Venetian Duck Ragu and Pappardelle

A rich Venetian duck ragu made with cinnamon, orange, white wine and tossed with pappardelle pasta. This beautiful pasta dish has a festive feel to it but can be eaten all year round. It's comforting, easy to prepare and sure to impress!

This duck ragu is something we make when we want something extra special, it feels so luxurious and festive yet it's easy to prepare. A lot of Venetian recipes contain cinnamon and orange making them stand out from what you would usually associate Italian food with.

Annnd although it has warming spices they are subtle, it doesn't taste sweet. It gives a tiny hint of something special and out of the norm, something truly good!

This duck ragu is traditionally served with pappardelle pasta it's silky, rich and completely moreish. Like curl up on the couch with a big bowl of the stuff or serve it on a platter at a dinner party, it fits any occasion. You could also make it into lasagne (so good), Imagine dishing a big bubbling duck ragu lasagne up on a Sunday afternoon, oh yeah!

What Does Duck Taste Like?

Duck has a strong but not overpowering and slightly 'gamey' taste to it and it's also slightly sweet. It's a dark meat although not like beef, it's more like the dark meat you would find on a chicken or turkey. It's utterly good and can be made into so many different dishes, this ragu being our favourite.

How To Make Duck Ragu – Step By Step

Season the duck with salt and pepper then rub it all over with cinnamon. Sear it skin down first in a large pan with a little olive oil on a medium to low heat for 7-8 minutes on each side until browned, set aside on a plate (photo 1).

Add finely chopped carrot, onion and celery, orange zest, bay leaf and 1/2 tsp cinnamon with a touch more olive oil and saute slowly for 10 minutes, stirring often until the vegetables are soft (photo 2).

Add the duck back to the pan and add the wine, reduce the wine by half then add the orange juice, pureed tomatoes (passata), tomato paste and stock stir to combine all the ingredients and simmer slowly for 2 hours turning the duck round halfway through (photos 2 – 6).

The sauce should be thick and rich. Turn the sauce off the heat and remove the duck legs, let it cool on a chopping board for 10 minutes then shred the meat off the bone using a fork. Roughly chop it then add it back to the sauce, the ragu is ready at this point so heat the ragu up while your pasta is cooking (photos 7-9).

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pappardelle according to packet instructions. Remove the pasta with large tongs or a spaghetti spoon (if draining reserve some pasta water to add to the sauce in case it has reduced too much) and add to the ragu. Toss to coat and serve in bowls with a sprinkling of freshly grated parmesan cheese.

What Pasta To Serve Your Ragu With

Pappardelle is our favourite and recommended pasta shape for serving with this ragu but you could also use tagliatelle, pici or rigatoni which will also work well. You can use store-bought or follow our recipe to make homemade pasta here.

Or you could serve the ragu on top of creamy polenta or even make it into lasagne, follow our assembly instruction in this lasagne recipe but replace the beef ragu with this duck ragu. When making the bechamel sauce We recommend only using a little parmesan because other cheeses would be too overpowering.

Kitchen tip

• sear the meat in the pan first. This helps seal in moisture, keeping the meat juicy and also adds flavor to the sauce. You also want to crisp up the skin as best you can ready for simmering in the sauce.
• Take your time when sauteing the vegetables, this is where a lot of flavors develop so do not rush it and don't be tempted to turn up the heat.
• let the duck rest when you remove it from the sauce before shredding, if you cut into it too quickly the meat will toughen up.
• If you don't like cinnamon you can omit it but it enhances the flavor of the duck.
• season the duck well with salt and pepper before cooking and also taste the ragu at the end to make sure it has enough seasoning, add more salt if required.
• Use good quality chicken stock (homemade if possible), if you don't have this use vegetable. Please be aware that store-bought stocks can be heavily salted so always taste the ragu before adding salt in at the end.
• Use a high-quality pasta brand this is one of our favourite and widely available or follow our recipe for homemade pasta.

More Ragu Recipes You Might Like:

• Genovese Sauce – La Genovese Napoletana
• Easy Sausage Ragu with Ricotta Gnocchi
• Italian Beef Ragu – A Classic Recipe
• Lentil Ragu Lasagne

Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

• 2 large duck legs
• 1 carrot (finely chopped)
• 1 onion (finely chopped)
• 1 stick celery (finely chopped)
• 1/2 orange zest
• 1/2 juice of 1 orange
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 cup (150g) passata (pureed tomatoes)
• 1 heaped tbsp tomato paste
• 2/3 cup (150ml) white wine
• 5 cups (1.2 litres) chicken stock
• salt and pepper
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 14 oz (400g) pappardelle pasta
• parmesan (, for serving)

Method

1. Season the duck with salt and pepper then rub it all over with 1/2 tsp cinnamon. Sear it skin down first in a large pan with a little olive oil on a medium to low heat for 7-8 minutes on each side until browned, set aside on a plate.

2. Add 1 tbsp of olive oil to the same pan, add the chopped carrot, onion and celery, orange zest, bay leaf and 1/2 tsp cinnamon and saute slowly for 10 minutes, stirring often until the vegetables are soft.

3. Add the duck back to the pan and add the wine, reduce the wine by half then add the orange juice, pureed tomatoes (passata), tomato paste and stock stir to combine all the ingredients and simmer slowly uncovered for 2 hours turning the duck around halfway through. If the sauce reduces too much add more stock or water.

4. Turn the sauce off the heat and remove the duck legs, let it cool on a chopping board for 10 minutes then shred the meat off the bone using a fork. Roughly chop it then add it back to the sauce, the ragu is ready at this point so heat the ragu up while your pasta is cooking.

5. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pappardelle according to packet instructions. Remove the pasta with large tongs or a spaghetti spoon (if draining reserve some pasta water to add to the sauce in case it has reduced too much) and add to the ragu. Toss to coat and serve in bowls with a sprinkling of freshly grated parmesan cheese.

Kitchen notes

• Sear the meat in the pan first. This helps seal in moisture, keeping the meat juicy and also adds flavor to the sauce. You also want to crisp up the skin as best you can ready for simmering in the sauce.
• Take your time when sauteing the vegetables, this is where a lot of flavors develop so do not rush it and don't be tempted to turn up the heat.
• Let the duck rest when you remove it from the sauce before shredding, if you cut into it too quickly the meat will toughen up.
• If you don't like cinnamon you can omit it but it enhances the flavor of the duck.
• Season the duck well with salt and pepper before cooking and also taste the ragu at the end to make sure it has enough seasoning, add more salt if required.
• Use good quality chicken stock (homemade if possible), if you don't have this use vegetable. Please be aware that store-bought stocks can be heavily salted so always taste the ragu before adding salt in at the end.
• Use a high-quality pasta brand, this is one of our favourite and widely available or follow our recipe for homemade pasta.