Slow-Braised Pork Ragù with Red Wine
·Sear the meat
Cut the meat into small cubes, as evenly sized as possible. Place it in a bowl, season with salt and pepper and mix well. Get your cast-iron pot as hot as it will go, add a knob of lard and sear the meat on all sides over high heat.
Bacon, onion and garlic
Meanwhile, in a separate pan, fry diced bacon together with roughly chopped onion. Towards the end of cooking, add crushed and chopped garlic. Keep frying until the bacon is lightly crisp and the onion is golden brown.
Add everything to the pot
Tip the contents of the pan into the cast-iron pot with the meat, along with coarsely grated carrot and parsley root. Stir together, turn the heat up to full and pour in the wine.
A pleasant aroma
Stir and let it bubble away at a rapid boil for a few minutes. How do you know when to turn the heat down? The slightly sour smell of wine will fade and turn into a pleasant aroma. You can also taste it - the liquid in the pot should taste pleasant, not sour.
Add the stock
A fair amount of the wine will have boiled off by now, so you'll need more liquid for the meat to braise in slowly. Add stock - I just use whatever stock I have in the fridge, usually beef.
Let it braise
Now turn the heat right down so the mixture in the pot doesn't boil but braises very gently. Stir occasionally and let it braise for several hours. The time needed depends not just on the temperature, but also on the quality of the meat and the size of the cubes you cut.
Add the tomatoes
After about an hour, I add tomatoes to the pot. They eventually break down completely, help thicken the ragù slightly and add an interesting depth of flavour.
Add the herbs
Just before finishing, I add fresh herbs - usually thyme, sage or parsley. Simmer with the herbs for at least another five minutes.
Serving
Serve with your favourite side. We used gnocchi, which we simply pan-fried. Finish with a sprinkle of grated Parmesan.