Venetian Duck Ragu
A rich Venetian duck ragù from Venice, slow-simmered with duck meat, onions, garlic, cinnamon, wine, tomatoes, stock, and milk, finished with pasta and Parmesan.
Steps
- 1
Heat the oil in a large pan and brown the duck legs on all sides for about 10 minutes; remove and set aside.
- 2
Add the onions and cook for 5 minutes until softened.
- 3
Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute, then stir in the cinnamon and flour and cook for a further minute.
- 4
Return the duck to the pan, add the wine, chopped tomatoes, stock, rosemary, bay leaves, sugar, and seasoning; bring to a simmer, then lower the heat, cover and cook for 2 hours, stirring occasionally.
- 5
Carefully lift the duck legs from the sauce, shred the meat, discard the bones and fat, then return the meat to the sauce with the milk and simmer uncovered for 10–15 minutes.
- 6
Cook the pasta following the pack instructions, drain, reserving a cup of pasta water.
- 7
Add the pasta to the ragù, stir to coat, and cook for about 1 minute more, adding a splash of pasta water if it looks dry.
- 8
Serve with grated Parmesan, if you like.
