This recipe comes from a Guardian article. Since reading about this dish made me hungry, I knew that it was one that I would want to make my own. This is a pork based tomato sauce and very good but, should I make it again, I would make it with beef ribs and (probably) beef sausage.
If you have leftover sausages, heat them up for lunch and have them with a warm potato salad. Use the left over sauce, with the rib meat shredded up in it to make lasagna.
4-5 pork ribs, bone-in for flavor
4 best quality pork sausages (I used organic sweet Italian)
16 oz can chopped tomatoes
1 bunch basil, chopped roughly
1 bunch arugula, chopped roughly
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1 shallot, peeled and diced
1 tsp fennel seed
1/2 tsp chopped oregano
1/2 tsp thyme leaves
1 tsp olive oil
Salt to taste
Put the olive oil in a large stock pot over medium heat. As soon as the oil is hot, add the ribs and the sausages and brown on all sides, a couple of minutes each side. Remove the sausages and set aside on a plate.
Add the garlic, shallot, fennel, oregano, thyme and some salt to the pot with the ribs. Reduce heat and cook, stirring from time to time until the shallot is translucent.
Add the can of tomatoes to the ribs. Fill the can with water and add that as well. Stir, cover, and cook over low heat for about 90 minutes until the ribs are falling off the bone. Check from time to time and stir to keep from catching on the bottom of the pan.
Add the sausages and their juices, if any, to the pan and cook for an additional 30 minutes, this time uncovered.
Five minutes before the dish is done, add the basil and arugula and stir in. Check for seasoning and add more salt if needed.
Remove the bones from the dish with tongs and the dish is ready to eat. That being said, I suggest either running a slice of bread over the surface to soak up the extra fat from the meat, or making this the day before and removing the solidified fat before reheating. If you have no weight or cholesterol issues, dig right in.
L. felt very strongly that this needed to be served over pasta with a mountain of Parmesan shaved over the top. My suggestion would be a creamy polenta and a dusting of cheese.
Inspiration recipe, here.