Make Ahead

Rustic penne with a wine mystery solved

by:
November 10, 2009
4.5
2 Ratings
  • Serves 4
Author Notes

This recipe -- penne with sausage -- is taken from an Italian cookbook that left out a crucial step. It called for white wine but didn't say when to put it in. I experimented, then consulted Amanda of Food52, who confirmed when it should be added and even gave it a name, "the bolognese technique." It is quick and hearty. You can use any sausage, though I like boar meat (like from D'Artagnan) because it is less fatty and distinguishes the dish from San Gennaro fare, good as that is. Note: no garlic. —fisheri

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 1 red onion
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 pound plum tomatoes, more if you like
  • 1/2 pound sausage. Any kind will do but as noted above I like to use D'Artagnan's non-pork sausage, like boar.
  • 1/2 cup white wine
  • 2/3ds packets penne
  • 1 yellow pepper
  • 1 pinch hot pepper
  • pamesan cheese
Directions
  1. chop onion and pepper into medium dice, roughly chop tomatoes.
  2. squeeze out sausage meat from casings into bite sized chunks
  3. heat two tablespoons of oil in sauce pan. add onions and saute till translucent, 7 minutes or so.
  4. boil water for pasta and cook while the sauce is cooking. i like to do it about a minute under what's recommended on the box but it is very much to personal taste.
  5. when onions are tender, add sausage and red pepper. brown for a few minutes. then add wine, reducing by half or so over high heat. add tomatoes and peppers. salt to taste. cook until it has an almost creamy consistency, 15 or 20 minutes.
  6. dump sauce over the pasta and stir for a minute or two in a pot. check for salt. serve with cheese.
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2 Reviews

AntoniaJames
AntoniaJames November 24, 2009
This recipe is scrumptious and so quick to make!! You can do it while you're making the pasta (starting when you put the pasta water on to boil). I made this for dinner last night, substituting zucchini for the pepper, as the latter doesn't agree with me. I also stirred in about 1/2 tsp of anchovie paste, right before adding the wine. I threw in a big handful of chopped Italian parsley at the end. Divine!!
 
AntoniaJames
AntoniaJames November 23, 2009
Oh this looks so tasty! I'm making it for dinner tonight, but cannot get boar sausage just yet. (My brother-in-law, a true hunter and an amazing one at that, hunts wild boar with a bow and arrow! But he lives 2500 miles away . . . . ) I'll probably use a sweet Italian sausage made with chicken, which is more readily available here. Thanks for posting this!