Neapolitan ragù
Encyclopedia
Neapolitan ragù is one of the two most famous varieties of meat sauces called ragù
. (The other one is the renowned Bolognese sauce
popular worldwide.) It is a speciality of Naples
, as its name indicates.
Like its equivalent in Bologna
, the Neapolitan type is also made from three main parts: a soffritto, meat
, and tomato sauce
. However, a major difference is how the meat is used as well as the amount of tomato in the sauce. Bolognese version uses very finely chopped meat, while the Neapolitan version uses whole meat, taking it from the casserole
when cooked and serving it as a second course or with pasta
. Also, the soffritto contains much more onion
compared to the Bolognese. Preferences for ingredients also differ. In Naples, white wine is replaced by red wine, butter
by lard
or olive oil
, and lots of basil
leaves are used where Bolognese ragù has no herbs. In the Neapolitan recipe the content may well be enriched with adding raisin
s, pine nut
s, and involtini with different fillings. Milk
or cream
is not used, and a relative abundance of tomato sauce in flavour, in contrast to Bolognese use of a minimal amount, is preferred. The tomato season is of course much longer in Southern Naples than in Northern Bologna. Like the Bolognese, Neapolitan ragù also has quite a wide range of variants, the most well-known of which is ragù guardaporta (doorman's ragù).
It is interesting to note that Bolognese sauce (or, more often, a kind of tomato-and-ground-beef sauce named this way) is used with tagliatelle
, which is a fresh egg pasta, in Italy
, but outside of Italy for spaghetti
, a dry southern pasta. In Italy the kind of ragù used with pasta types like spaghetti, bucatini
, and ziti is always the Neapolitan one.
Neapolitan ragù is very similar to and may be ancestral to the Italian-American "Sunday gravy", the primary difference being the addition of a greater variety of meat in the American version, most famously meatballs (whence spaghetti and meatballs
), braciole
, sausage, and pork chops.
Ragù
In Italian cookery, a ragù is a meat-based sauce, which is traditionally served with pasta.Typical Italian ragù include ragù alla bolognese , ragù alla napoletana , and ragù alla Barese...
. (The other one is the renowned Bolognese sauce
Bolognese sauce
Bolognese sauce is a meat-based sauce for pasta originating in Bologna, Italy. It is traditionally used to dress tagliatelle and is one of the two sauces used to prepare "lasagne alla Bolognese"...
popular worldwide.) It is a speciality of Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
, as its name indicates.
Like its equivalent in Bologna
Bologna
Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
, the Neapolitan type is also made from three main parts: a soffritto, meat
Meat
Meat is animal flesh that is used as food. Most often, this means the skeletal muscle and associated fat and other tissues, but it may also describe other edible tissues such as organs and offal...
, and tomato sauce
Tomato sauce
A tomato sauce is any of a very large number of sauces made primarily from tomatoes, usually to be served as part of a dish...
. However, a major difference is how the meat is used as well as the amount of tomato in the sauce. Bolognese version uses very finely chopped meat, while the Neapolitan version uses whole meat, taking it from the casserole
Casserole
A casserole, from the French for "saucepan", is a large, deep dish used both in the oven and as a serving vessel. The word casserole is also used for the food cooked and served in such a vessel, with the cookware itself called a casserole dish or casserole pan...
when cooked and serving it as a second course or with pasta
Pasta
Pasta is a staple food of traditional Italian cuisine, now of worldwide renown. It takes the form of unleavened dough, made in Italy, mostly of durum wheat , water and sometimes eggs. Pasta comes in a variety of different shapes that serve for both decoration and to act as a carrier for the...
. Also, the soffritto contains much more onion
Onion
The onion , also known as the bulb onion, common onion and garden onion, is the most widely cultivated species of the genus Allium. The genus Allium also contains a number of other species variously referred to as onions and cultivated for food, such as the Japanese bunching onion The onion...
compared to the Bolognese. Preferences for ingredients also differ. In Naples, white wine is replaced by red wine, butter
Butter
Butter is a dairy product made by churning fresh or fermented cream or milk. It is generally used as a spread and a condiment, as well as in cooking applications, such as baking, sauce making, and pan frying...
by lard
Lard
Lard is pig fat in both its rendered and unrendered forms. Lard was commonly used in many cuisines as a cooking fat or shortening, or as a spread similar to butter. Its use in contemporary cuisine has diminished because of health concerns posed by its saturated-fat content and its often negative...
or olive oil
Olive oil
Olive oil is an oil obtained from the olive , a traditional tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin. It is commonly used in cooking, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and soaps and as a fuel for traditional oil lamps...
, and lots of basil
Basil
Basil, or Sweet Basil, is a common name for the culinary herb Ocimum basilicum , of the family Lamiaceae , sometimes known as Saint Joseph's Wort in some English-speaking countries....
leaves are used where Bolognese ragù has no herbs. In the Neapolitan recipe the content may well be enriched with adding raisin
Raisin
Raisins are dried grapes. They are produced in many regions of the world. Raisins may be eaten raw or used in cooking, baking and brewing...
s, pine nut
Pine nut
Pine nuts are the edible seeds of pines . About 20 species of pine produce seeds large enough to be worth harvesting; in other pines the seeds are also edible, but are too small to be of great value as a human food....
s, and involtini with different fillings. Milk
Milk
Milk is a white liquid produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals before they are able to digest other types of food. Early-lactation milk contains colostrum, which carries the mother's antibodies to the baby and can reduce the risk of many...
or cream
Cream
Cream is a dairy product that is composed of the higher-butterfat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, over time, the lighter fat rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream this process is accelerated by using centrifuges called "separators"...
is not used, and a relative abundance of tomato sauce in flavour, in contrast to Bolognese use of a minimal amount, is preferred. The tomato season is of course much longer in Southern Naples than in Northern Bologna. Like the Bolognese, Neapolitan ragù also has quite a wide range of variants, the most well-known of which is ragù guardaporta (doorman's ragù).
It is interesting to note that Bolognese sauce (or, more often, a kind of tomato-and-ground-beef sauce named this way) is used with tagliatelle
Tagliatelle
Tagliatelle and tagliolini are a traditional type of pasta from Emilia-Romagna and Marches, regions of Italy. Individual pieces of tagliatelle are long, flat ribbons that are similar in shape to fettuccine and are typically about 0.65 cm to 1 cm wide...
, which is a fresh egg pasta, in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, but outside of Italy for spaghetti
Spaghetti
Spaghetti is a long, thin, cylindrical pasta of Italian origin. Spaghetti is made of semolina or flour and water. Italian dried spaghetti is made from durum wheat semolina, but outside of Italy it may be made with other kinds of flour...
, a dry southern pasta. In Italy the kind of ragù used with pasta types like spaghetti, bucatini
Bucatini
Bucatini is a thick spaghetti-like pasta with a hole running through the center. The name comes from , meaning "hole", while bucato means "pierced"....
, and ziti is always the Neapolitan one.
Neapolitan ragù is very similar to and may be ancestral to the Italian-American "Sunday gravy", the primary difference being the addition of a greater variety of meat in the American version, most famously meatballs (whence spaghetti and meatballs
Spaghetti and meatballs
Spaghetti with meatballs is a dish that usually consists of spaghetti, tomato sauce and meatballs.According to Food Network host and correspondent Alton Brown, early 20th-century Italian immigrants in New York City were the first to make it and the National Pasta Association was the...
), braciole
Braciole
Braciola is the name of an Italian dish. Braciole are simply thin slices of beef pan-fried in their own juice, or in a small amount of light olive oil...
, sausage, and pork chops.