Nonna's Sunday Sauce

Short ribs, sausage and meatballs simmered in San Marzano tomatoes until the rib meat falls off the bone.

3 hr 40 min · Serves 8 · Italian

Ingredients

• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 2 lb bone-in beef short ribs
• 1 lb sweet Italian sausage links
• 1 lb ground beef
• 1/2 lb ground pork
• 1 cup fresh breadcrumbs
• 1/3 cup whole milk
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup Pecorino Romano, grated, plus more to serve
• 1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 1 yellow onion, finely chopped
• 8 cloves garlic, 2 grated and 6 sliced
• 3 tbsp tomato paste
• 1/2 cup dry red wine
• 3 cans (28 oz each) San Marzano tomatoes
• 1 large sprig basil
• 1 bay leaf
• kosher salt
• 2 lb rigatoni

Method

1. Season the short ribs with salt. Brown them well in the oil in a large heavy pot over medium-high heat, about 10 minutes. Set them aside, then brown the sausages and set them with the ribs.
2. Meanwhile, soak the breadcrumbs in the milk for 5 minutes. Add the beef, pork, eggs, Pecorino, parsley, grated garlic and 1½ tsp salt and mix with your hands just until it comes together. Roll into 16 meatballs.
3. Brown the meatballs in the same pot in two batches, turning gently, about 6 minutes a batch. They don't need to cook through.
4. Pour off all but 2 tbsp of the fat. Soften the onion over medium heat for 8 minutes, add the sliced garlic for a minute, then stir in the tomato paste until it turns brick red.
5. Pour in the wine and scrape up the browned bits. Crush in the tomatoes with your hands, then add one can of water, the basil and the bay leaf.
6. Put the ribs and sausages back. Bring to a bare simmer, cover with the lid ajar and cook for 2 hours, stirring every 20 minutes so nothing catches.
7. Add the meatballs and simmer 1 hour more, until the rib meat falls off the bone. Lift out the bones, the basil stem and the bay leaf. Taste for salt.
8. Cook the rigatoni and toss it with a few ladles of sauce. Serve the meat on a platter on the side, with more Pecorino.