Two things we love at FB, Italian food and lamb dishes! This Lamb and Turnip Ragu is so craveable it will become an instant hit, no doubt about it. Lamb has such a unique and potent flavor. We believe it to be highly underutilized in Western cuisine. This recipe provides a great opportunity to break away from monotony of chicken, beef, or pork – the dominant proteins featured on American dinner tables.
Ragu
Ragu? What the …?
No, not the commonly found brand of pasta sauce you may find in your local grocery store. At least not here. A ragu is a meat-based sauce commonly served with pasta. It is a thicker sauce with big flavor that pairs excellently with shorter, tubular pastas like rigatoni or other pastas that take on heartier sauces well. We grabbed a farfalle for this version but it can be easily subbed.
You may have seen it spelled ragout in certain instances. This is a French word with similar pronunciation, however they are different, with the Italian ragu being the aforementioned sauce while the French ragout is a stew.
If you’re so inclined you can read the brief Wikipedia article here to learn more.
Turnips
One last order of business before we get started – the turnip. These easily bypassed root vegetables can be prepared a variety of ways (even try grilling them as a side dish, yum!) and can uniquely improve a dish. They are a little potato-like, a little onion-like, and a little sweet when prepared in the manner of this recipe. Gone are the days when your grandparents boiled everything (turnips included – why?!), destroying the wonderful flavors – and nutrients – many vegetables provide. Given the name of this blog, we think this is sacrilege. OK, now that we have that off our chest it’s time to jump off the soapbox and into the kitchen.
Preparation
Grab those ingredients and start prepping!
Once prepped, start with a large saute pan and heat a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil. Add the turnips and cook until browned, stirring and turning occasionally to brown all sides. Set aside. Wipe out excess oil.
Add the lamb to the pan and cook until browned, breaking up with the side of a spoon as you stir. Once the lamb is browned, set it aside and discard about half the drippings.
Place the pan back onto the burner with reserved drippings and add the onion, carrot, celery, garlic, and rosemary. Cook until tender, stirring occasionally.
Add the tomato paste and cook for another several minutes, stirring frequently. Really mix the ingredients together.
Return the lamb and turnips back to the pan along with a cup of water. Continue cooking until liquid is reduced and sauce thickens up.
While the sauce is doing its thing, now is a good time to salt some water and bring to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to the package instructions, usually about 10 minutes (or until al dente).
Drain the pasta but reserve a half cup or slightly more. Add the pasta and kale to ragu pan. Pour in the reserved pasta water, stirring frequently for about 2 minutes or until kale is wilted and all ingredients are thoroughly mixed. Remove from heat (Note: you can cook for another couple of minutes until sauce reaches desired consistency; should be a hearty, fairly thick consistency and not runny).
Now, our second favorite part – plating! Grab your favorite bowls dish some goodness into each, top with some grated parmesan cheese and chopped parsley.
The best part is next. You know what to do. Buon appetito!
If you like it, let us know what you think. If you don’t, you might not be human…
Equipment: Lamb and Turnip Ragu
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A quality set of pans is unquestionably one of the most essential items a home cook can have. For this dish we used a stainless steel skillet. We love the All-Clad skillets because they will last a lifetime if cared for making them far more valuable than any price tag. Take a look and see if this one may suit your needs (affiliate link)!
If you liked that, try this…
- Rigatoni alla Puttanesca
- Spaghetti Squash Cacio e Pepe
- Easy Homemade Vodka Sauce
- Homemade Pomodoro Sauce with Fresh Tomatoes
- Zucchini Lasagna
- Rigatoni San Giorgio
- Scallops Florentine over Pappardelle
- Ragu Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms
Help Us Grow!
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Lamb and Turnip Ragu
Ingredients
- 1 lb. Ground Lamb
- 2 Turnips, Medium peeled and cut into wedges
- 12 oz. Pasta we used farfalle but user's choice
- 1 tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 Large Carrot, Peeled and Diced
- 1 Large Celery Stalk, Diced
- 1 Sweet Onion, Diced
- 6 cloves Garlic, Minced
- 1 small can Tomato Paste Approx, 4 tbsp.
- 2 tsp. Rosemary, chopped
- 1 cup Kale, chopped Can sub another green of choice, if desired.
- 4 tbsp. Parmesan Cheese, grated
- ¼ cup Italian Parsley, chopped
- Salt and Pepper To taste, approx. ½ tsp. of each
Instructions
- Wash and prep all herb and vegetable ingredients. Heat 1 tbsp. of extra virgin olive oil on medium heat in a large saute pan (preferably one with high sides)
- Add the turnips to the pan and add a healthy pinch of salt and pepper. Cook until browned, stirring occasionally to brown all sides, approximately 6 – 7 minutes. Remove and set aside. Wipe out excess olive oil.
- Return the pan to the burner and allow to come back to heat. Add the ground lamb, stirring and breaking apart. Cook until browned, approximately 5 minutes. Set aside in a bowl leaving the drippings in the pan (discard about half of the drippings).
- In the pan with the remaining drippings, add the onion, carrot, celery, garlic, and rosemary once the pan has returned to heat. Cook until tender (this can vary depending on the size of the dice but should take about 10 minutes.
- Add in the tomato paste and cook for another 5 minutes, stirring frequently and mixing all ingredients together.
- Return the lamb and turnips to the pan along with approximately 1 cup of water. Cook for another 8 – 10 minutes, or until sauce is reduced to a thickened state.
- During this step grab a pasta pot or sauce pan and bring salted water to a boil (a healthy pinch or a couple grinds on a grinder should do). Boil the pasta according to the package instructions, approximately 10 minutes or until al dente.
- Drain the pasta (reserving ½ – ¾ cup of pasta water). Add the pasta and kale to the pan. Pour in the reserved pasta water, stirring frequently for about 2 minutes or until kale is wilted and all ingredients are thoroughly mixed. Remove from heat (Note: can cook for another couple of minutes until sauce reaches desired consistency; should be a hearty, fairly thick consistency and not runny).
- Divide dish into bowls, sprinkle with desired amount of grated parmesan and parsley.
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