Linguine with braised meat and tomato sauce
first courses- 14 oz linguine
- 2 1/5 lb lean beef in one piece or whole pork fillets
- 3 tablespoons of finely-chopped parsley
- 1/3 cup sliced prosciutto crudo (raw parma harm)
- 3-4 tablespoons olive oil
- 3/8 cup lard
- 2 cups chopped onion
- 1 or 2 garlic cloves, finely-chopped
- 1/8 cup pork fat
- 1/4 cup chopped pancetta or bacon
- 33 fl oz dry red wine
- 12 oz tomato passata (pureed tomatoes)
- Salt and black pepper to taste
First prepare the rolls of meat.
Take the beef or pork filler, open them up and beat with a wooden rolling pin on meat beater to make escalope. (You can also buy ready-cut escalope from the butcher). Sprinkle each escalope with a little parsley, then put the prosciutto crudo on the top, and season with black pepper. Roll and tie with butcher’s twine, and put to one side. Heat the oil and lard in a heavy-bottomed flame-proof casserole dish at medium heat and sweat the onion, garlic, pork fat and pancetta for a few minutes until the onion is soft and the bacon is beginning to brown.
Add the meat rolls, cover and cook at a high heat for about 5 minutes. As soon as the onions start to turn brown, uncover the dish and add the red wine. Continue to simmer at a low heat mixing every so often with a wooden spoon.
After an hour or so, when the liquid has reduced, add a little tomato passata, mix, turn up the heat slightly and cook until the sauce become darker.
Then add the rest of the tomato passata, a little at a time. This should take about 2 hours in all. Add two glasses of water, mix carefully, turn the heat up to medium and cover the dish to simmer gently for another 2 hours. When the meat is done, take it out of the sauce and put it on a serving dish to rest in a warm place.
Continue cooking the sauce until it is dark, thick and shiny. In the meantime, cook the linguine or your favourite pasta in a large saucepan with plenty of boiling, slightly salted water.
Drain the pasta and toss it in the sauce.