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Ultimate pork ragu served with pasta and parmesan cheese.
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Ultimate Pork Ragu

3 kinds of meat, extra umami flavor, and slow braised pork shoulder all make this recipe the best version of itself — rich, savory, and comforting. Best of all, the ragu is overflowing with pork. There’s no need to hunt for a meaty bite, or save the best bite for last — there’s succulent meat in every bite!
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time2 hours 30 minutes
Course: Main Course
Keyword: One Pot
Servings: 8

Ingredients

  • 2 pounds Pork Shoulder
  • 2 teaspoons Salt
  • 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon Brown Sugar
  • ¼ teaspoon Smoked Paprika
  • 4 ounces Diced Pancetta
  • 1 large Onion, diced (about 2 cups)
  • 2 large Carrots, diced (about 1 cup)
  • 1 large rib Celery, diced (about ½ cup)
  • 3 tablespoons Tomato Paste
  • 1 tablespoon Red Miso Paste
  • 1 head Roasted Garlic
  • 2 cups dry Red Wine
  • 2 28-ounce cans Crushed Tomato
  • 1 tablespoon dried Italian Herbs
  • 5 sprigs fresh Thyme
  • ½ pound Mild Italian Sausage

Instructions

  • Pat dry pork shoulder with paper towel. Rub pork shoulder evenly with 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon brown sugar, and smoked paprika. Pork shoulder can be covered and refrigerated for up to 48 hours before continuing with recipe. 
  • Set oven rack to lower-middle position and preheat oven to 300 °F. Off heat, add pancetta and 1 tablespoon water to a large dutch oven. Cook pancetta over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until fat renders and pancetta is golden brown, about 5 minutes. Transfer pancetta to a small bowl, leaving fat in dutch oven. Store pancetta in refrigerator. 
  • Add onion, carrot, celery, and ½ teaspoon salt to dutch oven over medium heat; cook, stirring frequently, until onion begins to soften, about 7 minutes. Add tomato paste, miso paste, and roasted garlic; cook, stirring constantly, until tomato paste turns brick red and sticks to bottom of the pan, about 3 minutes. If at any point ingredients begin to burn at bottom of the pan, lower heat to medium-low. 
  • Add 1 cup red wine to dutch oven. Scrape bottom of pan with wooden spatula to incorporate browned layer. Add remaining wine, and bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to medium-low; continue to simmer until liquid is slightly reduced and thickened, about 10 minutes. Add crushed tomato, remaining 1 tablespoon brown sugar, italian herbs, fresh thyme, and ½ teaspoon salt to dutch oven. Stir to combine, and return to a simmer over medium heat. Lay pork shoulder over tomato sauce. Cover dutch oven and transfer to oven for 1½ hours. 
  • Remove dutch oven from the oven. Place sausage over pork shoulder. Cover dutch oven and return to oven for 30 minutes. Transfer sausage and pork shoulder to a large platter or cutting board. With a spoon, skim excess fat from top of tomato sauce. Remove thyme sprigs from sauce. Make sure to vent blender lid; cover lid with kitchen towel; and hold lid in place. In batches, transfer sauce to blender and blend until smooth. Return sauce to dutch oven, and bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Season to taste with salt and pepper. 
  • As sauce reheats, shred pork shoulder into 2-inch chunks, discarding bone and any large pieces of fat. Slice sausage ¼-inch thick. Stir pork shoulder, sausage and pancetta into sauce. Allow meat to warm for 10 minutes. Serve with pasta and parmesan cheese, or your choice of starch or grain. 

Notes

  • If you plan ahead, I recommend seasoning the pork shoulder 48 hours before making the ragu, and roasting the garlic anytime during that window. 
  • To roast the garlic, cut off the top ⅓ of the head of garlic, drizzle with ½ teaspoon olive oil, and wrap tightly in aluminum foil. Roast for 50 minutes at 350 °F. To remove the roasted garlic, squeeze the head of garlic from the base towards the top. If you don’t have time to roast the garlic ahead of the recipe, you can substitute 4 large cloves of minced raw garlic. 
  • You can use boneless or bone-in pork shoulder. If the pork shoulder is thicker than 3 inches, cut it into 2 pieces. 
  • You can use white miso instead of red miso paste. If you don’t have miso paste, you can substitute ¼ cup soy sauce, but add it with the wine in step 4, rather than with the tomato paste. 
  • Cook your choice of pasta to al dente. I recommend fettuccine or rigatoni. Stir your preferred amount of ragu in with the pasta. Sprinkle a generous ½ cup of finely grated parmesan, pecorino, or romano cheese over the pasta and stir to combine. Serve the pasta with additional cheese on top. 
  • Alternatively, you can also pair the pork ragu with roasted potatoes, polenta, crusty bread, your grain of choice, or use it for lasagna. 
  • The sauce will keep up to 7 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Gently reheat on the stove top, stirring occasionally, before serving.