Ragu Guardaporta

I am very proud of my Italian Heritage, and have been having an ongoing love affair with Italy for some years now.
A few years ago, the husband and I took an Italian class in our neighborhood. Each week, he rocked it, had his homework done ahead of time, blah, blah. This gal on the other hand was always scrambling last minute  to finish assignments and even resorted to cheating off of mr. perfecto's work (don't tell).
Needless to say we finished the class and he was able to have conversations with the maitre'd at our favorite local restaurant while I was still struggling to get my wine glass refilled without resorting to mime.
I have always wanted to make this dish, but was a tad intimidated as it calls for all sorts of cuts of meat and takes all day to cook. Well, today was the day. The husband suggested that I make my own version and volunteered to document the whole affair with pictures (brace yourselves).

Ragù Guardaporta is a traditional dish from Napoli. Guardaporta means "doorman" in Italian and the dish was originally a stew that was slowly braised in a pot by hotel doormen and other staff in their living quarters while on duty. Ragù Guardaporta was a stew that could cook on it's own with little or no attention. Any cheap cut of beef, pork, veal, lamb, or even horse meat was stewed in a "doorman's ragu".

The word ragu is derived from the French verb ragoûter, which means "to revive the taste". Ragù Napoletano and Ragù alla Bolognese are similar Italian meat stews served on pasta, and many of the ingredients are the same.

OK, lets move on to the pictures (and recipe)..

 Quite a journey. Consensus - it was heavenly but very rich. I see how it would be perfect after a long day toiling in the vineyards - not so much in suburban CT.

Ragu Guardaporta
(this is my own recipe created after reading quite a few others - I believe I chose the best ingredients and techniques from all :-)

Ingredients:

*** For the sauce***

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 lb spareribs

1 lb osso bucco

1 lb sweet italian sausage

4 cloves garlic finely chopped

i medium onion chopped

1/4 cup tomato paste

3 28 oz cans crushed tomatoes

1 cup red wine

2 cups water

6 fresh basil leaves torn into pieces (or chiffonade)

1 tablespoon dried oregano

1/4 cup chopped Italian parsley

3 heaping tablespoons Parmigiano- Reggiano

Salt & freshly ground pepper

***For the meatballs***

1 lb ground beef

1/2 cup plain bread crumbs

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese

2 tablespoons freshly chopped parsley

1 teaspoon salt

Freshly ground pepper

2 tablespoons olive oil

Directions:

To make the sauce - Heat the oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Pat the pork dry and put the pieces in the pot. Cook, turning occasionally for about 15 minutes or until they get nice and dark brown. Transfer to a plate.

Dry and brown the Osso Bucco the same way and add to plate. Place sausages in the pot and brown on all sides and put on plate with other meats.

Add the chopped onion and garlic to the pan and cook on low heat for 3-4 minutes. Put tomato paste in the pan and stir for 1 minute. Add the red wine to deglaze pan for 4-5 minutes or until the wine is reduced by half.

Pour crushed tomatoes and water to the pot. Add basil, oregano, pepper and cheese.

Place meat back into pot with sauce. Add the cheese and bring to a simmer. Partially cover and cook over low heat for no less than 4 hours (the longer the better).

To make the meatballs-

Combine all ingredients except oil in a bowl and mix well. Shape into two inch balls.

Heat oil in large heavy skillet and add meatballs browning thoroughly on all sides. Transfer to  a plate.

When you are about 20 - 30 minutes away from serving, add the meatballs to the sauce and immerse to cook/ heat through.

To serve -

Cut sausage into smaller pieces if leaving meats in sauce. Alternatively you can always remove the meat from the sauce and serve them on a platter as a second course after the pasta and sauce.

Serve with excessive amounts of good Italian red wine.

Now - go get fat.