Sunday
Nonna's ragù — Café del Sol Botanica
The ragù from Ciara Viljoen's Café del Sol Botanica in Bryanston — slow, deep, tomatoey, the kind of sauce that fills the whole house.
Ragù IS bolognese. And who does not LOVE bolognese?? Serve over linguine with a mountain of parmesan.
Method
- 01
Warm the olive oil in a heavy pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot and celery (the soffritto) and cook slowly for 12–15 minutes until sweet and softened but not coloured. Stir in the garlic for the last minute.
- 02
Turn the heat up. Add the beef and pork (or salsiccia), breaking it up with a wooden spoon, and brown properly — no crowding, no rushing. You want colour on the meat, not steamed grey mince.
- 03
Stir in the tomato paste and cook it out for 2 minutes until it darkens. Pour in the red wine and let it bubble down to almost nothing, scraping the base of the pot.
- 04
Add the crushed tomatoes, stock, milk, bay leaf and nutmeg. Season lightly. Bring to a bare simmer, then drop the heat as low as it will go.
- 05
Cook uncovered, stirring every so often, for 2 to 2½ hours. It's done when the sauce is rich and glossy and the fat is beading on the surface. Taste and adjust salt and pepper.
- 06
Stir the torn basil through at the end. Cook the linguine in well-salted water until al dente, drain (save a mugful of pasta water), and toss the pasta into the ragù with a splash of the water until every strand is coated.
- 07
Serve in warm bowls with a shower of parmigiano and a final grind of pepper. Eat immediately, preferably with people you love.
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