The Cozze in Brodetto are Mussels in a little broth and this dish turned out rather well. We ate with oven-toasted bread, rubbed and baked with extra virgin olive oil and a clove of raw garlic. The crisp bread soaked up the fragrant juices beautifully.
This dish came together from four distinct components, each bringing its own depth of flavour:
The Tomato Salsa
A flavourful, rustic sauce made from two tins of peeled tomatoes gently simmered in extra virgin olive oil with fresh garlic cloves, a sprig of oregano, and a sprig of rosemary. The sauce was cooked until the tomatoes softened and the oil turned a deep red and was a perfect balance of sweet, tangy, and herbal.
The Mussels (Cozze)
Fresh, glossy mussels were steamed lightly in white wine until they opened and released their juice, this was the natural seafood stock. The liquid was strained and reserved, and added to the final dish.
The Soffritto
A delicate base of finely chopped celery, fennel, spring onions, and baby carrots sautéed slowly in extra virgin olive oil. Add half of the herbs, see below. This gave the dish texture and a gentle aroma.
The Herbs
Chopped parsley and fennel fronds , some added to the soffritto and some added at the end, stirred through just before serving.
Once everything was combined – the tomato sauce, the mussels and their broth, the vegetables, and the herbs the sum of all things came together as something both simple and very satisfying. The broth was light but full of flavour, and the mussels kept their freshness.
Was it from a particular region of Italy?
I don’t know. The ingredients and the way of cooking were Italian enough, and I imagine it could be made anywhere along the coast. Perhaps in the South of Italy they’d add some chilli.
Wherever it belongs, we liked it, and that’s really the best measure of success.
Duck ragù with mushrooms is a classic pasta sauce found in many parts of Italy. It is not a fashionable dish or a recent invention, but one that continues to endure because of its depth of flavour and its suitability for slow cooking.
Why Pappardelle Works So Well with Duck
Whenever I prepare a ragù with duck or game, I usually choose pappardelle. The wide ribbons of pasta are ideal for catching the rich sauce and substantial pieces of meat. In Tuscany, pappardelle is often served with wild boar, hare or duck ragù, and it remains one of my favourite combinations.
Preparing the Duck Over Two Days
On this occasion I purchased a whole duck and prepared the ragù over two days.
This is not essential, but it has advantages. After the duck is slowly braised and left overnight, the cooking liquid sets into a rich jelly and the fat rises to the surface, making it easy to remove. The resulting sauce is lighter and more refined, while still retaining all of the flavour.
The duck was first browned to render some of its fat.
Browning the duck pieces to render the fat and build flavour.
I then prepared a simple soffritto of onion, carrot and celery in the same pan, allowing the vegetables to absorb some of the flavour left behind by the duck. Red wine, chicken stock, rosemary, bay leaves and a small amount of tomato completed the braising liquid.
A traditional soffritto forms the base of the ragù.
The duck cooked slowly until the meat could be easily removed from the bones. Once cooled, I stripped the meat into generous pieces and set it aside. The braising liquid was strained and reserved separately.
Rather than discarding all of the rendered duck fat, I kept a small amount to cook the mushrooms. Brown mushrooms were sautéed with garlic, thyme and parsley until fragrant and lightly coloured. The reserved braising liquid was then added gradually and reduced until concentrated and glossy.
Finally, the duck meat was returned to the pan together with the mushrooms and a small grating of nutmeg. The result was a rich ragù with layers of flavour from the wine, herbs and slow-cooked duck, balanced by the earthiness of the mushrooms.
Tossed through freshly cooked pappardelle and served immediately, it made a satisfying meal that reflects the best qualities of traditional Italian cooking: patience, good ingredients and the willingness to let time do much of the work.
Ingredients
1 whole duck, cut into pieces
1 onion, finely diced
1 carrot, finely diced
1 celery stalk, finely diced
Fresh rosemary
2 bay leaves
½ cup diced tomatoes or 2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 cups dry red wine
3 cups chicken stock
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
250 g brown mushrooms, sliced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
Fresh thyme and parsley
Freshly grated nutmeg
Pappardelle, to serve
Pappardelle.
Method
I bought a whole duck, dismembered it and trimmed away the obvious fat.
The duck pieces are prepared by removing some of the fat.
Pat the duck pieces dry. Brown them skin-side down in a heavy casserole until the fat renders and the skin colours well. Turn and brown the other side.
Browning the duck pieces to render the fat and build flavour.
