Slow-Cooker Italian Sunday Gravy
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS We love the flavor and heartiness of Sunday gravy, but not the laundry list of ingredients
or hours of monitoring the stovetop. For a streamlined recipe, we turned to our slow
cooker and narrowed the meat selection down to three: flank steak, for meaty flavor;
country-style spareribs, for tender, fall-off-the-bone meat; and sausage, for its
spicy, sweet kick. Using the flavorful drippings left behind from browning the sausage
to sauté our aromatics infused the whole dish with flavor. And a combination of drained
diced tomatoes, canned tomato sauce, and tomato paste ensured a rich, thick sauce.
See the sidebar that follows the recipe.
SERVES 8 TO 10
Most sausage has enough seasoning to make extra salt unnecessary. This recipe makes enough to sauce 2 pounds of pasta. We like rigatoni, ziti, or penne with this sauce.
|
1 |
tablespoon vegetable oil |
|
1 |
pound sweet Italian sausage |
|
1 |
pound hot Italian sausage |
|
2 |
onions, chopped |
|
12 |
garlic cloves, minced |
|
2 |
teaspoons dried oregano |
|
1 |
(6-ounce) can tomato paste |
|
½ |
cup dry red wine |
|
1 |
(28-ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained |
|
1 |
(28-ounce) can tomato sauce |
|
2 |
pounds bone-in country-style pork spareribs, trimmed |
|
1 |
(1½-pound) flank steak, trimmed |
|
3 |
tablespoons chopped fresh basil |
|
Pepper |
1. Heat oil in Dutch oven over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add sweet sausage and cook until well browned and fat begins to render, about 8 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer sausage to paper towel–lined plate to drain, then place in slow cooker. Repeat with hot sausage; transfer to slow cooker.
2. Cook onions in rendered fat over medium heat until well browned, about 6 minutes. Stir in garlic and oregano and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add tomato paste and cook until it begins to brown, about 5 minutes. Stir in wine and simmer, scraping up browned bits, until wine is slightly reduced, about 3 minutes. Transfer to slow cooker. Stir in diced tomatoes and tomato sauce.
3. Submerge spareribs and steak in sauce in slow cooker. Cover and cook until meat is tender, 8 to 10 hours on low or 4 to 5 hours on high.
4. About 30 minutes before serving, remove ribs, steak, and sausages and set aside until cool enough to handle. Shred ribs and steak into small pieces, discarding excess fat and bones; slice sausages in half crosswise. Skim fat from surface of sauce, then stir sausages and shredded meat back into sauce. Stir in basil and season with pepper to taste. Serve. (Gravy can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.)
TO MAKE AHEAD: Slow-Cooker Italian Sunday Gravy can be made in advance through step 2. After stirring in diced tomatoes and tomato sauce, add browned sausages and simmer over medium-low heat until cooked through, about 12 minutes. Refrigerate sausage and sauce in airtight container for up to 2 days. To cook gravy, warm sauce and sausages together over medium heat until heated through; transfer to slow cooker. Proceed with step 3.