Venetian Duck Ragu with Pappardelle Pasta

Ingredients

• 2 large duck legs
• 1 carrot (finely chopped)
• 1 onion (finely chopped)
• 1 stick celery (finely chopped)
• 1/2 orange zest
• 1/2 juice of 1 orange
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 cup (150g) passata (pureed tomatoes)
• 1 heaped tbsp tomato paste
• 2/3 cup (150ml) white wine
• 5 cups (1.2 litres) chicken stock
• salt and pepper
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 14 oz (400g) pappardelle pasta
• parmesan (, for serving)

Steps

1. 1

   Season the duck with salt and pepper then rub it all over with 1/2 tsp cinnamon. Sear it skin down first in a large pan with a little olive oil on a medium to low heat for 7-8 minutes on each side until browned, set aside on a plate.

2. 2

   Add 1 tbsp of olive oil to the same pan, add the chopped carrot, onion and celery, orange zest, bay leaf and 1/2 tsp cinnamon and saute slowly for 10 minutes, stirring often until the vegetables are soft.

3. 3

   Add the duck back to the pan and add the wine, reduce the wine by half then add the orange juice, pureed tomatoes (passata), tomato paste and stock stir to combine all the ingredients and simmer slowly uncovered for 2 hours turning the duck around halfway through. If the sauce reduces too much add more stock or water.

4. 4

   Turn the sauce off the heat and remove the duck legs, let it cool on a chopping board for 10 minutes then shred the meat off the bone using a fork. Roughly chop it then add it back to the sauce, the ragu is ready at this point so heat the ragu up while your pasta is cooking.

5. 5

   Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pappardelle according to packet instructions. Remove the pasta with large tongs or a spaghetti spoon (if draining reserve some pasta water to add to the sauce in case it has reduced too much) and add to the ragu. Toss to coat and serve in bowls with a sprinkling of freshly grated parmesan cheese.