Salsiccia and kale ragù

I MADE THIS SAUCE FROM LEFTOVER MEATBALL SAUCE THAT I HAD IN THE FREEZER, AND IT WAS AWESOME! I JUST THROW IN SOME CUT UP SALSICCIA, FRESH KALE, KING OYSTER MUSHROOMS, AND CHOPPED TOMATOES. SO EASY AND SO QUICK! NEXT TIME YOU HAVE LEFTOVER TOMATO SAUCE, THIS COMBO IS A REAL TIME SAVER! 

I made a spaghetti and meatballs lunch with this recipe for my preggo friend Nicole and her daughter Emersyn just a couple of weeks ago. I didn’t have much time, so I just got some fresh beef/pork meatballs and did the sauce that morning. In the end, we finished all the pasta and meatballs, but I have one meatball and almost 500 g of sauce left! 

Part 1

Tomato-based pasta sauce

Ingredients

• 2 x 400g canned chopped tomatoes (I use Mutti)
• 1 medium carrot, finely chopped
• 1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
• 2-3 garlic cloves, trimmed, peeled and thinly sliced
• 2 stalks of fresh thyme
• 1 tbsp tomato paste/concentrate
• dash of balsamic vinegar
• dash of Worcestershire sauce
• pinch of caster sugar
• sea salt and pepper, to taste
• olive oil

Recipe Preparation

Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a frying pan on medium high heat.

Fry carrot, onion, and garlic until soft, about 5-8 minutes. Add thyme and tomato paste, frying until fragrant.

Add canned tomatoes, balsamic vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, and sugar. Once it starts bubbling, turn the heat down to medium. Let it simmer for a minimum of 30 minutes. Remove thyme from the sauce and season with salt and pepper.

Part 2

Ingredients

• 300 g Salsiccia, cut into bite-sized pieces
• About 2 leaves of curly kale, with stems removed, torn into bite-sized pieces
• 3-4 pieces of king oyster mushroom, cut into strips
• Olive oil for frying
• Sea salt and pepper
• Extra balsamic vinegar and Worcestershire sauce to taste (optional)

Recipe Preparation

Put kale in a medium bowl, and drizzle a bit of olive oil over it, using your hands to massage it until soft. Set aside.

Heat olive oil in a big frying pan on medium-high heat. Fry salsiccia bites until browned all over.

Add mushrooms and fry until browned. Lower the heat to medium, add kale, and fry until softened.

You can skim off some oil from the pan if there’s too much from the sausage. Add tomato sauce from Part 1 and mix to combine. Reduce heat and simmer ragù for about 10-15 minutes.

Serve with pasta or fresh country bread.