Garganelli with rabbit ragu (garganelli al ragu di coniglio)

Garganelli is a type of ridged, tubular pasta that’s traditionally made by rolling squares of dough around a wooden stick, known as a bastoncino, along a grooved board or pettine. While you can substitute penne rigate, garganelli is more delicate with a visible seam. Matteo usually serves this pasta with wild hare ragù, but we’ve substituted rabbit, which is more readily available.

• serves

  4

• prep

  35 minutes

• cook

  3:25 hours

• difficulty

  Ace

Ingredients

• 400 g rabbit*
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 1 celery stalk, finely chopped
• 1 small carrot, finely chopped
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 sprig each sage and rosemary, leaves picked, finely chopped
• ½ tbsp tomato paste
• 100 ml dry white wine
• 2 cloves
• 2 juniper berries
• finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, to serve

Marinade

• 500 ml (2 cups) dry red wine
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 celery stalk, chopped
• 1 carrot, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 sprig each rosemary and sage
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 black peppercorns
• 2 juniper berries
• 2 cloves

Garganelli

• 300 g (2 cups) plain flour
• 3 eggs

Drink match 2012 Tar & Roses Sangiovese, Heathcote, Vic ($22)

Instructions

To make marinade, combine all ingredients in a large, non-reactive bowl. Add rabbit, tossing to coat, then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight to marinate.

Drain rabbit, discarding marinade, and cut into 3 cm pieces. Heat oil in a large, heavy-based saucepan over medium heat. Add onion, celery, carrot, garlic and herbs, and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes or until vegetables start to soften. Add rabbit and cook, turning, for 2 minutes or until browned all over. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring, for 1 minute, then add wine and simmer for 3 minutes or until evaporated. Add enough water to just cover mixture, then add cloves and juniper berries. Cover and simmer for 3 hours or until rabbit is very tender.

Meanwhile, to make garganelli, place flour on a clean work surface. Make a well in centre and break eggs into it. Using a fork, draw in flour, working from the centre outwards, then using your hands, work in remaining flour. Knead dough for 6 minutes or until smooth and elastic. Enclose dough in plastic wrap and rest for 20 minutes.

Using a rolling pin, roll out dough until 5 mm thick and about 12 cm wide – nearly the width of your pasta machine. Set your pasta machine at its widest setting, then feed through dough, narrowing settings one notch at a time until you reach the thinnest setting. Cut pasta into 2 cm squares, then wrap each square around the handle of a wooden spoon, pressing edges to seal. Roll a small fork lightly dusted in flour around pasta to create the ridges, then slide pasta off the handle.

When ragù is almost ready, cook garganelli in a large saucepan of boiling salted water until al dente. Drain, add pasta to ragù and season with salt and pepper, tossing gently to combine. Serve scattered with Parmigiano -Reggiano.

Note

• Rabbit is available from select butchers. 

Photography Brett Stevens

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.