Pork, Fennel and Lemon Ragu with Pappardelle
This filling pasta dish is just the ticket for a cold winter night. It’s rich without being fatty, and the lemon zest and juice at the end adds just the right touch to enhance the pork and fennel flavor. Serve with a simple green salad.
Recipe
4 oz. pancetta, chopped
1 large onion, chopped fine
1 large fennel bulb, stalks discarded, bulb halved, cored, and chopped fine (save 2 T. fronds, chopped for serving)
4 garlic cloves, minced
1-1/2 tsp. salt, plus salt for cooking pasta
2 tsp. fresh thyme, minced
1 tsp. pepper
1/3 c. heavy cream
1-1/2 to 2 lbs. boneless pork butt roast, well trimmed and cut in half across grain
1-1/2 tsp. grated lemon zest plus 1/4 c. cup juice (2 lemons)
12 oz. pappardelle pasta
2 oz. Pecorino Romano cheese, grated (1 c.), plus extra for serving
Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350-degrees.
Cook pancetta and 2/3 c. water in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until water has evaporated and dark fond forms on bottom of pot, 8 to 10 minutes. Add onion and fennel bulb and cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables soften and start to brown, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in garlic, salt, thyme and pepper and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
Stir in cream and 2 c. water, scraping up any browned bits. Add pork and bring to boil over high heat. Cover, transfer to oven and cook until pork is tender, about 1-1/2 hours.
Transfer pork to a large plate and let cool for 15 minutes. Cover pot so fond will steam and soften. Using spatula, scrape browned bits from sides of pot and stir into sauce. Stir in lemon zest and juice. Using 2 forks, shred pork into bite-size pieces, discarding any large pieces of fat or connective tissue. Return pork and any juices to Dutch oven. Cover and keep warm.
At this point you could transfer to a bowl, cover and refrigerate up to a day ahead, which I did. I added the lemon zest and juice the next day when reheating (I also added 1/4 c. white wine), then continued with cooking and adding the pasta and cheese.
Bring 4 quarts water to boil in large pot. Add pasta and 1 T. salt to boiling water and cook, stirring occasionally, until al dente according to package instructions (mine took 6 minutes). Reserve 2 c. cooking water, then drain pasta and add it to Dutch oven. Add Pecorino and 3/4 c. reserved cooking water and stir until sauce is slightly thickened and cheese is fully melted, 2 to 3 minutes. If desired, stir in remaining reserved cooking water, 1/4 c. at a time, to adjust sauce consistency. Season with salt and pepper to taste and sprinkle with fennel fronds. Serve immediately, passing extra Pecorino separately.