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Many of my dishes are adapted to chicken or turkey because my wife only likes a few red meat type of meals. This Spaghetti Chicken Ragu is a desire for me to have a meat sauce but knowing I need to create something that my wife and I can both share together. I prepared this dish for my wife and my parents. My parents, especially my father, are meat eaters. There is no way they will like this chicken ragu. They will know for sure that this is chicken meat and not red meat. Well, jokes on all of us. Everybody liked this ragu sauce.
Spaghetti Chicken Ragu
Do you agree that using the “white meat” is harder than using red meat? It is. It is because the white meat does not have as much flavor or fat content as its red meat cousin. So if you can make a recipe that your guests like using, ground chicken, definitely make note and plan to do it again. What is even more amazing about this recipe is that my wife, usually, does not like sauces and certainly likes her pastas simple. I just asked her what she liked about this chicken ragu. She said she loved the texture, the depth. I think she has been watching too many food shows. Now, she only sees the food shows when she is sitting with me watching food shows. But she has sure picked up the lingo.
This Spaghetti Chicken Ragu is simple yet has some complexity. It begins with the traditional mirepoix. A mirepoix is French in origin and is a mixture of celery, carrots and onions. It is the base of so many recipes. It is the base of a lot of sauces, and specifically, a good ragu. Add some tomato sauce, fresh parsley and the ground turkey and you have a hearty sauce for your pasta. The additional ingredients are simple spices of salt, pepper and oregano.
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 large onion, finely chopped
- 3 carrots, roughly chopped
- 2 celery stalks, finely chopped
- Coarse salt and ground pepper
- 2 tablespoons Italian seasonings
- 2 pounds ground chicken
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 can (6 ounces) tomato paste
- 1 can (14 1/2 ounces) reduced-sodium chicken broth
- 1/2 cup fat-free half-and-half
- 1/4 cup chopped parsley
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 3 eggs
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 - 4 tablespoons water
- Mix all the ingredients in a stand mixer until just combined.
- Remove to a counter and knead for a few minutes with flour.
- Cover with plastic wrap and let sit for 30 minutes.
- Using your stand mixer pasta attachments, flatten out the pasta and cut into fettuccine noodles.
- Cook in 4 - 6 quarts of water for 4 - 6 minutes.
- In a Dutch oven heat oil on medium high heat.
- Add onion, carrots, and celery; season with salt, pepper and Italian seasonings. Add in the chicken sausage in its casing.
- Add int the garlic.
- Cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are tender, 8 to 10 minutes.
- Add in the tomato paste and the fresh parsley and cook for 2 minutes.
- Add ground chicken; cook, breaking up meat with a spoon, until no longer pink, 8 to 9 minutes.
- Add in the broth and half-and-half; bring to a boil over high.
- Reduce to a simmer, and cook until sauce is thick and creamy, about 30 minutes more.
- Place a big helping of the fresh noodles and top with the chicken ragu.
- Serve and enjoy!
Mirepoix
Garlic Added
Chicken Sausage Added
The tomato sauce and parsley added, and then, the ground sausage added in.
Parsley & Tomato Paste Added
Sausage Broken Up
Chicken Sausage Browned
The final spaghetti chicken ragu plated.
Plated
This looks so amazing – pinned & printed off this recipe to make. Can’t wait to try it!
Do tell me how it turns out Debra.
Great pics, Peter and this looks just delicious!
Thx so much Dan.