Spicy Italian Sausage Gnocchi Ragu Recipe
A rich, spicy ragù with Italian sausage served over melt in your mouth, soft potato gnocchi. Made with pantry staples, this meal is perfect for weeknights.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon high quality olive oil I use Luigi Tega
- 4 shallots peeled, quartered and slices ( about 1 cup)
- 4 garlic cloves peeled and thinly sliced
- 1 lb Italian sausage packaged or in links(spicy, sweet or mild)
- 1 teaspoon basil
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon parsley
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 3 tablespoon tomato paste ) 1.5 ounces
- ½ cup red wine 4 ounces
- 1 cup passata smooth tomato puree(8 ounces)
- ½ teaspoon fish sauce Red Boat
- 1 lb Gnocchi
Garnish:
- Fresh basil
- Freshly grated parmesan cheese
- additional red pepper flakes
- Drizzle of chili pepper oil
Instructions
- Heat a large sauté pan over medium-high heat add the olive oil, once hot add the shallots, reduce heat to medium low. Stirring occasionally, cook the shallots until starting to caramelize, 10-15 minutes. Add in the sliced garlic and cook for another 5 minutes until the garlic starts to caramelize as well.
- Add in the sausage, to the shallots in the pan, if using links remove from casings, stir to crumble the sausage, increase heat to medium-high. Add in the herbs, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Stir. When the sausage is about halfway cooked around 5-6 minutes, add in the tomato paste and stir well then add in the wine. Cook until the wine is starting to reduce, another 2-3 minutes.
- Heat a large sauté pan over medium-high heat add the olive oil, once hot add the shallots, reduce heat to medium low. Stirring occasionally, cook the shallots until starting to caramelize, 10-15 minutes. Add in the sliced garlic and cook for another 5 minutes until the garlic starts to caramelize as well.
- Add in the sausage, to the shallots in the pan, if using links remove from casings, stir to crumble the sausage, increase heat to medium-high. Add in the herbs, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Stir. When the sausage is about halfway cooked around 5-6 minutes, add in the tomato paste and stir well then add in the wine. Cook until the wine is starting to reduce, another 2-3 minutes.
- While the sausage is cooking, bring a pot of salted water to a boil but don’t add in the gnocchi just yet.
- Add in the passata, or pureed tomato sauce, and fish sauce to the sausage mixture. Stir well until the pork is fully cooked, around 5 more minutes. Cook the gnocchi in the boiling salted water until they start to float to the surface, about 3 minutes, no longer. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the gnocchi to the pan with the pork mixture. Reserve a cup of the salted water.
- Gently stir the gnocchi until it is all covered with sauce. If you desire a thinner sauce add in the reserved salted water a few tablespoons at a time. Ragu is a thicker sauce so this is an optional step if you want a thinner sauce.
- Serve with thinly sliced fresh basil and freshly grated parmesan. Optional - add a little more red pepper flakes and a drizzle of chili pepper oil for more heat.