Name: Pinbone’s lamb shoulder ragù with gnocchetti
Prep time: 60 min
Cook time: 180 min
Total time: 240 min
Yield: 6
Ingredients: 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil; 1 each onion, celery stalk, red capsicum, and small fennel bulb, cut into large dice; 10 garlic cloves, crushed; 1 long red chilli, split lengthways; 2 tbsp tomato paste; 2 rosemary sprigs; 2 thyme sprigs; 2 bay leaves; 2 thin strips of orange peel; 1 cinnamon quill; 2 each small star anise and cloves; 10 black peppercorns; 100 ml red wine; 1 litre (4 cups) passata; 50 gm brown sugar; 1 kg boneless trimmed lamb shoulder, cut into 5cm pieces; 1 tbsp butter; Finely grated parmesan, to serve; Gnocchetti; 250 gm fine semolina, plus extra for dusting; 1 tbsp olive oil; Rosemary pangrattato; 120 gm (2 cups) breadcrumbs from day-old crustless bread processed to coarse crumbs, then shaken in a sieve to remove fine crumbs; 100 ml extra-virgin olive oil; 2 tbsp rosemary leaves; 1 garlic clove, crushed

Pinbone’s lamb shoulder ragù with gnocchetti

Could this be the hit dish from Pinbone's Italian pop-up, Mr Liquor's Dirty Italian Disco? It certainly gets a vote from us.

Serves 6

Prep

Cook

Total

“This is our take on the classic sauce – it’s rich and delicious,” says Mike Eggert. “Nothing really compares to a homemade ragù, and once you discover pangrattato, you’ll crave it on everything.”

Ingredients

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

1 each onion, celery stalk, red capsicum, and small fennel bulb, cut into large dice

10 garlic cloves, crushed

1 long red chilli, split lengthways

2 tbsp tomato paste

2 rosemary sprigs

2 thyme sprigs

2 bay leaves

2 thin strips of orange peel

1 cinnamon quill

2 each small star anise and cloves

10 black peppercorns

100 ml red wine

1 litre (4 cups) passata

50 gm brown sugar

1 kg boneless trimmed lamb shoulder, cut into 5cm pieces

1 tbsp butter

Finely grated parmesan, to serve

Gnocchetti

250 gm fine semolina, plus extra for dusting

1 tbsp olive oil

Rosemary pangrattato

120 gm (2 cups) breadcrumbs from day-old crustless bread processed to coarse crumbs, then shaken in a sieve to remove fine crumbs

100 ml extra-virgin olive oil

2 tbsp rosemary leaves

1 garlic clove, crushed

Method

1.Heat olive oil, vegetables, garlic and chilli in a large saucepan over medium heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until beginning to soften and caramelise (10-12 minutes). Add tomato paste, herbs, peel and spices, and stir until beginning to brown (2 minutes). Add red wine, passata, bring to a simmer, then add sugar and 2½ tsp salt. Add lamb, cover directly with a round of baking paper or with a lid, reduce heat to low, and braise gently until meat is almost falling apart (2 hours). Leave to cool (1-2 hours).

2.Meanwhile, for gnocchetti, mix semolina, olive oil, 125ml cold water and a pinch of salt in a bowl until smooth and combined. Pat into a disc, wrap tightly in plastic wrap and leave to rest for an hour.

3.For pangrattato, stir ingredients in a large frying pan over low-medium heat until golden brown and crisp (15-20 minutes). Drain on paper towels and leave to cool.

4.Skim any fat from the surface of the ragù, remove lamb, shred into small pieces and set aside. Pass remaining ragù through a mouli or coarse sieve into a saucepan, pressing with a large spoon to get as much pulp as possible. Discard solids in sieve, then reduce ragù over medium heat until thick and glossy (30-40 minutes). Return lamb to ragù, adjust seasoning to taste and keep warm.

5.Roll out gnocchetti dough on a well-floured bench until a 1cm-thick square. Cut into pieces about 1cm x 3cm long, then roll each piece lengthways over a gnocchi board, pressing with your thumb; if you don’t have a board, form the shape with a fork. Transfer to trays dusted with semolina and scatter with more semolina.

6.Blanch gnochetti in batches in a large saucepan of boiling salted water until they float (1-2 minutes). Transfer to ragù with a slotted spoon and stir in butter over low heat. Serve topped with parmesan and rosemary pangrattato.