Pasta with Cotechino Ragù

Pasta with cotechino ragù is a recipe that embodies Italian tradition, combining cotechino, typical of holidays, with ragù, a classic of Italian cuisine. Here’s how to prepare this dish.

Ingredients

• 300 g of pasta (preferably tagliatelle or pappardelle)
• 250 g of cotechino (already cooked and peeled)
• 1 small onion
• 1 carrot
• 1 celery stalk
• 1 garlic clove
• 400 g of tomato passata
• Red wine, as needed
• Extra virgin olive oil, as needed
• Salt, as needed
• Black pepper, as needed
• Grated Parmesan, for serving

Preparation

1. Start by finely chopping the onion, carrot, and celery. In a large pan, sauté the vegetable mixture with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and the whole garlic clove (which you can remove later).

2. Cut the cooked and peeled cotechino into small cubes and add it to the vegetable sauté. Let it brown for a few minutes.

3. Deglaze with some red wine and let the alcohol evaporate over high heat.

4. Add the tomato passata, lower the heat, and let it cook for about 30-40 minutes, adding a bit of water if necessary. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

5. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta until al dente. Drain it and add it to the pan with the cotechino ragù, letting it absorb the flavors for a couple of minutes.

6. Serve the pasta hot, sprinkling with plenty of grated Parmesan.

Trivia

Cotechino is a typical Italian sausage, especially from Emilian and Venetian cuisine, traditionally eaten during the Christmas and New Year’s period. There is a popular belief that eating cotechino at the beginning of the year brings prosperity and good luck for the months ahead. With this recipe, cotechino finds a second life after the holidays, integrating perfectly with pasta in a rich and substantial dish.