta! Happy that this was a crowd pleaser for you. 🙂