Pappardelle with Sausage and Caramelized Onion Ragu
Meet Luke Shuman in WTFCF Season 5, Episode 2: HomecomingThis recipe is a favorite of Luke and Addie Lee Shuman of Shuman Farms. Deep caramelization of the onions is key to the flavor of this sauce. It is well worth the effort as the flavor is much more complex than your average tomato sauce.
Equipment
- Wooden spoon
- slotted spoon
- large skillet
- Colander
- Tongs
Ingredients
- 12 ounces mild or hot bulk Italian sausage, Note: You may use links with the casings removed.
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 large yellow onions, quartered and thinly sliced
- 2 large garlic cloves, minced
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, optional
- ½ cup cream sherry
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 - 28 ounce can whole San Marzano tomatoes, drained and chopped, juice reserved
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- ¼ cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
- ¼ cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves, torn
- 1 pound pappardelle pasta, cooked per package instructions. Note: Original recipe calls for homemade pasta dough, cut into 1-inch-wide pieces.
Instructions
To Prepare The Ragu
- In a large skillet set over medium-high heat, add sausage. Using a wooden spoon, break into pieces and cook until browned, about 12 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove sausage from skillet and transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.
- Then to the skillet, add 2 tablespoons butter and sliced onions and cook until mahogany brown color, stirring often to prevent onions from burning or scorching, 20 to 30 minutes.
- To the caramelized onions, add minced garlic and ½ teaspoon optional red pepper flakes and cook until fragrant. Add ½ cup sherry and bring mixture to boil. Note: Use a wooden spoon to scrape the browned bits off bottom of skillet.
- Once sherry has reduced and almost evaporated, return the sausage to the skillet and add 1 cup chicken broth, chopped tomatoes, reserved tomato juice and 1 tablespoon thyme. Bring the mixture to a boil and lower the heat to a simmer. Cook until slightly thickened, about 20 minutes.
To Cook The Pasta
- Cook pasta per instruction. Reserve about 1 cup of pasta water and drain pasta through a colander. Transfer pasta to the skillet with ragu, toss well with tongs, using reserved pasta water to loosen sauce and coat pasta as needed.
- Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.
To Serve
- Garnish with Parmesan and basil. Serve immediately.
Enjoy!
About the Author
This recipe is a favorite of Luke and Addie Shuman, the newest generation to come into the Shuman Farms family. Luke is the son of Shuman Farms founder John Shuman and grandson of Vidalia onion legend Mr. Buck Shuman. He has all the graces of those two fine men -- and sense enough to partner up with a wonderful girl like Addie. One of their favorite pastimes is cooking together -- they take classes and keep their social media feeds popping with their latest ideas (@lukeandaddieeats on Instagram). Luke is a recent graduate of the University of Georgia and looks forward to learning the family business. He's just a step ahead of younger brother Jake, who's wrapping up his education at Georgia Southern University and will soon join Shuman Farms as well! Look for Shuman Farms sweet onions from Vidalia and Peru in the winter in your supermarket under the RealSweet and Mr. Buck's labels.