Ragù

InItalian cuisine,ragù(Italian:[raˈɡu], fromFrenchragoût) is ameat saucethat is commonly served withpasta.An Italian gastronomic society,Accademia Italiana della Cucina, documented several ragù recipes.The recipes' common characteristics are the presence of meat and the fact that all are sauces for pasta. The most typical isragù alla bolognese(Bolognese sauce, made with mincedbeef). Other types areragù alla napoletana(Neapolitan ragù, made with a variety ofporkand beef meats which may includesausage),ragù alla barese(ragù fromBari, sometimes made withhorse meat),ragù alla veneta(ragù fromVeneto, a traditionally tomatolessduckragù), and so on.
Innorthern Italianregions, ragù typically uses minced, chopped or ground meat, cooked withsauteedvegetables in a liquid, which traditionally include liquidized tomatoes, but also exist in tomatoless versions referred to asragù in bianco(white ragù). The meats may include one or more of beef, chicken, pork, duck, goose, lamb, mutton, veal, or game, including theiroffal. The liquids can bebroth,stock, water, wine, milk, cream or tomato, often in combination. If tomatoes are included, they are typically limited relative to the meat, making it a meat stew rather than a tomato sauce with added meat.
In southern Italian regions, ragù is often prepared from substantial quantities of large, wholecuts of beefandpork, and sometimes regionalsausages, cooked with vegetables and tomatoes. After a longbraise(orsimmer), the meats are removed and may be served as a separate course without pasta. Examples of these dishes areragù alla napoletana(Neapolitan ragù) andcarne al ragù.
The term comes from the Frenchragoûtand reached theEmilia-Romagnaregion in the late 18th century, perhaps followingNapoleon's 1796 invasion and occupation of those northern regions.
The first ragù as a sauce,ragù per i maccheroni, was recorded by Alberto Alvisi, the cook to theCardinal of Imola(at the timemaccheroniwas a general term forpasta, both dried and fresh). The recipe was replicated and published asIl Ragù del Cardinale(The Cardinal's Ragù).Alvisi was inspired by the famous Frenchragoût, which became popular in Italy when Napoleon's soldiers brought it during their invasion in 1796. Wealthy and aristocratic Italians were fascinated by French culture and food, so they happily embraced the opportunity to include classic French dishes such as ragoût in their culinary traditions.
After the early 1830s, recipes for ragù appear frequently in cookbooks from the Emilia-Romagna region. By the late 19th century the cost of meat saw the use of heavy meat sauces on pasta reserved tofeast daysand Sundays, and only among the wealthier classes of the newly unified Italy.
Independent research by Kasperand De Vita indicates that, while ragù with pasta gained popularity through the 19th century, it was largely eaten by the wealthy. However, technological advances that came with the industrial revolution at the end of the 19th century made pasta flour more affordable for the less affluent. The adoption of pasta by the common classes further expanded in the period of economic prosperity that followedWorld War II. According to De Vita, before World War II, 80% of the Italian rural population ate a diet based on plants; pasta was reserved for special feast days and was then often served in a legume soup.