I really like using ground turkey to make a lighter style of ragu. Anyone who loves Italian pasta needs a really good tasting ragu recipe and I think this definitely fits the bill. Buon gusto! I’ll be making it tonight with chitarra pasta (a long, thick square shaped pasta).
For the Ragu:
1 medium onion
2 carrots
1 celery rib
1 red bell pepper
3 garlic cloves
1 Tbsp. unsalted butter
1 Tbsp. EVO
1 lb. ground turkey
1 Tbsp. fresh rosemary, chopped or 1 tsp. dried rosemary, crumbled
¾ tsp. fresh oregano, chopped or ¼ tsp. dried
½ cup dry red wine
14 oz. tinned plum tomatoes, drained & chopped
14 oz. Passata (Italian tomato puree in a bottle)
1 Tbsp. tomato paste
1 ¾ cups beef stock, homemade (see below) or low salt beef stock
1/8 tsp. ground cinnamon, or to taste
1 lb. long pasta
Garnish: 3 – 4 Tbsp. chopped flat leaf parsley
Finely chop onion, carrots, celery and bell pepper. Mince the garlic.
In a large heavy skillet melt butter with EVO over medium heat until hot. Add the turkey and cook. Stirring and breaking up lumps with a fork, until cooked through, about 3 minutes. Transfer turkey to a bowl with a slotted spoon. Sauté the chopped veggies, garlic and herbs, adding salt and pepper to taste, until veggies are softened. Add wine and cook until most of the liquid evaporates. Stir in the tomato paste and cinnamon and cook for a minute; add the chopped tomatoes and passata, stock or broth; simmer 15 – 30 minutes, or until all the flavours have come together. Season with salt and pepper and keep warm.
Heat a large pasta serving bowl.
Bring a very large pot of water to a boil. Add 1 – 2 Tbsp. salt. Cook pasta until al dente. Reserve 1 cup pasta cooking water; drain pasta in a colander and return to the pan containing the ragu. Toss until well coated, adding a bit of the reserved cooking water if sauce is a bit too thick for a minute or so. Pass either Parmigiano Reggiano or Pecorino Romano or both, for sprinkling on the pasta if you wish.
Helpful link to Making Stock.
