Afterwhich,slowlybutsurely,cookingit became
a collectivepractice.Whatwecalltraditionsare
oftenincidentaltokitchenaccidents.
Bytheearly20thcentury,ragùconsumptionwas
firmlyestablishedinBologna,LaGrassa,“TheFat
One”,sonicknamedonaccountofitscitizens’liking
forlavishfood.Inthe1920s,as partoftheFascistplan
togiveItaliansa “frugal,warriorlifestyle”– totoughen
themupforthebellicoseempire-buildingtocome- a watered-downragùsurrogatecalledConditwas
introducedtothecity.It wassupposedtoreplacethe
sumptuousoriginal,butit nevercaughton.Neither
didtheFascistattempttoItalianiseragùintoragutto.
I’veneverheardthewordusedandknownoonewho
remembersit.TheinhabitantsofBolognaandthe
surroundingEmilia-Romagnaregionweren’tgoing
toletMussolinimesswiththenameoftheirbeloved
sauce,stilllessscrewuptheingredients.
Yetjustastherearewinetasterswhoare
teetotallers,sothereareBolognesiwhocan’tabide
ragù.Campaniniherselfdetestsit.“I’mrepelledby
theideaofmincedmeatcookedinliquidcoming
intocontactwithsoftpasta.Allthatgooeyness.
Yuck!”Degustibusnondisputandumest,butshe’s
definitelyintheminority.A studentfromBologna
I onceknewtoldmeheateragùsixdaysa week.
A goodCatholic,onFridaysheatefish.
The“official”recipeforragù– involvingminced
beef,pancetta,whiteorredwine,beefbroth,a spot
oftomatopassataorpurée,milk,onion,carrot,celery,
saltandpepper– wasregisteredat theBologna
ChamberofCommercein1982.It waschosen
randomlyfroma shortlistof 20 orso,whichgoes
toshowthatdomesticcookingrecipesaren’treally
recipesat all– everyonedoestheirownthing.Nor
is ragùallaBolognesetheonlyItalianragù.Travel
aroundthecountryandyou’llfindcountlessvariations
onthetheme:thegamesaucesofCentralItalymade
withwildboar,venisonorhare;the veal and mushroom
toccoofLiguria;thechicken
liverandsausageconcoctions
ofPiedmont;theragùdistridoli,
a delicacyofRomagnafeaturing
theleavesofthebladder
campion,a wildflower.All
justdropsintheragùocean.
O
n thatfirsttrainjourneyofmine,
I travellednofurthersouththanRome.
If I had,I wouldhavediscoveredthat
inNaplestheplot– orrather,theragù- thickens.Literallyso.RagùNapoletano,infact,
consistsofwholechunksofbeeforpork,sometimes
withtheadditionofstuffedvealroulades,sausage
andmeatballs– slow-braisedintomatosauce.It starts
to cook at the crack of dawn (if not the night before)
andcontinuesuntillunchtime,allowingthemeatto
soften,thesaucetodensify.Thebestwasoncesaid
tobetheragùdeiportieri,ragùofthedoorkeepers,
whosejoballowedthemtokeeponeeyeonthefront
doorandoneonthebubblingpot.
If ragùallaBolognese’sfunctionis todresspasta,or
occasionallyriceandpolenta,withragùNapoletanoyou
havethemakingsofa meal.First,thebrick-redsauce
goesontothepasta,preferablypenne,rigatoni,paccheri
orziti.Then,forthesecondcourse,themeatis sliced
andservedwithbroccolirabe.If there’sanyleftover
sauce,it’seatenthenextdaywithfriedeggsorrice.
In the late 18th century,as capitalofa kingdomthat
comprisedmostofthesouthern
mainlandandthewholeof
Sicily,Napleswasoneofthe
largestcitiesinEurope.In
theteemingmetropolis,class
bordersranlikefreshpaint.
“Beggars,princesandbishops
jostleeachotherineverystreet,”
notedMarkTwain.Likewise,therefinedcuisineof
theFrench-trainedchefs,ormonzù(a Neapolitan
corruptionofmonsieur)oftheBourboncourtand
thenoblepalazziintermingledwiththefoodofthe
poor,themangiamaccheroni,ormacaroni-eaters.
InthecaseofragùNapoletano,theuseofmeatwas
patrician,eatingit withpastaplebeian.
If Bolognesiflirtwiththeirragù,Neapolitansare
involved in a love affair that borders on the obsessiveThe inhabitantsof
Bolognaweren’tgoing
toletMussolini mess
with their beloved sauce.Naples.Right:Andreas
Papadakis’srigatoni
ragùBolognese.
PREVIOUSPAGES
Left:ragùNapoletana.
Right: Bologna.70 GOURMET TRAVELLER
RECIPESCATHERINEADAMS,KHANDANIS&ANGELFERNANDEZ(RAGÙNAPOLETANO)&ANDREAS PAPADAKIS (RAGÙ BOLOGNESE). PHOTOGRAPHY MARK ROPER (RAGÙ) & GETTY IMAGES (NAPLES).