The most important part of this dish is sourcing good quality pork sausages. If you can’t see chunks of meat through the sausage skin, keep looking. This makes a fair amount of ragu, if you’re only cooking for a few people I’d still make the full quantity and then freeze what you don’t need for a lovely quick mid week meal.

I like to serve short chunky pasta like rigatoni with this ragu but feel free to use whatever you prefer. Parpadelle would work well as would other short pasta like penne.

2T olive oil
1 large brown onion, peeled & chopped
1 large bulb fennel
1 clove garlic, sliced
6 Italian style pork sausages
1T fennel seeds, optional
3×400g (14oz) can tomatoes
500g rigatoni or other short pasta
extra virgin olive oil, to serve
parmesan cheese, to serve

Heat oil in a large saucepan or flame proof casserole dish over medium heat. Add onion and while the onion starts to cook prepare the fennel. Chop and discard the green stalks from the top of the bulb and then trim the bottom. Cut in half lengthwise and then roughly chop, similar to how you would chop an onion. Add fennel to the pan and cover. Cook stirring occasionally until the veg have softened but not browned. If they start to brown, turn the heat down a little.

Remove the cover, increase the heat to medium high and squeeze the sausages out of their skins into bight sized chunks in the pan. Add the garlic and fennel seeds and cook until the sausages have browned. Add tomatoes and their juices and bring to the boil.

Reduce heat to very low and simmer, stirring occasionally until reduced down and thickened to your liking. Season well.

While the ragu is cooking, bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil and cook pasta for the amount of time listed on the packet. Taste and when al dente drain and return to the saucepan. Stir through enough ragu to make the pasta look well sauced but not overwhelmed. You may not need all of the sauce.

Divide between warm pasta bowls and drizzle with your best quality extra virgin olive oil. Serve with parmesan and a cheese grater passed separately.

Accompany with a glass of Sons of Eden Kennedy GSM 2007

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