Remove most of the fat and set the duck aside.
In the same pan, cook the onion, carrot and celery until softened.
Return the duck to the pan and add the wine, stock, tomatoes, rosemary, bay leaves, salt and pepper.
Cover and simmer gently for 1¾–2¼ hours, or until the meat is tender.
The finished duck and mushroom ragù is ready to cool and leave overnight.
Cool and refrigerate overnight if possible.
Remove the layer of fat that forms on the surface.
Lift out the duck, discard the skin and bones, and shred the meat into chunks.
The stripped flesh from the duck pieces.
Strain the cooking liquid and reserve.
The drained flavourful liquid.
Sauté the mushrooms in a little duck fat with the garlic, thyme and parsley.
Mushrooms sautéed in duck fat with garlic and herbs.
The finished duck and mushroom ragù.
Add the braising liquid gradually, reducing it until concentrated.
Return the duck meat to the pan, add a little freshly grated nutmeg and adjust the seasoning.
The finished duck and mushroom ragù.
Toss through cooked pappardelle and serve.
A generous sprinkling of Parmigiano Reggiano is optional, although many Italians prefer to enjoy duck ragù without cheese.
These colourful beans are fresh borlotti; their pods look even more amazing. They are not in season in Victoria, they are coming from Queensland, but I bought some last week at Stall 61-63 in The Queen Victoria Market – this is where I buy all of my Italian vegetables. In Italy, when the fresh beans are available they are considered to be a treat.
Probably every region of Italy has a version of pasta e fagioli (pasta and beans) or minestra (soup) di fagioli. It is called pasta e fasoi in Trieste, pasta e facioli in Calabria, pasta ca fasola in Sicily and mnestra di fasö in Piedmont; the list goes on.
There may be a slight difference between the two dishes in the amount of liquid used, but they are both thick soups, and in fact so thick that they are also referred to as wet pasta dishes.
This version of the recipe is pretty universal all over Italy, but probably the greatest variation is that in various parts of Italy the cook places sufficient liquid in the soup to cook the pasta in it, whereas in other regions the pasta is cooked separately, drained and dressed with the cooked beans. Rice instead of pasta is more commonly used in the north of Italy.
Not every greengrocer sells fresh borlotti nor are they always in season but dry borlotti (soaked overnight)are also widely used for this dish. Do not add salt to the water when cooking dry pulses – it makes them tough.
Fresh borlotti beans do not need to be soaked, but lose their colour when cooked. Soak beans in cold water overnight – they will swell so it is important to put them in plenty of water.
1 kilo of fresh beans will shelled left me with 450g; this is sufficient quantity for a plate of soup for 2-3 people.
Wet pasta dishes with pulses are commonly cooked plain and presented with a drizzle of oil.
INGREDIENTS
borlotti beans, shelled, 450g
carrots, 2 finely sliced
celery stalks, 2 in bite-sized slices
fresh bay leaves, 2
short pasta, 300 – 400g ( depending on how wet you like the soup)
onion, 1 finely chbut preferably keep them whole – this will depend on how fresh the dried beans are, but fresh borlotti will take much less cooking time. Add salt to taste.
Cook the pasta.
Eitheraddmore water to the pan and cook the pasta in the soup or cook the pasta separately – I like to add stock or water with a good stock cube, salt and freshly ground pepper
extra virgin olive oil, to taste
PROCESSES
Drain the beans if they have been soaking.
Place sufficient water to cover the pulses and add the carrot, the tomato, celery and bay leaves (this will be the broth).
Bring the soup to the boil. Add the parsley. Cook the pulses until soft (20– 40 mins), but preferably keep them whole – this will depend on how fresh the dried beans are, but fresh borlotti will take much less cooking time. Add salt to taste.
Cook the pasta.
Eitheraddmore water to the pan and cook the pasta in the soup or cook the pasta separately – I like to add stock or water with a good stock cube at this stage and cook the pasta in the soup.If you are cooking the pasta separately combine the cooked pasta and use the soup to dress the pasta.
Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and freshly ground pepper or chili flakes (as is more common in the south of Italy) and serve.
SOFFRITTO
I sometimes like to garnish this soup with a soffritto:
Heat about ¾ cup of olive oil in a wide pan, add a clove of finely chopped garlic and the parsley (use the parsley in the soffritto instead of cooking it in the soup).
Sauté on high heat – it should sizzle and the parsley turn bright green – then pour over the soup.
