Make Your Own Pasta Topped with Delicious Ragu

Winter is ragu time. Winter here in the north has rolled in with a vengeance, so it is time to share hearty heartwarming food with family. While deciding what to do with my

canned venison, the idea of rich tomato ragu on fresh pappardelle captured my attention. Last year, there were more four-legged animals harvested than could fit in my freezers. This meant two things: we could eat well, and because there wasn’t enough room for all the venison cuts in the freezer, we pressure-canned some tougher cuts of venison and bear.

Canned venison. As a result of redirecting some of the venison shoulder trim we preserved by pressure canning, there are several quart sealers of canned venison on my pantry shelf. The canning process I used was a cold pack, with no added liquid, and the addition of 1.0% salt by weight. It seems that amount of salt is perfect for our needs. I see these jars of Whitetail deer (and bear) as gifts to my future self. So, I cracked open a couple of jars of canned venison to make this delicious ragu. The texture of the canned meat in ragu is lovely, more like pulled pork than the normal scramble-fried ground.

Recently we have started saying, “shop at home first.” We have a well-stocked pantry and a collection of freezers, and this shop-at-home idea has become a theme to use what we have on the shelf first. There are bits and bobs of this and that and sometimes it takes a bit of ingenuity to use these part-packs in the recipe.

This is one of the reasons I want to make a big batch of fresh pasta. There are several part bags of semolina, pizza flour and pasta flour on my pantry shelf. All of these can be combined to make luxurious pasta that will be the perfect base for rich ragu. I use a proper pasta roller, but you can use your rolling pin and a kitchen knife just as well.

This recipe makes enough pasta and ragu to serve eight. The ragu freezes well for several months.

Uncooked pasta sheets can be frozen for several weeks, too. You just need to wrap them well and let them thaw overnight in the fridge when you decide to use them. Think of those things as gifts to your future self.

Serves 6-8 (Or Two People With Lots Of Leftovers)

(Feel free to substitute fresh or frozen ground venison just add salt and pepper and scramble fry until well done. Also, preserve the canning liquid to add to the ragu once the vegetables have started to color.)

(Reserve the main stalks for a side dish. This is optional, but it adds a nice fresh pop of flavor)

When the pasta is cooked, remove a cup of pasta water and reserve it before draining the pasta. Return the pasta to the pot with ½ cup of water and dish up dinner.

To dish up this meal I use a small mixing bowl to combine pasta and sauce before the final plating in pasta bowls. This gives the pasta and ragu a chance to get to know each other before hitting the bowl that goes on the table. Top the pasta with a bit more ragu and a good grating of parmesan cheese.