Venetian Duck Ragu

Area: Italian

PastaYoutube

Heat the oil in a large pan. Add the duck legs and brown on all sides for about 10 mins. Remove to a plate and set aside. Add the onions to the pan and cook for 5 mins until softened. Add the garlic and cook for a further 1 min, then stir in the cinnamon and flour and cook for a further min. Return the duck to the pan, add the wine, tomatoes, stock, herbs, sugar and seasoning. Bring to a simmer, then lower the heat, cover with a lid and cook for 2 hrs, stirring every now and then. Carefully lift the duck legs out of the sauce and place on a plate – they will be very tender so try not to lose any of the meat. Pull off and discard the fat, then shred the meat with 2 forks and discard the bones. Add the meat back to the sauce with the milk and simmer, uncovered, for a further 10-15 mins while you cook the pasta. Cook the pasta following pack instructions, then drain, reserving a cup of the pasta water, and add the pasta to the ragu. Stir to coat all the pasta in the sauce and cook for 1 min more, adding a splash of cooking liquid if it looks dry. Serve with grated Parmesan, if you like.

Ingredients

Olive Oil 1 tbls

Duck Legs 4

Onions 2 finely chopped

Garlic 2 cloves minced

Cinnamon 2 tsp ground

Plain Flour 2 tsp

Red Wine 250ml

Chopped Tomatoes 800g

Chicken Stock Cube 1

Rosemary 3 sprigs

Bay Leaves 2

Sugar 1 tsp

Milk 2 tbs

Paccheri Pasta 600g

Parmesan Cheese Grated