Ziti and Slow-Simmered Tomato Sauce with Beef Short Ribs - WOW!
The Occasion: This meal is made for weekends, assuming you’ve got a chunk of time you can dedicate to culinary endeavors. There’s nothing difficult here, and you’re not actively cooking the whole time, but from start to finish this recipe will take at least 3 hours.
It’s worth the investment.
Even though this is a rustic dish, not fancy at all, I think it would be just as popular at a dinner party as it will be on your family’s kitchen table.
Why This Works: Once again we turned to the America’s Test Kitchen recipe. Their thorough testing process inspires confidence when I’m trying something new. Plus their technique for French Onion Soup was magnifique!
It’s worth the investment.
Even though this is a rustic dish, not fancy at all, I think it would be just as popular at a dinner party as it will be on your family’s kitchen table.
Why This Works: Once again we turned to the America’s Test Kitchen recipe. Their thorough testing process inspires confidence when I’m trying something new. Plus their technique for French Onion Soup was magnifique!
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The Playlist: Slow and Low by Beastie Boys. When’s the last time you heard this one? Maybe never, it kinda got overshadowed by Fight for Your Right to Party off the same album (Licensed to Ill) in 1986. It fits for this dish though, right?
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The Verdict: Basically this is just pasta with meat sauce. But holy cow! By elevating the quality of each element just a few notches, the whole dish becomes bigger and better than the sum of its parts. So good. Don’t be stingy with the grated cheese right before serving! Spring for the good stuff if you can.
Click on the photos to enlarge them and read the captions.
Click on the photos to enlarge them and read the captions.
| Printable Recipe- Pasta and Slow-Simmered Tomato Sauce with Short Ribs |
Pasta and Slow-Simmered Tomato Sauce with Short Ribs
Recipe source: America’s Test Kitchen
NOTE FROM THE TEST KITCHEN: This sauce can be made with either beef or pork ribs. Depending on their size, you will need 4 or 5 ribs. To prevent the sauce from becoming greasy, trim all external fat from the ribs and drain off most of the fat from the skillet after browning. This thick, rich, robust sauce is best with tubular pasta, such as rigatoni, ziti, or penne. Pass grated Pecorino (especially nice with pork) or Parmesan cheese at the table. The sauce can be covered and refrigerated for up to 4 days or frozen for up to 2 months.
INGREDIENTS:
DIRECTIONS:
Recipe source: America’s Test Kitchen
NOTE FROM THE TEST KITCHEN: This sauce can be made with either beef or pork ribs. Depending on their size, you will need 4 or 5 ribs. To prevent the sauce from becoming greasy, trim all external fat from the ribs and drain off most of the fat from the skillet after browning. This thick, rich, robust sauce is best with tubular pasta, such as rigatoni, ziti, or penne. Pass grated Pecorino (especially nice with pork) or Parmesan cheese at the table. The sauce can be covered and refrigerated for up to 4 days or frozen for up to 2 months.
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 ½ pounds beef short ribs, or pork spareribs or country-style ribs, trimmed of fat
- Salt and ground black pepper
- 1 medium onion, minced
- ½ cup red wine
- 1 (28 ounce) can whole tomatoes, drained, juice reserved, tomatoes chopped fine
- 1 pound tubular pasta such as ziti or rigatoni
- Grated cheese such as Parmigiano-Reggiano, pecorino, or parmesan
DIRECTIONS:
- Heat oil in 12-inch, heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Season ribs with salt and pepper and brown on all sides, turning occasionally with tongs, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer ribs to plate; pour off all but 1 teaspoon fat from skillet.
- Add onion and sauté until softened, 2 to 3 minutes. Add wine and simmer, scraping pan bottom with wooden spoon to loosen browned bits, until wine reduces to a glaze, about 2 minutes.
- Return ribs and accumulated juices to skillet; add tomatoes and reserved juice. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer gently, turning ribs several times, until meat is very tender and falling off the bones, 1 1/2 hours (for pork spareribs or country-style ribs) to 2 hours (for beef short ribs).
- When the ribs are nearly done, heat a large pot of salted water to boiling. Then add the pasta and cook until al dente following the timing guidelines on the box. Drain the pasta and set aside.
- Transfer ribs to clean plate. When cool enough to handle, remove meat from bones and shred with fingers, discarding fat and bones. Return shredded meat to sauce in skillet. Bring sauce to a simmer over medium heat and cook, uncovered, until heated through and slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.
- To serve, toss sauce with drained pasta. Sprinkle freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, pecorino, or parmesan cheese on top of each serving.
Let's take a closer look at that luscious meat sauce -- mmmmmmmm!
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