Bigoli with Duck Ragu
- 4 duck legs and thighs, skin removed
- 4 tablespoons virgin olive oil
- 1 medium Spanish onion, chopped into 1/4-inch dice
- 1 medium carrot, peeled and finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
- 1 stalk celery, chopped into 1/4-inch dice
- 8 ounces red wine (Chianti preferred)
- 1 (28-ounce can) tomatoes, peeled whole
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 2 ounce dried porcini mushrooms
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Bigoli, recipe follows
- 4 cups whole wheat flour, plus a little more for bench flour
- 4 eggs
- 1/2 -cup warm milk, with 2 tablespoons butter melted in
- Wash the duck legs and remove all fat.
- Pat dry.
- In a heavy-bottomed casserole or Dutch oven, heat the olive oil until smoking.
- Add the duck legs and cook until brown on all sides and remove, about 10 to 12 minutes.
- Add the onion, carrot, garlic and celery and cook until softened, about 7 to 9 minutes.
- Add the wine, tomatoes, chicken stock and dried mushrooms and bring to a boil.
- Add the duck legs and return to a boil, lower the heat, cover and allow to simmer for 1 hour.
- Remove the duck legs and allow to cool.
- Pull all meat off the bones and return to pot, without the bones.
- Simmer uncovered for 30 minutes, or until quite thick.
- Season with salt and pepper and set aside.
- Fill a large pot with 6 quarts water and add 2 tablespoons salt.
- Cook bigoli until "al dente", about 8 to 9 minutes.
- Heat the sauce, drain pasta and toss in pan.
- Toss to coat and serve immediately.
- To make the dough: Make a mound of the flour in the center of a large wooden cutting board.
- Make a well in the middle of the flour and add the eggs and milk mixture.
- Using a fork, beat together the eggs and milk mixture and begin to incorporate the flour starting with the inner rim of the well.
- As you expand the well, keep pushing the flour up to retain the well shape.
- Do not worry that this initial phase looks messy.
- The dough will come together when half of the flour is incorporated.
- Start kneading the dough with both hands, using the palms of your hands.
- Once you have a cohesive mass, remove the dough from the board and scrape up any leftover crusty bits.
- Discard these bits.
- Lightly flour the board and continue kneading for 3 more minutes.
- The dough should be elastic and a little sticky.
- Continue to knead for another 3 minutes, remembering to dust your board when necessary.
- Wrap the dough in plastic and allow to rest for 30 minutes at room temperature.
- To make the Bigoli: Knead dough until smooth and tight, and let rest 20 minutes.
- Note: Do not skip the kneading or resting portion of this recipe.
- They are essential for a light pasta.
- Cut the dough into 6 pieces, and run each piece through a meat grinder set to the smallest extrusion size.
- As the pasta exits, cut it into 12-inch pieces and immediately dust with flour.
- Lay out on a cookie sheet dusted with cornmeal, being careful to keep the strands separate.
- Finish all 6 pieces the same way.
virgin olive oil, spanish onion, carrot, garlic, celery, red wine, tomatoes, chicken stock, porcini mushrooms, salt, whole wheat flour, eggs, warm milk
Taken from www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/mario-batali/bigoli-with-duck-ragu-recipe2.html (may not work)