Pasta con ragu all'anatra, Venetian pasta with wild duck ragout

Number of persons: 4

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Cooking time: 90 minutes

Ingredients

• 4 wild duck breasts
• 250 ml game stock
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 carrots, cut into small cubes
• 2 stalks celery, cut into small pieces
• 200 ml red wine
• 400 g canned diced tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• Olive oil for frying
• Fresh basil for garnish
• 400 g fresh tagliatelle (or dried as an alternative)

Preparation method:

1. Heat a dash of olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook until soft, about 3-4 minutes.
   
   
2. Add the cubes of wild duck breast to the pan and fry until brown on all sides, about 5-6 minutes.
   
   
3. Add the carrots and celery to the pan and cook for another 5 minutes, until they start to soften.
   
   
4. Deglaze the mixture with red wine and game stock
   
   
5. Add the diced tomatoes, tomato puree, dried thyme and rosemary to the pan. Simmer the sauce over low heat for 90 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has thickened. Season with salt and pepper
   
   
6. In the meantime, bring a large pan of lightly salted water to the boil. Cook the tagliatelle according to the instructions on the package until al dente. Drain the pasta and reserve some of the cooking water.
   
   
7. Add the cooked tagliatelle to the pan with the wild duck ragout. Mix everything well, adding some of the reserved cooking water if necessary to thin the sauce.
   
   
8. Serve with fresh basil leaves

Enjoy this delicious and authentic Italian dish!