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Sausage and Pepper "Bolognese", An Italian American Ragu

Taking the Italian American classic, Sausage and peppers and mashing it with the traditional Ragu Alla Bolognese from Emilia-Romagna. The result is a ragu Italian Americans can all their own.
Servings: 4
Author: Not Another Cooking Show

Ingredients

  • 2 red bell peppers sliced thin
  • 1 onion sliced thin
  • 2 cloves garlic sliced thin
  • 1 tablespoon Calabrian chilli chopped
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 4 tablespoons vodka
  • 1 pint heavy cream
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1½ pounds hot Italian sausage removed from their casings
  • 1 pound paccheri pasta

Instructions

Roast the peppers:

  • Cut the cheeks off of the pepper so that all that remains are the seeds and the core.
  • Coat the with a touch of oil.
  • Place the peppers under the broiler and cook until the skin starts to char slightly, moving the peppers around until evenly charred all the way around.
  • Once charred, place them in a bowl, cover in plastic wrap, and let them steam for 15 minutes.
  • Using your knife, scrape the skin off the peppers and cut them into thin slices.

Start the pasta water:

  • Get a pot of water boiling and salt the water.

Brown the sausage:

  • In a high rimmed sauté pan that has been preheated on high heat, add a few tablespoons of olive oil and then add the sausage.
  • Using a flat bottomed spoon, chop up the sausage to break it down into smaller pieces and then cook until the moisture has evaporated and you start to see and hear the sausage frying in its own fat and browning.
  • Once the sausage is nicely browned, deglaze the fond on the bottom of the pan with a little vodka, just enough to pick up all that flavor from the pan.
  • Use a slotted spoon to transfer the browned sausage into a bowl and set aside.

Make the sauce:

  • Reduce the heat to medium-high.
  • Add a few tablespoons of olive oil and then get the onions in to get them going.
  • Season with salt and once softened and beginning to turn translucent, add the peppers.
  • Cook for a few minutes until the onions are fully translucent and soft and start to brown slightly. You just want to cook them until they are soft enough to blend smoothly.
  • Add the garlic, and Calabrian chilis and cook until the garlic softens and begins to slightly brown around the edges.
  • Add two tablespoons of tomato paste and incorporate into the vegetables and cook for 2-3 minutes.
  • Turn the heat off and deglaze the with the vodka.
  • Slowly add the pint of cream, let cool slightly and then blend until smooth.

Finish and serve:

  • Add the pasta to the boiling water and start cooking the pasta.
  • Return the sausage to the pan with the sauce and let it simmer on low heat for about 15 minutes or until the pasta is cooked.
  • 1-2 minutes before the pasta is perfectly cooked, add it to the sauce with a tablespoon or two of the pasta water.
  • Marry the sauce and the pasta until the pasta becomes perfectly al dente.
  • Plate with some more sauce and some grated Pecorino Romano.